How many times do you wash your hands in an average day? / LJWorld.com

Asked at Massachusetts Street on March 19, 2007

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“When you think about it, it’s quite a lot. Let’s say 10 to 12.”

— Suzette McCord-Rogers, museum administrator, Lawrence

“Three or four times a day. Basically, however many times I go to the bathroom or prepare food.”

— Kevin Gassaway, Kansas University graduate student, Lawrence

“I’ll say five as a really rough estimate.”

— Haley Kreutzer, KU freshman, Leavenworth

“I’d say 10 to 15 just thinking of all the times I’m in the bathroom or working in the kitchen.”

— Michael Garrison, professor, Minneapolis, Minn.

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RETICENT_IRREVERENT 6 years, 2 months ago

Including purel?

70-80 maybe...

snap_pop_no_crackle 6 years, 2 months ago

More often than you'd believe.

EireishHawk 6 years, 2 months ago

So we're expected to wash our hands everyday? Whether they need it or not?

TheEleventhStephanie 6 years, 2 months ago

30ish. Better safe than sorry.

RonBurgandy 6 years, 2 months ago

Anywhere from 10-30 times depending on the day. Along with a some purell mixed in there.

tyger_lily 6 years, 2 months ago

I work in a school so at least 25-30, whenever I leave my office and have to touch a door handle. When I am not at work, I wash them whenever I come back from going anywhere and whenever I am going to touch food. Yup, I am a germ-a-phobic.

gccs14r 6 years, 2 months ago

Every time after blowing my nose or relieving myself, before handling food or dishes, and any other time they feel like they need it.

H_Lecter 6 years, 2 months ago

I wear latex gloves, so I don't get germs on them.

mick 6 years, 2 months ago

I added up all of the times I've washed my hands in my life and divided it by the number of days I've lived and came up with 4.38715269. Why do you ask?

Purell 6 years, 2 months ago

There is nothing more refreshing as a Purell colonic...for that fresh clean feeling

Tanetti 6 years, 2 months ago

With two kids in diapers, at least a zillion times a day, plus every time I handle raw eggs (every morning at breakfast, at least once) or raw meat. As a result, my hands are so dry that even in the summer I have to use Aquaphor (basically medicated Vaseline) to keep my hands from splitting open. My in-laws don't wash their hands after changing our kids' diapers. Ick!!! And there's no soap to be found anywhere near a sink in their house. So, so, so gross!

jonas 6 years, 2 months ago

Well. . . . . . . let's see, take a year, figure in my 13 washing times per year, so that's 365/13. . . . . or every 28 days so to speak. . . . so, what, 1/28 times a day? Sounds about right.

It's okay, though. I molt frequently.

jonas 6 years, 2 months ago

TV here in San Francisco is awesome! I can practice listening in all 4 languages that I know, on several different channels.

sunflower_sue 6 years, 2 months ago

Since I own the largest bottle of Purell ever made, it's safe to say: "More than most." Knock on wood...(then wash hands)...I've also not had so much as a cold this winter. :D

RETICENT_IRREVERENT 6 years, 2 months ago

I brush my teeth 15-20 times a day. Every group of papers must have an even number of pages, I will staple a blank piece of paper to make it even.
I don't do odds. My CD's must be in alphabetical order.

Ceallach 6 years, 2 months ago

It seems almost constant! We have two bottles of Purell in our reception area and single bottles in each office (and do a lot of cleaning with Clorox wipes).

If you think daycares spread a lot of germs, at least their parents keep them home if they are really, really sick. Most KU students have to drag their sick little butts to class and take care of administrative issues, no matter what. Unfortunately, a good number of faculty and staff are not very sympathetic and that puts a lot of pressure on students.

RETICENT_IRREVERENT 6 years, 2 months ago

I once borrowed part of a friends cd collection, started to alphabetize them, but thought she might think that was a bit obsessive...

Topside 6 years, 2 months ago

Most of you are full of it. If that's the case than how come four out of five people I'm ever in a public restroom with don't wash their hands. I would guess a good (truthfull) avg is more like 2ish

RETICENT_IRREVERENT 6 years, 2 months ago

prospector,

band, singers last name, album title.

Tried chronologically, but didn't like it. Tried autobiographically, but that just got messy.

Ceallach 6 years, 2 months ago

All y'all, please send out some good vibes for our ms_canada, she is having surgery this morning.

Gootsie 6 years, 2 months ago

Best wishes to Ms_C! I hope they wash their hands there too! Will she be back soon?

Pywacket 6 years, 2 months ago

Topside~ Do you think the cretins who do not wash their hands in public restrooms are posting to a public forum? Different population. When those folks aren't spreading germs in WalMart, they're sitting on the front porch, swigging corn squeezin's and watching the hounds fight over a possum haunch.

Lots of positive thoughts to Ms C!!

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go wash my hands.

sunflower_sue 6 years, 2 months ago

Good wishes to you Ms_C. (seems as though they bumped your date up a couple of days???) Wishing LOTS of hand washing goes on in the prep room today!

RI (Mr. Monk), You? Obsessive?

Azure_Attitude 6 years, 2 months ago

At least 15-20. A lot more if I am doing major cooking and I wash my hands so much they want to crack and bleed if I don't moisurtize sufficiently. I should buy stock in Camille Beckman.

Stop projecting, Topside. Just because you're gross doesn't mean the rest of us are. If you are a man, that would explain why you would think only 2ish was right. Most women I see come out of a stall wash thier hands. Studies have shown men are worse about that than women, generally speaking. And they have to touch theirs, EEEEEEEWWW!

sgtwolverine 6 years, 2 months ago

I have no idea how many times I wash my hands in an average day. Or in a good day, or in a bad day. But I still have two hands, so I must be okay.

Suggested follow-up question: how many times do you press the E key on your keyboard in an average day?

sunflower_sue 6 years, 2 months ago

sgt, I'm prtty sur that my kyboard dosn't hav an ky.

Gootsie 6 years, 2 months ago

thr million thr hundrd thirty thr thousand thr hundrd thirty thr

gccs14r 6 years, 2 months ago

I read that among Americans, 40% of women and 60% of men don't wash their hands after using the restroom.

RETICENT_IRREVERENT 6 years, 2 months ago

Sgt, Not sure, 56 more times than "Q"? I do know my posts today have: Cumulative word count of 96.. Syllable count of 162 Sentence count of 14. Paragraph count of 15. Flesch-Kincaid grade level readability grade level of 6.97.

RETICENT_IRREVERENT 6 years, 2 months ago

prospector, Thats the grammatik data.... Incomplete sentences? Maybe they count as full paragraphs, but not sentences?

jimincountry 6 years, 2 months ago

Reminds me of the guy at the office who after using the urinal would wash and blow dry only THE one hand.

00jester 6 years, 2 months ago

"I read that among Americans, 40% of women and 60% of men don't wash their hands after using the restroom."

Fecal matter is among us.

Pywacket 6 years, 2 months ago

The last office I worked in, there was a middle-management guy who used to take his coffee (in a ceramic mug) into the men's room with him! We could've had one of the guys spy on him and report on whether they guy was taking the cup into the stall for a relaxing sit or just standing at the urinal with it in one hand... But we really didn't want to know. That guy sent the Disgust-O-Meter right to the top.

For those dry, cracked, washed-a-hundred-times-a-day hands, there is nothing in the world that works better than pure lanolin. No, it doesn't smell great. And it feels weird going on. But about 15 minutes after you've rubbed it into your skin, after you've forgotten it and are in the middle of something else, you suddenly realize that your hands feel fantastic. I think it must seep in right to the bone.

I've recently discovered that you can buy it in liquified form at the Merc, which makes it easier to handle. If you care, you can mix essential oils into it for the scent. But damn.. that stuff is miraculous--and does not wash off, unlike most everything else.

I got turned on to lanolin after seeing a documentary about sheep once. There was this old guy who had been raising/shearing sheep for decades. He was in his 80s and looked it but he had the hands of a teenager. He said it was from handling lanolin-infused wool all day, every day. I was sold.

(Okay... the sheep farmer jokes can now begin.)

sunflower_sue 6 years, 2 months ago

Py, I prefer goats: http://youtube.com/watch?v=EMcbtmfDrVs&mode=related&search=

snap_pop_no_crackle 6 years, 2 months ago

"Posted by 00jester (anonymous) on March 19, 2007 at 12:46 p.m. (Suggest removal Fecal matter is among us."

Especially on the LJW threads that get political.

Gootsie 6 years, 2 months ago

I read once that lots more women don't wash their hands if no one is in the bathroom at the time. Maybe men too.

Hey Py, does lanolin leave your hands feeling greasy?

Ceallach 6 years, 2 months ago

Goots, kind of creepy that they can determine the washing rate if no one else is in the restroom. First question is . . did they use hidden cameras? Second, was Homeland Security involved :) ?

Pywacket 6 years, 2 months ago

Gootsie~ A qualified, "no." Qualified because, after you've first rubbed it all in, you can certainly feel it--and if you pick up a book or something, you'll smear the words under your fingers a little. So apply it when you can just let it be for a few minutes. It seems to just sink right into your flesh (that sounds a little scifi-ish, I know!) and once it's done that, it does not rub off or get on anything. You can feel the good effects for hours. When you wash, even using soap and drying vigorously with a towel, you can tell the lanolin is still there and does not come off. I've never found anything else that works that way. With other hand creams or lotions, I have to reapply after washing.

Pure lanolin is actually a little hard to apply. For dry legs and other delicate skin, it works better to mix it with mineral oil or your favorite hand lotion. Apply full strength to knees, elbows, and hands.

Geez...listen to me--by now you probably think I'm holding a major block of sheep future shares! ;-)

I don't advocate much of anything. I'm notoriously non-brand-loyal. So when something earns my endorsement, I'll plug it shamelessly.

Gootsie 6 years, 2 months ago

I bet Hannibal prefers the strawberry-flavored lanolin. I am going to try some - thanks Py!

Did you see that the CEO of Kansas University Hospital Irene Cumming just resigned?

Ceallach 6 years, 2 months ago

Well, seems I have to print a RETRACTION :-\

Ms_canada had pre-surgery tests today, her surgery is Thursday (that gives us a few extra days to encourage her, right? :) Sorry for the mistake, I have been fighting a migraine since last Friday and it seems to have jumbled my brain (like that is too hard to do!).

Pywacket 6 years, 2 months ago

Sue~ That's too funny! I love goats, but have never seen any of the fainting persuasion "in person." Do goat wranglers have nice hands, I wonder?

Ceal~ No harm done--just more time to formulate and send those positive thoughts her way. And keep a few for yourself, okay? Nasty business, migraines.

Mmm...strawberry lanolin... I've mixed essential oils of carnation and lavender with it, with good results.

The KU hospital fallout doesn't seem to be over, that's for sure. Sounds like some politics involved--but I don't know a lot about the situation.

ms_canada 6 years, 2 months ago

I just want to thank those who sent good wishes my way for the surgery. I spent 4+ hours in a pre admission clinic this morning. Xrays, blood work, ECG and exam by internist who pronounced me fit as a fiddle and I am good to go for surgery on Thur. am. This is minor stuff and I am not worried. but thanks guys for kind thoughts. Hand washing, well being an old nurse I learned early that hand washing was essential to good health. I have not had a cold or the flu in the past 12 years now. And I attribute that to hand washing, especially upon returning home from being out and about in the dirty city. And a good healthy way of eating helps.

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