Wash your hands regularly to reduce the risk of infection

The culture of regular hand washing reduces the rate of contracting infectious diseases and saves lives, said Snežana Bajraktarević Labović, hygiene specialist at the Health Center in Bar.

On the initiative of the General Assembly of the United Nations three years ago, October 15 was established - Clean Hands Day, the goal of which is to develop the culture of hand washing, on a global and local level.

Bajraktarević Labović said that, although people wash their hands, a small number of them wash "in critical moments". "For example, few of them wash their hands after using the toilet, after caring for the baby and before preparing food."

According to her, the developed culture of washing hands with soap means a lower rate of contracting infectious diseases.

Bajraktarević Labović stated the facts about the importance of sanitary and health measures for people's health.

"Washing hands with soap is one of the most effective and cost-effective measures to prevent diarrhea and pneumonia - diseases that are most responsible for the death of children under one year old. "Every year, 3,5 million children in the world do not live to see their first birthday because of these diseases," said Bajraktarević Labović.

Spreading the habit of washing hands with soap, she added, can significantly contribute to reducing the death of children under the age of five by 2015 by two thirds.

"Hygiene interventions, which include education and promotion of hand washing, can lead to a reduction of more than 45 percent of cases of diseases accompanied by diarrhea," she said.