Are You Washing Your Hands the Right Way?

From doorknobs and elevator buttons to counter tops, desks, and keyboards, nearly every surface that we come into contact with is ridden with microscopic germs. Some of these germs are completely harmless, whereas others seek to cause infection and disease. The good news is that you can protect yourself from infectious illness caused by the spread of germs by washing your hands on a regular basis.

But according to a new study conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO) has found that most people wash their hands poorly, making this otherwise beneficial process less effective at stopping the spread of germs. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has long touted a simple 3-step process for handwashing, which most Americans follow. However, WHO officials are now recommending a longer 6-step process for handwashing that they believe is more effective.

Here's the 6-step handwashing process as recommended by the WHO:

1. Apply hand sanitizer
2. Rub one palm over the back of the opposite hand and interlock fingers. Repeat this step with the other hand. 
3. Interlock fingers together with palms facing each other.
4. Curl fingers together with thumbs on opposite side.
5. Grab thumb with entire opposite hand and rotate. Repeat with other hand and thumb.
6. Rub fingertips of one hand into palm of opposite hand. Repeat with other hand.

Granted, you can expect this 6-step handwashing process to take longer than the CDC's 3-step process, but experts are saying that it's more effective at preventing germs from spreading. In fact, researchers wrote in the Journal of Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology that it could potentially reduce bacteria by as much as 21%, whereas the CDC's method reduced bacteria by just 6.5%.

"The study provides the first evidence in a randomized controlled trial that the 6-step technique is superior, thus these international guidance documents should consider this evidence, as should healthcare organizations using the 3-step technique in practice," wrote the study's researchers.

In addition to washing your hands the correct way, there are other steps that you can take to reduce the spreading of germs. For instance, avoid touching your mouth, nose and face after touching surfaces on which germs thrive. This is particularly important when touching surfaces like doorknobs and gas station pumps, simply because dozens if not hundreds of other people touch them on a daily basis. Keeping a bottle of hand sanitizer in your pocket can prove invaluable in stopping germs in their track, which could mean the difference between you staying healthy and getting sick.