The H1N1 (a.k.a. swine flu) virus is spreading earlier than expected this year and particularly affecting children and young adults, according the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. So you can depend on university students to wash their hands to keep the flu from spreading, right? Guess again.
A new study in the Journal of Environmental Health shows that students on campus may talk a good game about taking preventive measures, like hand-washing, but it's mainly talk. The study, by Brae V. Surgeoner, University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada; Benjamin J. Chapman, North Carolina State University in Raleigh; Douglas A. Powell, Kansas State University in Manhattan, studied the behavior of students at a Canadian university at the height of a norovirus outbreak. Norovirus is a family of ailments, often called the "stomach flu," with rather nasty symptoms like nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain.
You can get norovirus from contaminated food, but it is often spread the same way as H1N1: by touching surfaces contaminated with the virus and then placing contaminated hands in one's mouth, or by sharing contaminated utensils. Students on this campus were urged to protect themselves against the spread of the norovirus by washing their hands.
The researchers compared self-reported surveys completed by students about their hand hygeine to their actual observed hand-washing practices. In the surveys, according to the journal, more than 8 in 10 students (83%) reported washing their hands to prevent the spread of the virus. However, when observed, students complied with the prescribed practices only 17% of the time. The authors recommend that institutions take a more assertive, proactive strategy aimed at students to prevent future viral outbreaks.
While institutions figure out this strategy, individuals can just do the right thing and wash their hands more frequently. And dude, use hot water!
A new study in the Journal of Environmental Health shows that students on campus may talk a good game about taking preventive measures, like hand-washing, but it's mainly talk. The study, by Brae V. Surgeoner, University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada; Benjamin J. Chapman, North Carolina State University in Raleigh; Douglas A. Powell, Kansas State University in Manhattan, studied the behavior of students at a Canadian university at the height of a norovirus outbreak. Norovirus is a family of ailments, often called the "stomach flu," with rather nasty symptoms like nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain.
You can get norovirus from contaminated food, but it is often spread the same way as H1N1: by touching surfaces contaminated with the virus and then placing contaminated hands in one's mouth, or by sharing contaminated utensils. Students on this campus were urged to protect themselves against the spread of the norovirus by washing their hands.
The researchers compared self-reported surveys completed by students about their hand hygeine to their actual observed hand-washing practices. In the surveys, according to the journal, more than 8 in 10 students (83%) reported washing their hands to prevent the spread of the virus. However, when observed, students complied with the prescribed practices only 17% of the time. The authors recommend that institutions take a more assertive, proactive strategy aimed at students to prevent future viral outbreaks.
While institutions figure out this strategy, individuals can just do the right thing and wash their hands more frequently. And dude, use hot water!
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