<p>Knowledge and practices of handwashing associated with childcare tasks is abysmally poor in rural India, a new study released to mark Global Handwashing Day has said.<br /><br />According to WaterAid India's new study 'Spotlight on handwashing in rural India', handwashing with soap at five critical times after defecation, after cleaning a child's bottom, before feeding infants/children, before eating and before food preparation, are estimated to reduce diarrhoeal diseases by 47 per cent.<br /><br />The study examined the levels of awareness about practices related to hand hygiene behaviour in rural households in four states-- Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Odisha. While handwashing after defecation and before eating is high in general, hygiene practices among surveyed individuals having a child under five in their home was low.<br /><br />"Only 26.3 per cent washed hands before child feeding, 14.7 per cent before breastfeeding, 16.7 per cent after disposing child faeces, and 18.4 per cent after cleaning a child's bottom," the study said. It said only 12.6 per cent people wash hands before feeding their child.<br /><br />The study noted that in 2015, an estimated 321 children died everyday due to diarrhoea, the second leading cause of death among children under the age of five in India.<br /><br />Hygiene behaviours are critical to prevent leading causes of death and diseases in children, particularly diarrhoea among children under the age of five, it said.<br /><br />Hand hygiene, particularly, handwashing with soap, is recognised as a highly cost-effective public health intervention, having the potential to significantly reduce disease burden, according to the study.<br /><br />The report aims to inform and strengthen health and nutrition related policies and is being released to mark Global Handwashing Day on October 15, a day dedicated to increasing awareness and understanding about the importance of handwashing with soap.<br /><br />WaterAid India's Policy Manager, Arundati Muralidharan, said "handwashing is underrated and often forgotten when we talk about water, sanitation and hygiene."<br /><br />"It is a simple and cost-effective intervention that can play a critical role in battling the pressing child health problems in our country," Muralidharan said in a release.</p>
<p>Knowledge and practices of handwashing associated with childcare tasks is abysmally poor in rural India, a new study released to mark Global Handwashing Day has said.<br /><br />According to WaterAid India's new study 'Spotlight on handwashing in rural India', handwashing with soap at five critical times after defecation, after cleaning a child's bottom, before feeding infants/children, before eating and before food preparation, are estimated to reduce diarrhoeal diseases by 47 per cent.<br /><br />The study examined the levels of awareness about practices related to hand hygiene behaviour in rural households in four states-- Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Odisha. While handwashing after defecation and before eating is high in general, hygiene practices among surveyed individuals having a child under five in their home was low.<br /><br />"Only 26.3 per cent washed hands before child feeding, 14.7 per cent before breastfeeding, 16.7 per cent after disposing child faeces, and 18.4 per cent after cleaning a child's bottom," the study said. It said only 12.6 per cent people wash hands before feeding their child.<br /><br />The study noted that in 2015, an estimated 321 children died everyday due to diarrhoea, the second leading cause of death among children under the age of five in India.<br /><br />Hygiene behaviours are critical to prevent leading causes of death and diseases in children, particularly diarrhoea among children under the age of five, it said.<br /><br />Hand hygiene, particularly, handwashing with soap, is recognised as a highly cost-effective public health intervention, having the potential to significantly reduce disease burden, according to the study.<br /><br />The report aims to inform and strengthen health and nutrition related policies and is being released to mark Global Handwashing Day on October 15, a day dedicated to increasing awareness and understanding about the importance of handwashing with soap.<br /><br />WaterAid India's Policy Manager, Arundati Muralidharan, said "handwashing is underrated and often forgotten when we talk about water, sanitation and hygiene."<br /><br />"It is a simple and cost-effective intervention that can play a critical role in battling the pressing child health problems in our country," Muralidharan said in a release.</p>