How to Have Good Hygiene

Proper personal hygiene is crucial to a person’s good overall health and wellness because it helps lower the risk for disease and medical conditions caused by the effects of poor hygiene. Plus, being clean and well-groomed can give you higher confidence, self-esteem and positively impact personal relationships. Keep reading to learn a few tips on how to have good hygiene.

Hygiene Practices to Improve Health and Wellness

Bathe: Similar to washing your hands, washing your body removes dead skin cells and dirt and is a preventative measure to reduce the risk and spread of disease. Older adults don’t necessarily need to bathe daily to discover the positive effects, but showering or taking a bath at least twice a week is recommended.

Take Care of Your Nails: Cleaning and trimming your nails reduces your risk of hangnails and infected nail beds.

Wear Clean Clothes: After you wear clothes, wash them with a detergent and dry them immediately upon rinsing. Dirty clothes can harbor bacteria that could lead to body odor or even skin irritations.
Cover Your Mouth When You Cough or Sneeze: This is extremely important to avoid spreading germs to people around you.

Brush and Floss Your Teeth: Good oral hygiene results in a healthy smile. Brush your teeth twice a day, floss once a day, and maintain regular dental appointments.

Visit the Doctor: Maintaining regular healthcare appointments can help you make sure that you’re on the right track to living a healthy lifestyle. Plus, healthcare providers can catch infections and illnesses early, making it easier to treat them.

Create a Routine: If you want to improve your hygiene, it’s important to set a routine. In order to turn practices into habits, remind yourself the good personal hygiene habits you would like to include into your daily routine by using signs, writing a checklist or setting phone reminders.

Wash Your Hands Frequently: Last but not least: make sure to wash your hands. Hand washing is one of the most effective ways to maintain personal hygiene and stop the spread of disease. You should be washing your hands frequently throughout the day and especially after tasks such as taking out the garbage, using the restroom, blowing your nose, coughing and coming into contact with someone who may be sick.

In order to benefit from washing your hands, you need to make sure you are doing it properly. Remember these five steps to washing your hands:

1. Wet your hands with clean water and apply soap.
2. Lather your hands by rubbing them thoroughly with soap.
3. Scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds.
4. Rinse your hands well.
5. Dry your hands with a towel or air dry.

Find Ways to Improve Your Wellness at Winchester Gardens

At Winchester Gardens, your wellness is our top priority. That’s why we offer LivWell, our award-winning holistic wellness program that touches on all seven dimensions of wellness. Through LivWell, we work with you to discover your top goals and priorities and help lead you to the onsite amenities and activities that could help you reach your specific goals.

Learn more about ways to improve on wellness in our senior living community by contacting our team today.