WEBVTT - Keep your hands clean

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Good Morning. This is Laura, Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is to keep your hands clean. Yep, this

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<v Speaker 1>is a public service reminder, but it is also about

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<v Speaker 1>productivity too. We can't control all the germs in our lives,

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<v Speaker 1>especially if we are caring for other people, but a

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<v Speaker 1>little extra care during cold and flu season can reduce

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<v Speaker 1>the amount of misery we experience along with all the

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<v Speaker 1>inefficiencies that come from being sick. So it is worth

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<v Speaker 1>taking the time to get this right. A great many

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<v Speaker 1>years ago, before COVID introduced hand sanitizer into all public spaces,

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<v Speaker 1>I read a study about hand sanitizers effects on employees

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<v Speaker 1>at a German university. About one administrative employees were studied

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<v Speaker 1>over a year. Half were given hand sanitizer and told

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<v Speaker 1>to use it about five times a day. The others

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<v Speaker 1>were told to follow their usual handwashing hygiene. Now I'm

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<v Speaker 1>pretty sure that these German workers weren't negligent with handwashing. Still,

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<v Speaker 1>it turned out that using hand sanitizers significantly decreased the

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<v Speaker 1>odds of being absent with a cold, cough, fever, or diarrhea.

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<v Speaker 1>So even if you are not worried about being absent

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<v Speaker 1>from work. Colds, coughs, fevers, and diarrhea aren't exactly fun

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<v Speaker 1>to experience, so the reduction in these symptoms was a

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<v Speaker 1>massive boost in life satisfaction too. We all know this.

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<v Speaker 1>Washing your hands with soap and water, and with hand

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<v Speaker 1>sanitizer in between visits to a sink can keep you

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<v Speaker 1>from transferring the germs that inevitably land on your hands

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<v Speaker 1>into your mouth or nose. During COVID, many of us

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<v Speaker 1>washed up and used hand sanitizer religiously. As life gets

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<v Speaker 1>back to normal, it's easy to become a little lax.

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<v Speaker 1>But after some recent bouts of illness in my house,

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<v Speaker 1>I am back to fundamentalism. I recently bought three huge

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<v Speaker 1>bottles of hand sanitizers so one could go in each car,

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<v Speaker 1>we take off shoes when we come into the house,

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<v Speaker 1>and so alongside that, I've been telling people to wash

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<v Speaker 1>their hands too. When we do normally wash, like after

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<v Speaker 1>going to the bathroom more before cooking, it's best to

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<v Speaker 1>rub the soap all around, make a production of it. Yes,

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<v Speaker 1>it is annoying to a wash for a full twenty seconds,

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<v Speaker 1>but you know what else is annoying? A cough that

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<v Speaker 1>lasts for two weeks, or a stomach bug that rips

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<v Speaker 1>its way through an entire family. Washing hands will not

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<v Speaker 1>ward off all illnesses. There's pretty good evidence that kids

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<v Speaker 1>get sick six to eight times per year, and if

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<v Speaker 1>you have many kids like I do, this is going

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<v Speaker 1>to add up. But if hand washing and hand sanitizing

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<v Speaker 1>helps a family avoid just one bout of illness, that

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<v Speaker 1>is still a big win. Every day of feeling sick

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<v Speaker 1>feels miserable. Not feeling miserable is a much better option.

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<v Speaker 1>So if you are listening to this and you've got

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<v Speaker 1>to sink nearby, go wash your hands or rub them

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<v Speaker 1>with hand sanitizer. If your home, you might take some

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<v Speaker 1>disinfectant your door knobs, light switches and faucets too. It

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<v Speaker 1>has been a rough winter already and it will likely

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<v Speaker 1>stay rough. Staying healthy is a worthwhile endeavor in the meantime.

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<v Speaker 1>This is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making

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<v Speaker 1>the most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to

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<v Speaker 1>hear from you. You can send me your tips, your questions,

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<v Speaker 1>or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook

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<v Speaker 1>and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod. That's b E. The

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<v Speaker 1>number four, then Breakfast p o D. You can also

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<v Speaker 1>shoot me an email at Before Breakfast Podcasts at iHeart

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<v Speaker 1>media dot com that before Breakfast is spelled out with

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<v Speaker 1>all the letters. Thanks so much, I look forward to

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<v Speaker 1>staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a production of I

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<v Speaker 1>heart Radio. For more podcasts from I heart Radio, visit

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