Table of contents:
- Washing your hands too often has consequences
- 1. Makes it easier to get sick
- 2. Increase the risk of developing allergies
- 3. Increases the risk of skin irritation and disease
Washing hands is useful for preventing the transmission of dangerous diseases. However, washing your hands too often is also not good for your health. Instead of protecting the body from disease, excessive hand washing will actually increase the risk of other health problems.
Washing your hands too often has consequences
Launch Mayo Clinic, there are times when it is mandatory to wash your hands. These include before eating, when preparing food, treating wounds, using and removing contact lenses, and when hands are visibly dirty.
Washing hands is also necessary after using the toilet, coughing, sneezing, changing diapers, caring for sick people, and touching pets. Although it can be done every day, remember not to over-wash your hands so as not to trigger the following side effects.
1. Makes it easier to get sick
Washing your hands too often can upset the balance of bacteria in the body. According to Samer Blackmon, M.D., a specialist in internal medicine in the United States, this activity will actually kill the beneficial bacteria that build the immune system.
When you are young, your body is exposed to a variety of bacteria, viruses, and parasites. This is actually useful for strengthening the immune system. If you have never been exposed, the immune system cannot fight the germs.
This is because the immune system has never recognized even the most common disease-causing microbes. Without these microbes, immune cells cannot make antibodies or other defense mechanisms.
Some experts believe that this condition makes it easier to get sick. Especially if the habit of washing hands too often has started since childhood. That is why it is recommended to wash your hands as needed.
2. Increase the risk of developing allergies
Apart from bacteria, viruses, and parasites, the body is also exposed to various allergens or allergens from childhood. This exposure is beneficial so that the immune system adapts to the allergen and does not perceive it as a danger.
Allergies occur when the body's immune system overreacts to foreign substances that are actually harmless. These overreactions can cause itching, inflammation, sinus symptoms, and respiratory and digestive disorders.
If you wash your hands too often, your body does not have the opportunity to "recognize" foreign substances that have the potential to cause allergies in the future. Meanwhile, people who grew up exposed to allergens actually had a lower risk of developing allergies.
3. Increases the risk of skin irritation and disease
The chemicals in hand soap and the alcohol in hand sanitizers can cause irritation if used too often. Skin that is exposed to these ingredients in excess tends to become dry, cracked, and even bleeds.
Once the skin becomes cracked, bacteria can easily enter the body through the gaps that have formed. This condition can cause an infection characterized by itching, redness, and pus.
In some people, washing your hands too often can even trigger eczema and worsen the symptoms. Eczema cannot be cured, but the symptoms can be controlled through medication.
Some types of illness start with dirty hands, and this is the reason why hand washing is so important. However, make sure not to overdo it to prevent unwanted side effects.
