Consider the number of tasks you perform daily with your hands; preparing food, using the toilet, pumping gas and handling money.

Hands harbour germs both good and bad. It's the bad germs that cause the Health Unit to have concerns for the local population, since disease causing germs are so easily and quickly spread.

Some illnesses that are spread by unwashed hands are:

1. E. coli also known as the "hamburger disease" is commonly found in the intestines of humans and animals.

2. Hepatitis A is transferred via the fecal oral route therefore eating or drinking contaminated food or water can cause illness.

3. Influenza is a more severe than the common cold, which is caused by other respiratory viruses. Influenza typically has a sudden onset with headache, chills and cough followed rapidly by a fever, appetite loss, muscle aches, and tiredness.

So why aren't people washing their hands?