“Hand hygiene saves millions of lives every year when performed at the right moments during health care delivery. It is also a smart investment that offers exceptional return for each dollar invested. Clean care is a sign of respect to those who seek care, and it protects health and other workers who provide that care.

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Facts about Handwashing:

• On average, you come into contact with 300 surfaces every 30 minutes, exposing you to 840,000 germs.
• Only about 5% of people wash their hands correctly.
• Most people only wash their hands for 6 seconds.
• Around 33% of people don’t use soap when washing their hands.
• Up to 80% of communicable diseases are transferred by touch.
• Proper handwashing can reduce diarrhea rates  by 40% and respiratory infections by close to 20%.
• Failing to wash hands correctly contributes to nearly 50% of all foodborne illness outbreaks.
• Only 20% of people wash their hands before preparing food, and 39% before eating food.
• About 7% of women and 15% of men do not wash their hands at all after using the bathroom.
• Most bacteria on our hands is on the fingertips and under the nails. The number of bacteria on our fingertips doubles after using the bathroom. Most people wash the palms of their hands and miss everything else.
• Damp hands are 1,000x more likely to spread bacteria than dry hands. Only about 20% of people dry their hands after washing them.
• There is fecal matter on 10% of credit cards, 14% of banknotes and 16% of cellphones.
• Approximately 39% of people don’t wash their hands after sneezing, coughing or after blowing their nose.
• Elevator buttons harbor 22% more bacteria than toilet seats.
• Reminder signs are successful in encouraging more handwashing.
• Dirty sinks result in less handwashing.
• Handwashing rates are higher in the mornings than evenings.

If everyone did handwashing properly many infections could be decreased from respiratory, nasal, to foodborne illnesses.  Good handwashing techniques can block alot of illnesses.  While the majority of people as high as 95% claim to practice proper hand hygiene, studies show that only 67% of people practice any sort of hand hygiene.

“80 % of communicable diseases are believed to be transmitted by human hands. According to the CDC and the latest research) is the most effective way to prevent the spread of Coronavirus and other communicable diseases is through washing your hands with soap and water frequently and correctly, following CDC guidelines. The U.S. as of Dec 2020 was currently experiencing the following that can be mitigated by regular hand washing, which was novel influenza virus pandemic, a national measles outbreak and a novel coronavirus pandemic.  Why all this awareness on handwashing people? Because we are bad at remembering as a population and even worse at how we wash our hands. A quick survey of five pre-covid handwashing studies showed that on average, only about 40% of men and 64% of women wash their hands after using a public restroom.” Even though there is some evidence of some small improvements in these figures after the covid pandemic, that still leaves about 60% of men and 34% of women walking around with contaminated hands, not to mention cell phones, wallets, credit cards, and everything else we touch.”.  If your not part of that percentile GREAT but if you are you may want to following hand washing week purpose with the including the understanding why.  Look at disease or illnesses that can come from contacting or droplet that can be decreased in being transmitted to others in one step handwashing if the person who is ill is not on isolation quarantined that take other actions with handwashing to prevent transmission to others.”

Avalon Memory of Care since 1995   (https://avalonmemorycare.com/national-hand-washing-awareness-month/)

When & How to Wash Your Hands

Keeping hands clean through improved hand hygiene is one of the most important steps we can take to avoid getting sick and spreading germs to others. Many diseases and conditions are spread by not washing hands with soap and clean, running water. If clean, running water is not accessible, as is common in many parts of the world, use soap and available water. If soap and water are unavailable, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol to clean hands.

When should you wash your hands?

• Before, during, and after preparing food
• Before eating food
• Before and after caring for someone who is sick
• Before and after treating a cut or wound
• After using the toilet
• After changing diapers or cleaning up a child who has used the toilet
• After blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing
• After touching an animal, animal feed, or animal waste
• After handling pet food or pet treats
• After touching garbage

How should you wash your hands?

• Wet your hands with clean, running water (warm or cold), turn off the tap, and apply soap.
• Lather your hands by rubbing them together with the soap. Be sure to lather the backs of your hands, between your fingers, and under your nails.
• Scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds. Need a timer? Hum the “Happy Birthday” song from beginning to end twice.
• Rinse your hands well under clean, running water.
• Dry your hands using a clean towel or air dry them.

What should you do if you don’t have soap and clean, running water?

Washing hands with soap and water is the best way to reduce the number of germs on them in most situations. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers can quickly reduce the number of germs on hands in some situations, but sanitizers do not eliminate all types of germs and might not remove harmful chemicals.

Hand sanitizers are not as effective when hands are visibly dirty or greasy.

How do you use hand sanitizers?

• Apply the product to the palm of one hand (read the label to learn the correct amount).
• Rub your hands together.
• Rub the product over all surfaces of your hands and fingers until your hands are dry.

 Almost everyone has dropped food on the floor and still wanted to eat it. Some people apply the “5-second rule” — that random saying about how food won’t become contaminated with bacteria if you pick it up off the floor in 5 seconds or less.

The 5-second rule has become such a part of our culture that scientists actually tested it. As you can probably guess, they found that the “rule” is mostly myth: Bacteria can attach to food even if you pick it up super fast. So, depending on which types of bacteria happen to climb on board, you could still get sick.

Here are two facts to consider whenever you feel tempted by the 5-second rule:

1. A clean-looking floor isn’t necessarily clean. A shiny linoleum floor is probably cleaner than a 1970s-era carpet. But even clean, dry floors can harbor bacteria. Newly washed floors are only as clean as the tools used to wash them (picture eating food off the mop in the cafeteria if you need a visual). Even with a brand-new mop or sponge, stubborn germs can still remain on the floor after cleaning.
2. Fast is better — but it may not be fast enough. Although a piece of food does pick up more bacteria the longer it’s on the floor, bacteria can attach to it instantly. So any food that makes contact with the floor can get contaminated if conditions are right. And foods with wet surfaces, like an apple slice, pick up bacteria easily.

When in Doubt, Toss It Out

Some bacteria are not harmful. But others can torture you with miserable stuff like diarrhea. Even if there’s no visible dirt on your food, you can still get sick. You just can’t tell what kinds of bacteria may be lurking on the floor.

So what are you to do with the piece of watermelon that just slipped from your grip? The safest choice is to throw it out. Or let the dog have it. (And there’s another thing to consider — even the 5-second rule can’t get around the fact that your food may have landed right in a spot where Fido parked his butt.)

“Key facts

• HIV remains a major global public health issue, having claimed 40.4 million [32.9–51.3 million] lives so far with ongoing transmission in all countries globally; with some countries reporting increasing trends in new infections when previously on the decline.
• There were an estimated 39.0 million [33.1–45.7 million] people living with HIV at the end of 2022, two thirds of whom (25.6 million) are in the WHO African Region.
• In 2022, 630 000 [480 000–880 000] people died from HIV-related causes and 1.3 million [1.0–1.7 million] people acquired HIV.”.

World Health Organization WHO (https://www.who.int/data/gho/data/themes/hiv-aids)

Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is a chronic, potentially life-threatening condition caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). By damaging your immune system, HIV interferes with your body’s ability to fight infection and disease.

HIV is a sexually transmitted infection (STI). It can also be spread by contact with infected blood or from mother to child during pregnancy, childbirth or breast-feeding. Without medication, it may take years before HIV weakens your immune system to the point that you have AIDS.

There’s no cure for HIV/AIDS, but medications can dramatically slow the progression of the disease. These drugs have reduced AIDS deaths in many developed nations.

Symptoms

The symptoms of HIV and AIDS vary, depending on the phase of infection.

Primary infection (Acute HIV)

Some people infected by HIV develop a flu-like illness within two to four weeks after the virus enters the body. This illness, known as primary (acute) HIV infection, may last for a few weeks. Possible signs and symptoms include:

• Fever
• Headache
• Muscle aches and joint pain
• Rash
• Sore throat and painful mouth sores
• Swollen lymph glands, mainly on the neck
• Diarrhea
• Weight loss
• Cough
• Night sweats

These symptoms can be so mild that you might not even notice them. However, the amount of virus in your bloodstream (viral load) is quite high at this time. As a result, the infection spreads more easily during primary infection than during the next stage.

Clinical latent infection (Chronic HIV)

In this stage of infection, HIV is still present in the body and in white blood cells. However, many people may not have any symptoms or infections during this time.

This stage can last for many years if you’re not receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART). Some people develop more severe disease much sooner.

Symptomatic HIV infection

As the virus continues to multiply and destroy your immune cells — the cells in your body that help fight off germs — you may develop mild infections or chronic signs and symptoms such as:

• Fever
• Fatigue
• Swollen lymph nodes — often one of the first signs of HIV infection
• Diarrhea
• Weight loss
• Oral yeast infection (thrush)
• Shingles (herpes zoster)
• Pneumonia

Progression to AIDS

Thanks to better antiviral treatments, most people with HIV in the U.S. today don’t develop AIDS. Untreated, HIV typically turns into AIDS in about 8 to 10 years.

When AIDS occurs, your immune system has been severely damaged. You’ll be more likely to develop opportunistic infections or opportunistic cancers — diseases that wouldn’t usually cause illness in a person with a healthy immune system.

The signs and symptoms of some of these infections may include:

• Sweats
• Chills
• Recurring fever
• Chronic diarrhea
• Swollen lymph glands
• Persistent white spots or unusual lesions on your tongue or in your mouth
• Persistent, unexplained fatigue
• Weakness
• Weight loss
• Skin rashes or bumps

When to see a doctor

If you think you may have been infected with HIV or are at risk of contracting the virus, see a doctor as soon as possible.

“Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is a chronic, potentially life-threatening condition caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). By damaging your immune system, HIV interferes with your body’s ability to fight infection and disease.

HIV is a sexually transmitted infection (STI). It can also be spread by contact with infected blood and from illicit injection drug use or sharing needles. It can also be spread from mother to child during pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding. Without medication, it may take years before HIV weakens your immune system to the point that you have AIDS.

There’s still no cure for HIV/AIDS.”

MAYO CLINIC (https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hiv-aids/symptoms-causes/syc-20373524)

Where does HIV/AIDS come from for staters?

Well the Aids Institute states “Scientists identified a type of chimpanzee in West Africa as the source of HIV infection in humans. They believe that the chimpanzee version of the immunodeficiency virus (called simian immunodeficiency virus or SIV) most likely was transmitted to humans and mutated into HIV when humans hunted these chimpanzees for meat and came into contact with their infected blood. Over decades, the virus slowly spread across Africa and later into other parts of the world.

The earliest known case of infection with HIV-1 in a human was detected in a blood sample collected in 1959 from a man in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. (How he became infected is not known.) Genetic analysis of this blood sample suggested that HIV-1 may have stemmed from a single virus in the late 1940s or early 1950s.

We know that the virus has existed in the United States since at least the mid- to late 1970s. From 1979–1981 rare types of pneumonia, cancer, and other illnesses were being reported by doctors in Los Angeles and New York among a number of male patients who had sex with other men. These were conditions not usually found in people with healthy immune systems.

In 1982 public health officials began to use the term “acquired immunodeficiency syndrome,” or AIDS, to describe the occurrences of opportunistic infections, Kaposi’s sarcoma (a kind of cancer), and Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia in previously healthy people. Formal tracking (surveillance) of AIDS cases began that year in the United States.

In 1983, scientists discovered the virus that causes AIDS. The virus was at first named HTLV-III/LAV (human T-cell lymphotropic virus-type III/lymphadenopathy-associated virus) by an international scientific committee. This name was later changed to HIV (human immunodeficiency virus).

For many years scientists theorized as to the origins of HIV and how it appeared in the human population, most believing that HIV originated in other primates. Then in 1999, an international team of researchers reported that they had discovered the origins of HIV-1, the predominant strain of HIV in the developed world. A subspecies of chimpanzees native to west equatorial Africa had been identified as the original source of the virus. The researchers believe that HIV-1 was introduced into the human population when hunters became exposed to infected blood.”

HIV is a lenti virus which is a subgroup of the retrovirus. For starters they affect the white blood cells (WBCs) in this sense:

We have types of WBC’s and one type is called CD4. That is the cell the HIV binds to when it gets in your blood stream. Another name for them is T-helper cells. CD4 cells are made in the spleen, lymph nodes, and thymus gland, which are part of the lymph or infection-fighting system. CD4 cells move throughout your body, helping to identify and destroy germs such as bacteria and viruses.  Without going into specific medical terminology there is replication of this virus in the DNA and RNA killing out the normal white blood cell type of CD4 and other things like macrophages which are reproduced into CD4 cells with the virus with the body not knowing or able to detect this error in DNA and RNA of the CD4 white blood cells which ending line allows the immunity to go down. Remember the HIV virus binds to the surface of the CD4 cells. The virus entering CD4 cells now allows them to become a part of CD4 replicated cells regarding their make up due to changes made in the DNA and RNA cause the virus has invaded the bloodstream. As CD4 cells multiply to fight infection, they also make more copies of HIV now. Continuing to replicate, leading to a gradual decline of CD4 cells in decreasing that individuals immunity to infection.

There are two types of HIV have been characterized: HIV-1 and HIV-2. HIV-1 is the virus that was initially discovered and termed both LAV and HTLV-III. It is more virulent, more infective and is the cause of the majority of HIV infections globally. The lower infectivity of HIV-2 compared to HIV-1 implies that fewer of those exposed to HIV-2 will be infected per exposure. Because of its relatively poor capacity for transmission, HIV-2 is largely confined to West Africa.

The CD4 count measures the number of CD4 cells in a sample of your blood drawn by a needle from a vein in your arm. Along with other tests, the CD4 count helps tell how strong your immune system is. By knowing this when the blood test is done the CD4 helps the following for the doctor

-it indicates the stage of your HIV disease

-it guides the treatment

– it predicts how your disease may progress.

**Keeping your CD4 count high can reduce complications of HIV disease and extend your life.**

HIV is transmitted via the exchange of body fluids—such as pre-ejaculate fluid, semen, vaginal fluid secretions, blood, or breast milk. Within these bodily fluids, HIV is present as both free virus particles and virus within infected immune cells.

Within a month or 2 of contracting HIV, about 40 to 90-percent of those afflicted suffer from flu-like symptoms including fever, fatigue, achy muscles, swollen lymph glands, sore throat, headache, skin rash, dry cough, nausea, rapid weight loss, night sweats, frequent yeast infections (for women), cold sores, and eventually, pneumonia. Luckily, many individuals who are diagnosed early can live a long, productive life with HIV thanks to a combination of highly active anti-retroviral drug therapy, which prevents to progression to AIDS.

So what is the answer to prevent this from happening by doing a few things:

-In safe sex from the front (through the vagina) or back (through the rectum-buttock); no matter what sex preference you are.

-When you use various sex partners get checked every 6 months to a year and have sex safely.

-The + HIV pt or now AIDS pt be compliant with the medications and RX the M.D. gives you if you choose to do so, unfortunately like many who chose to do unsafe sex in getting this or worse those getting it through blood with transfusions or needle sticks, or even sex partners who weren’t told their sex partner had it. There are the those who got this disease innocently with not doing unsafe sex but for that percentage it is much lower than those who caused this disease to go up higher in the USA and all over for being foolish. To all the people in the world let’s deal with this disease safely for yourselves and others around you. Let us all make a safer world for this is one small way which is greater than you may think.

“In 2015, an estimated 1.3% of US adults (3 million) reported being diagnosed with IBD (either Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis). Prevalence differed by several sociodemographic characteristics, including age, race/ethnicity, education, and poverty.  The prevalence of IBD increased from 2001 to 2018 among Medicare beneficiaries of all race and ethnicity groups, with the highest increase rate among non-Hispanic Black adults.”

Center for Disease Control and Prevention – CDC

(https://www.cdc.gov/ibd/data-and-statistics/prevalence.html) – The page was last reviewed 4/2022