Listen: parents struggle to keep children’s hands clean

More than half of parents admit it’s a constant battle to get their children to wash their hands.

Mums and dads of 3–16-year-olds say the biggest struggle is before eating (27%), after using the toilet (25%) and even when returning home from school (23%).

The research by hand hygiene experts Carex* has shown that during a typical day, parents wash their hands eight times whereas their kids only do so six times.

However, more than a fifth of kids only wash their hands three times or fewer, resulting in a quarter of parents questioning if they’ve taught their children how to wash their hands properly.

Aston spoke to Dr Jonathan Cox, senior lecturer in microbiology at Aston University.