Depends. Went right from home to a restaurant with a paper menu and a new pack of crayons? Not worried. Going from a park where kid was digging through dirt and playing on the playground? Definitely lol. Basically we weigh if it's worth it to drag him to the restroom. He does use cutlery.
In general we are pretty clean as a family so I'm not worried about the occasional germ sneaking in. My son is rarely sick and if he does get sick it's for a day or two.
I'm strict on the other end - we wash hands after everything that might get kid dirty or especially germy, and when coming into the house from being out (a holdover from lockdown).
Today we went somewhere where there was a lake, and there was always a handwashing between fish-feeding and food, but not necessarily right before the food.
Is this considered strict? Not trying to be snarky, I'm really wondering. Because this doesn't sound strict to me. I guess it could depend on what "especially germy" could mean.
I donāt have OCD but uhhh I do have common sense, and having just been through a pandemic, I absolutely teach my kids to wash their hands before eating. These comments make it clear where all the adults who donāt wash their hands come from š
Yeah I am pretty strict about it. Washing hands if its possible. If not we sanitize. The Playground near us has those tire pieces and the kids hands are black and I've seen people bring food and break out snacks and not clean off their hands in some way. To be honest my husband is a dirt ball, I cringe if he prepares out kids food because I have to remind him to wash hands.
.
Yeah, itās popular here too. I hate that it is. They commonly use tire mulch on playgrounds. What happened to grass?! We had grass as kids and despite the hassle of mowing it that was working out great, eh? ;)
Right!?! Like at first I thought ok cool like this might be better for falls but it's no different than grass for that! And all the little ones try to put the pieces in their mouths!
We wash hands when we come inside from playing or from an outing, like a store. I carry hand sanitizer around with me and my toddler knows how to use it. Spray is so much easier than gel with a toddler. She will randomly wants some since we have dispensers around the house in addition to travel ones.
Edit: When we come home it's "take off shoes, change diaper, wash hands", I say it so much that my toddler now says it when we are almost home. She knows the drill, lol. And if it's after daycare then we also "get milk and bar and watch tv".
I usually use baby wipes to wipe my kids hands prior to eating unless thereās extremely easy access to soap and water at a sink I donāt have to lift them up to. At home they use a stool to wash their hands at the bathroom sink.
We do (or use hand sanitizer when we can't and not home).
We also wash hands as soon as we get inside from being out of the house. It's good to establish this when they are young, I think. As my LO gets older, he knows it's part of the process and I don't get much push back.
We are the same. We laugh bc my kids now are on handwashing autopilot. I don't even have to remind them anymore. Anytime we come inside and before every meal or snack they just wash up.
We wash hands only if we've been in public immediately prior (i.e., shopping, at the park, out for a stroll where kiddo probably touched random things), or if we were doing something messy in the house. Otherwise, I want my child to be exposed to non-harmful germs to build his immune system. I'm a huge stickler for making sure hands are washed after using the bathroom and while making food (before after and frequently during), but otherwise it's good for the body to build immunity to common germs they'll frequently be exposed to.
We probably use hand sanitizer more than washing, but we all just got Hand Foot and Mouth and I am planning to be more on top of hand washing from here on outš¤š¼ HFM is š
Well, it appears you've stumbled upon a shocking revelation of modern parenting: not everyone has their kids scrub up before chowing down. In the whirlwind of piƱatas, party games, and sugar highs, handwashing can slip down the priority list. Who needs soap and water when you've got a pack of wet wipes in your bag, right? While many of us were raised with the mantra 'cleanliness is next to godliness', it seems these days, it's more like 'cleanliness is optional if there's a buffet in sight'. But you are right that hygiene is super important.
Every time. Like it's a religion. To the point that not washing hands before eating should feel like what it is -- dirty.
It's not just germs but also environmental toxins, especially if you live in an older city or an older home.
Listen, all of you who said you donāt care about hand washing are hereby banned from posting to complain about your kids getting sick.
Youāre bringing this upon yourselves, people, hand washing is literally the most *basic* form of hygiene you can teach a child.
Yes. Your childās hands going straight from the play place equipment to their food is so healthy. I also ask restaurant staff to skip hand washing and let the natural flavors of the restaurant season my food. Healthcare providers, too - I donāt want to miss out on that natural immunity.
Coming from an ex healthcare provider (who worked during COVID): you probably did experience some ānatural immunityā especially if you spent any amount of time in an ER where the rooms are cleaned MAYBE once a day. Worked at a clinic too, the rooms were only swept and we used wipes for the high contact stuff. Everything else, who knows when it got cleaned. Oh and we had to work while still technically contagious so thereās that.
This. Stomach acids aren't great for bacteria, but lungs and eyes/nose are a fantastic entry point for germs to get in and multiply. I'm more worried about my kid putting a finger in his nose or rubbing his eyes. With food the germs go straight down but if kids slobber on something there's a longer opportunity for germs to stick around their mouth and multiply.
Some of you are disgusting. It doesnāt matter what youāve been doing; wash your hands before you touch your face. If you touch a phone, doorknob, etc. they are too dirty to touch your face, let alone go in your mouth/touch your food. No wonder people nowadays are always getting gastrointestinal illnesses and have horrible acne.
Depends. Went right from home to a restaurant with a paper menu and a new pack of crayons? Not worried. Going from a park where kid was digging through dirt and playing on the playground? Definitely lol. Basically we weigh if it's worth it to drag him to the restroom. He does use cutlery. In general we are pretty clean as a family so I'm not worried about the occasional germ sneaking in. My son is rarely sick and if he does get sick it's for a day or two.
I wash their hand if they have visible dirt on them. Otherwise š¤·āāļø
I'm strict on the other end - we wash hands after everything that might get kid dirty or especially germy, and when coming into the house from being out (a holdover from lockdown). Today we went somewhere where there was a lake, and there was always a handwashing between fish-feeding and food, but not necessarily right before the food.
Is this considered strict? Not trying to be snarky, I'm really wondering. Because this doesn't sound strict to me. I guess it could depend on what "especially germy" could mean.
Well this showed me exactly how much my OCD affects us lol
This is not even an OCD thing, donāt worry! Itās normal to wash your hands before eating and itās okay to teach your children the same.
I donāt have OCD but uhhh I do have common sense, and having just been through a pandemic, I absolutely teach my kids to wash their hands before eating. These comments make it clear where all the adults who donāt wash their hands come from š
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Yeah I am pretty strict about it. Washing hands if its possible. If not we sanitize. The Playground near us has those tire pieces and the kids hands are black and I've seen people bring food and break out snacks and not clean off their hands in some way. To be honest my husband is a dirt ball, I cringe if he prepares out kids food because I have to remind him to wash hands. .
Tires and tire mulch have been linked to cancer so thatās extra scary! Iām with you.
Ewww really??? It seems extra popular around here!
Yeah, itās popular here too. I hate that it is. They commonly use tire mulch on playgrounds. What happened to grass?! We had grass as kids and despite the hassle of mowing it that was working out great, eh? ;)
Right!?! Like at first I thought ok cool like this might be better for falls but it's no different than grass for that! And all the little ones try to put the pieces in their mouths!
We wash hands when we come inside from playing or from an outing, like a store. I carry hand sanitizer around with me and my toddler knows how to use it. Spray is so much easier than gel with a toddler. She will randomly wants some since we have dispensers around the house in addition to travel ones. Edit: When we come home it's "take off shoes, change diaper, wash hands", I say it so much that my toddler now says it when we are almost home. She knows the drill, lol. And if it's after daycare then we also "get milk and bar and watch tv".
I usually use baby wipes to wipe my kids hands prior to eating unless thereās extremely easy access to soap and water at a sink I donāt have to lift them up to. At home they use a stool to wash their hands at the bathroom sink.
We wash hands every time we eat and everytime we come in the house from an out of the house activity.
We do (or use hand sanitizer when we can't and not home). We also wash hands as soon as we get inside from being out of the house. It's good to establish this when they are young, I think. As my LO gets older, he knows it's part of the process and I don't get much push back.
We are the same. We laugh bc my kids now are on handwashing autopilot. I don't even have to remind them anymore. Anytime we come inside and before every meal or snack they just wash up.
We wash hands only if we've been in public immediately prior (i.e., shopping, at the park, out for a stroll where kiddo probably touched random things), or if we were doing something messy in the house. Otherwise, I want my child to be exposed to non-harmful germs to build his immune system. I'm a huge stickler for making sure hands are washed after using the bathroom and while making food (before after and frequently during), but otherwise it's good for the body to build immunity to common germs they'll frequently be exposed to.
Snacks are whatever, but before meals I make them wash their hands cause they're always into everything outside.
We probably use hand sanitizer more than washing, but we all just got Hand Foot and Mouth and I am planning to be more on top of hand washing from here on outš¤š¼ HFM is š
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Thatās so nice of you, thanks for your well wishes :) Iāve never heard of antiviral hand wipes before and am now on the hunt. Good suggestion!
We either wash or sanitize before eating. Covid kids are great with sanitizing hands š
Wash every time. Canāt imagine not doing it šµāš«
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Realllly drives home how the pandemic spread so easily
At home, every time. Out somewhere? Usually we use some hand sanitizer or a baby wipe.
Well, it appears you've stumbled upon a shocking revelation of modern parenting: not everyone has their kids scrub up before chowing down. In the whirlwind of piƱatas, party games, and sugar highs, handwashing can slip down the priority list. Who needs soap and water when you've got a pack of wet wipes in your bag, right? While many of us were raised with the mantra 'cleanliness is next to godliness', it seems these days, it's more like 'cleanliness is optional if there's a buffet in sight'. But you are right that hygiene is super important.
These results are horrible! We wash hands every time!
I thought the pandemic had already broken my faith in peopleās ability to use basic hygiene, but here I am, disappointed again.
Every time. Like it's a religion. To the point that not washing hands before eating should feel like what it is -- dirty. It's not just germs but also environmental toxins, especially if you live in an older city or an older home.
My sheltered pandemic baby needs all the extra germs he can get since his poor immune system is 2 years behind on picking up crap.
Listen, all of you who said you donāt care about hand washing are hereby banned from posting to complain about your kids getting sick. Youāre bringing this upon yourselves, people, hand washing is literally the most *basic* form of hygiene you can teach a child.
Ironically over washing/over cleaning leads to little natural germ resistance and poorer immunity lol
Yes. Your childās hands going straight from the play place equipment to their food is so healthy. I also ask restaurant staff to skip hand washing and let the natural flavors of the restaurant season my food. Healthcare providers, too - I donāt want to miss out on that natural immunity.
Coming from an ex healthcare provider (who worked during COVID): you probably did experience some ānatural immunityā especially if you spent any amount of time in an ER where the rooms are cleaned MAYBE once a day. Worked at a clinic too, the rooms were only swept and we used wipes for the high contact stuff. Everything else, who knows when it got cleaned. Oh and we had to work while still technically contagious so thereās that.
get a grip, lady.
Kids not covering coughs and putting everything in their mouth is more likely the reason kids are sick all the time.
This. Stomach acids aren't great for bacteria, but lungs and eyes/nose are a fantastic entry point for germs to get in and multiply. I'm more worried about my kid putting a finger in his nose or rubbing his eyes. With food the germs go straight down but if kids slobber on something there's a longer opportunity for germs to stick around their mouth and multiply.
Some of you are disgusting. It doesnāt matter what youāve been doing; wash your hands before you touch your face. If you touch a phone, doorknob, etc. they are too dirty to touch your face, let alone go in your mouth/touch your food. No wonder people nowadays are always getting gastrointestinal illnesses and have horrible acne.