My dad, god rest his soul, used to always say you can tell so much about a business by the standard of hygiene in the bathroom.

He would tell us to always check how clean a restaurant toilet is before you eat there. He was a plasterer by trade and had done enough jobs around Cork to see the varying standards in many businesses.

It’s funny the things that stick with us all throughout life, and this one always has for me.

I am forever scrubbing and bleaching our toilet at Emerald Beauty Clinic and I’m as bad in the two bathrooms in my own house. I just feel cleanliness and good hygiene are paramount in every business, but particularly a beauty clinic.

I set a high standard, I always have a disinfectant hand wash and each client has their own little individual hand towel, wrapped in a lovely presentation bow, to dry their hands properly afterwards, and then a basket to dispose of it in.

It honestly shocks me, observing people of all ages when I am out, and seeing how so many still do not wash their hands in the ladies, or before touching food and cooking, it really does make my stomach turn.

I’m very strict on this aspect of hygiene in my clinic, every client is hand sanitised at the door still, and I still do wear a surgical mask doing treatments.

It’s alarming to see how little so many have actually learned from the worldwide pandemic we all suffered through, and in which so many lost loved ones – only a few years ago.

It’s like people have totally erased all the important hand hygiene habits the HSE, scientists, doctors, governments, and the media all worked so hard to get across then.

I really do believe the ‘Please wash your hands’ signs should be put back up and put on the back door on every cubicle in every toilet, and never removed.

Emer O’Callaghan wearing a dress from Ruby Rouge Boutique, tan is Top Image, make-up is Master Colors Paris, and also pictured in her work uniform with her Emerald Organic Body Scrub - all available from Emerald Beauty ClinicEmer O’Callaghan wearing a dress from Ruby Rouge Boutique, tan is Top Image, make-up is Master Colors Paris, and also pictured in her work uniform with her Emerald Organic Body Scrub – all available from Emerald Beauty Clinic

I was listening to Professor Luke O’Neill on the radio recently, and he said it was clear as day we knew we had to find a vaccine for the covid virus because we knew we couldn’t rely on human behaviour alone, as people were still not doing the hand washing like they had been asked.

I find from working with the public now as long as I have – for 25 years – you would be shocked at what many think is normal – like the very many who say they never wash their hands when at home in their own house, but just when out and about.

I feel my stomach go again at the thought of eating food in their house – yuck! Imagine them making you a sandwich, oh Jeez, no way.

And this is why we are having cases of viral break-outs and food poisoning.

I can’t stress it enough – hand washing both at home and when out anywhere after using the bathroom and before cooking food or eating is life-saving, and the older people get, the weaker their immune system gets. So please do yourself and everyone else a huge favour and wash your hands as much as you can to keep viruses, infections, and bacteria out of your and my body.

I know many, like myself, have hand sanitiser in the car and use it frequently after being in shops. I do feel it’s a shame the shops stopped the hand sanitisers on entering as I feel if they had kept them, people would use them.

I also find it disappointing that so few garages have disposable gloves for you to use when putting your fuel in the car.

Like, the handles of those fuel pumps, can you just imagine what’s living on them? And to think so many never think to wash their hands after.

The first thing I do when I come in home is to wash my hands, there is always a clean hand towel daily in my kitchen for that purpose.

Many use their kitchen tea towel, but we all need a separate hand towel for drying hands, and not the tea towel you dry plates and cutlery on.

EMER’S TOP HAND HYGIENE TIPS

  • Wash your hands after every visit to the toilet, and when you get home
  • Before cooking or preparing any food, wash your hands again
  • Door handles need regular wiping down to kill bacteria on them
  • Your phone, purse, and handbag all need cleaning with disinfectant also
  • Before eating, always wash your hands again
  • Hot soapy water is not enough alone for cleaning surfaces, you need a disinfectant in the cleaner, look for Dettol or Milton,
  • Nails can hold and lodge dirt underneath so always use a nail brush to thoroughly clean under them. Nails are best kept shorter for hygiene reasons
  • Washing your hands and not drying them correctly is not sufficient, and shaking your hands wet is not drying. Use a paper towel if possible or a tissue if the hand dryer is broken or there is no way to dry them
  • Always go for a hand wash that says it kills 99% of bacteria for best results.

AGEING HANDS

So many women complain about their ageing hands to me every day in my job, and I tell them that, just like our eyes and neck, our hands are fragile also and more prone to signs of ageing faster.

The hands are often neglected and inadequately protected from UV rays also.

Once I pass on my tips to clients on ways to avoid ageing hands, they report good results.

Your hands are skin too, and often the most neglected part of the body, and if you think about how much all our hands do for us every day… mine are tapping away here for the past hour on the keyboard, and we all forget how much they contribute.

EMER RECOMMENDS

Protect your hands from the elements and harsh cleaning products as much as possible by wearing gloves when cleaning.

As we head into the colder months now, wearing gloves will shield your hands from the harsh elements also.

Many ladies will apply hand cream nightly and wear cotton gloves on their hands as they sleep to help hydrate their hands.

Invest in a good quality hand cream – buy cheap and you get cheap is my rule.

Any hand cream that is more expensive usually means it has the anti-ageing powerful ingredients that will help your skin.

I recommend my best-selling Guinot Hand Cream – my below Product of the Week.

So many never think to up their hand game, as I say, and when doing their face and neck weekly exfoliation and mask, they should also incorporate their hands into the routine.

A good weekly exfoliating scrub to the back of the hands and some face mask on them after will work wonders for anyone concerned about ageing hands.

Those noticeable brown marks on hands are pigmentation sun damage, and many over 65s have these today.

We skin specialists are actively working hard now to educate people to know that they need to apply SPF to the back of their hands, particularly as you age.

Even when driving, so many get this sun damage on their hands, so lash on the SPF there if you want to prevent the brown marks and sun damage.

THE GOLDEN RULE

My golden rule about hand cream – my message to the many who like to tell me they simply just forget to use i – is it put it where you will see it.

The very true saying of out of sight out of mind is key here, therefore I tell all my clients to do as I do myself.

I have my Guinot hand cream beside the TV control in our living room, so when I do finally get to sit down, I will rub it in while I am watching TV.

Putting the hand cream beside the kettle is another good one, and in the bathroom where you can use it after drying your hands.

The bedside locker is another good place to put it, but put it where you will see it as this has been proven to be the most effective way to get people using it – all my clients say they find this tip works.

SENSITIVITY OF THE HANDS

While it’s all well and good to say everyone should be washing their hands all day long, we must be mindful also that many have skin sensitivities such as psoriasis, eczema and sensitive skin in general, and hand washing can in fact drive these skin irritations mad.

These are my tips to people who fall into this category, as well as to people in certain professions like nurses and doctors and those of us working with our hands all day in and out of water.

Use lukewarm water instead of hot water when washing your hands

Avoid perfumed and scented hand washes, I find Dove hand wash is excellent for those with sensitive skin of their hands

Drying your hands is vital, while many do so, those who suffer with skin conditions as mentioned above need to be very thorough in their drying, so dry in between each finger carefully.

Often, we skin specialists see so much sensitivity in between the fingers because the person is not drying there.

Wet and damp skin can cause irritation and redness – the amount of people I have helped over the years with this tip alone is amazing, it’s well worth trying I can tell you.

You can get more of my professional beauty tips in my weekly beauty videos up now on the Emerald Beauty Clinic Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok pages.

Emer O’Callaghan is a beauty doctor and skin specialist who won Irish Beauty Therapist of the Year and works at Emerald Organic Beauty Products Ltd. Trading as Emerald Beauty Clinic, 021 4365949. A Multi Award Winning Five Star Gold Standard Clinic 2008- 2025 www.emeraldbeautyclinic.ie follow us on Facebook/instagram/TikTok

SPECIAL OFFER

Treat those ageing hands with our Guinot Age Summum Facial €115, 90 minutes, which includes a FREE full professional hand exfoliation and treatments for ageing, dry and pigmented hands.

This hand treatment is done with the anti-ageing Gold Standard facial and the results are amazing. To book, call Emerald Beauty Clinic on 021 4365949, appointments necessary. Free parking.