Six basic practices to maintain personal hygiene

Hygiene refers to the practices that are conducive to maintaining health and preventing disease.

This is mostly done through general cleanliness.

Hygiene is essential since it lowers the risk for diseases and illnesses that are spread through viruses and bacteria.

Poor hygiene occurs when one neglects their own personal needs.

This in turn increases the risk for viral, bacterial and parasitic infections.

Practicing good hygiene requires us to practice it on a regular basis. In fact, it is supposed to be part a daily routine.

The five basics to attaining personal hygiene include;

Dental hygiene

This is more that just extremely white teeth. Having proper dental hygiene keeps cavities and gum disease at bay.

Brushing your teeth at least twice a day for close to two minutes everyday is a basic way of maintaining dental hygiene.

Hand hygiene

We use our hands to handle almost everything that we need in our daily activities. 

This exposes them to a lot of bacteria.

If you are not keen about the hygiene on your hands, you could spread bacteria to your nose, eyes, mouth and ears since we unconsciously touch our faces.

We should ensure our hands are clean especially when we handle food or garbage, when we cough or sneeze or touch door handles and money.

This is also very specific to after we have used the washroom or handled soiled baby diapers.

Washing our hands properly after visiting the toilet is essential in maintaining proper hygiene.

Nail hygiene

Keeping our hands clean goes hand in hand with keeping our nails clean.

Long nails accumulate dirt and germs that could be transferred to our food.

Keeping our nails short ensures that they are clean even when we wash our hands.

Hygiene when we are sick

This is very important not only for yourself but for the sake of the people around you.

For instance, if you have a cold, you are likely going to be constantly coughing or sneezing.

Covering your mouth is important to ensure that the chances of spreading the bacteria to others whenever you sneeze is minimal.

Body hygiene

This is a general type of hygiene that is very essential to be done daily.

Taking a shower with soap at least twice a day keeps away body odour and bacteria that accumulates on the body.

Hair hygiene

Many forms of bacteria that could cause hair lice and dandruff tend to thrive in hair, whether natural or synthetic hair won mostly by women.

Hair should be washed and shampooed at least twice a week so as to maintain its general hygiene.