Your Personal Hygiene Impacts Your Daily Life and Personality?

Do you know how personal hygiene can protect you from several infections? 

PERSONAL HYGIENE  may be described as the principle of maintaining cleanliness and grooming of an extra body. This practice includes bathing, your teeth, and more.

WHY IS PERSONAL HYGIENE IMPORTANT?

• BODY IMAGE:  body image influences self-esteem, confidence, and motivation
• SOCIAL REASONS: by ensuring that our body is clean and well presented, we are more assured of projecting a positive body image that reflects our personality.
• HEALTH REASONS: poor hygiene can lead to poor health. if you have cut yourself the wound should be cleaned and dressed suitably, this can help reduce the risk of infection and pain.
• PSYCHOLOGICAL REASONS: By being well presented, clean and tidy people feel more confident especially in social situations.

TYPES OF PERSONAL HYGIENE:

• Dental
• Hand washing
• Nails
• Body
• Menstrual or genital hygiene

HOW TO MAINTAIN GOOD PERSONAL HYGIENE?

HAIR HYGIENE:

Dirty head hairs do not actually cause many health problems. It is mostly for the appearance factor that keeping hair clean is a good idea.

TIPS:

• If hairs become greasy more easily, wash your hair on alternate days.
• For dandruff problems use an anti-dandruff shampoo
• Oiling hair before shower prevents dryness.

TEETH AND MOUTH:

A beautiful smile can make a person’s day but if teeth are grubby or breath is smelly, it has entirely different results.

TIPS:

• Drink plenty of water
• Brush your teeth twice a day with a decent toothbrush.
• A fluoride-based toothpaste and an antibacterial mouthwash
• Avoid drinks such as tea, coffee, and red wine which are thought to stain them.
• Visit your dentist regularly to keep a check on gum infection or any dental problems.

FOOT HYGIENE:

The feet contain lots of sweat glands. If feet are confined in socks and shoes the sweat gland has nowhere to evaporate and the skin bacteria will in effect attack to cause the pungent cheesy aroma.

TIPS:

• Wash feet regularly and dry thoroughly with a soft towel and an antibacterial foot powder of baby talc
• Allow feet to air, open shoes as much as possible
• Use cotton socks and change socks regularly

PERINEAL HYGIENE :

Vaginal itching is curable 

TIPS:

• Stay dry and clean
• Shower daily
• Rinse out all soap
• Intimates should not be tight, cotton is best
• Use vaginal washes, soft soaps
• Change the undergarments daily.

BODY WASH AND HANDWASHING:

A regular bath helps in keeping clean, fresh, and odor-free.

TIPS:

• Bathing helps in rejuvenate skin, removing dead cells, prevent acne and eruptions
• Use a personal towel and wash regularly
• Make proper habits of handwashing after using latrines, before eating, and after eating.

NAIL HYGIENE:

Keeping finger and toenails trimmed and in good shape will prevent problems such as hand nails and infected nail beds.

TIPS:

• Trim nails weekly and brush them daily 
• Moisture nails and cuticles regularly
• Place fingers inside lukewarm water with salt to make them strong.

SKIN HYGIENE:

TIPS:

• Drink plenty of water {8-10 glasses /day)
• Take plenty of rest 6-8 hours per day
• Wash face with gel twice a day mainly at night to prevent breakouts and pimples
• Eat one fruit a day
• Use sunblock of SPF 30 to prevent tanning and opening skin pores.

MENSTRUAL HYGIENE:

• Wash the perineal part frequently
• Use sanitary napkins ,tampons,and menstrual cup to stay clean
• Standard time to change a sanitary pad every 6 hourly while tampons every 2 hourly
• Always clean area in motion from vagina to anus
• Never wash in opposite direction  as it lodge bacteria in vagina
• Wrap sanitary napkins well before discarding .
• Wash hands well after discarding
• Apply an antiseptic ointment after a bath and before bed this will heal the rashes
• Keep an extra sanitary pad always.

FACTORS THAT CAN NEGATIVELY IMPACT HYGIENE

Poverty and lack of access to clean water can both have a detrimental effect on a person’s personal hygiene.

A person’s mental health can also affect caring for themselves. people who are living with certain conditions such as psychotic disorder, severe depression, or drug, alcohol abuse disorder may find it difficult to keep up a personal routine.