With 80% of infectious diseases spread by our hands, it’s clear that washing them
is important. But, when it comes to your hygiene and cleanliness, which method of drying is
best? Using a classic paper towel, or the hand dryer?
Well, you’ll be happy to know that if you wash your hands properly with soap, nearly
all traces of bacteria will be removed, regardless of how you dry them. But it’s when you don’t
wash properly, or even worse, only wash with water, that how you dry your hands can make
all the difference. After all, the spread of bacteria is more likely to occur with wet
skin, and rubbing your wet hands on your clothes or touching the bathroom door can often contaminate
them even more.
It turns out, after multiple studies were analyzed and compared, paper towels came out
victorious. Why? A lot of it has to do with timing. The average air dryer requires nearly
45 seconds to reduce hand moisture by 97%, whereas paper towel users achieve the same
thing in around only 10 seconds. But after reviewing people’s behaviour, studies showed
that most individuals spent only 22 seconds with an air dryer, leaving their hands less
than 70% dry. Paper towel users, on the other hand, could achieve more than 85% dryness
with only 5 seconds.
Friction also plays a key role in the removal of bacteria, with much of it being transferred
right on to the paper towel. Conversely, some studies have shown that hand dryers may actually
emit bacteria in their flow, because of the contaminated air from the bathroom. Having
said that, air drying hands can be effective if done thoroughly, and truthfully, you don’t
always have an option! Though some dryers are much better than others, just make sure
you dry them fully, and it shouldn’t be a major problem.
What about the environment, you ask? Without a doubt, new dryers are the environmentally
friendly option. Not only because they prevent deforestation, but they actually use less
energy and have a lower carbon emission once everything is taken into account. After all,
13 billion pounds of paper towel are used every year in America alone - and that’s
their major pitfall.
So if you’re going to use paper towel, here’s a quick tip that only requires one piece,
as suggested by advocate Joe Smith. After washing your hands, shake them hard 12 times,
then fold the piece of paper in half, and wipe like so. This is the optimal arrangement
to dry with the least amount of paper. Again, shake your hands 12 times...fold, and dry.
Now you have clean dry hands, with minimal waste!
Special thanks to Audible.com for supporting this episode and giving you a free audio book
of your choice at audible.com/asap. Audible is the leading provider of audiobooks with
over 150,000 downloadable titles across all types of literature. We recommend the book
“Guns, Germs, and Steel” by Jared Diamond which breaks down the rise of civilizations
across the globe and refutes the ideas of human development based on race! It also touches
on how germs may have a played a large role in our evolutionary past. You can download
this audio book or another of your choice, for free, at audible.com/asap. And with a
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