This Wednesday, October 15th, is the first ever Global Handwashing Day, and this year, 2008, was declared by the UN General Assembly as the International Year of Sanitation.
Currently, 2.6 billion people around the world don't have basic sanitation facilities. The UN's goal is to reduce that number by half by the year 2015, by raising public awareness about the role of sanitation in spread of infectious disease.
The vision for Global Handwashing Day is to educate people about handwashing with soap. It is estimated that more than 2 million children die each year from diarrheal disease, and 1 million of these deaths could be eliminated by handwashing with soap. For many individuals in developing countries, the issues at hand (no pun intended) may be cultural in nature, and one of the main goals of this event is to provide education and training for proper handwashing in order to eliminate disease. Global Handwashing Day will be celebrated by a week of activities in more than 20 countries spanning 5 continents with the goal to initiate changes in handwashing behavior.
Teachers, parents, and other educators: I urge you to take a look at the website, download their educational materials, and take advantage of this special day to educate others in your immediate circle of influence.
Spread the word (not the germs), save the world.
Happy Global Handwashing Day!
Can’t believe I missed it. Oh well. I am a big handwasher believe me, but I think we also need to understand that antibiotic soap use is one way that we are becoming immune to antibiotics and creating super-bugs. Regular soap please.
jh
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