Food Protection Trends - December 2008 - 914

TABLE 2. Selected self-reported handwashing behaviors and knowledge Participant Answer (%) Self-Reported Handwashing Behaviors 1. Right after handling raw meat, raw chicken or raw fish, what do you usually do? – Continue cooking – Rinse my hands with water – Wipe my hands on a paper/dish towel – Wash my hands with soapa – I never handle raw meat or chicken 2. Before you begin preparing food, how often do you wash your hands with soap? – All of the timea – Most of the time – Some of the time – Rarely Handwashing Knowledge Which is the most hygienic way to wash your hands? 3 27 2 63 5 39 37 17 7 1. Apply sanitizer, run water, rub hands together for 20 seconds, rinse hands, dry hands, rub on an antiseptic hand lotion 2. Apply soap, rub together for 20 seconds, rinse hands under water, dry hands, apply sanitizer 3. Run water, moisten hands, apply soap, rub hands together for 20 seconds, rinse hands, dry handsb 4. Run water, moisten hands, apply sanitizer, rub hands together for 20 seconds, rinse hands, dry hands, rub on antiseptic hand lotion a 11 25 36 28 Best practice Correct answer washing compliance was best prior to the start of food preparation, followed by after handling raw poultry, after handling unwashed produce, and lastly at other times during food preparation when hand washing is necessary. Females scored significantly higher than males on the hand washing compliance scale (P = 0.03) and were more likely than males to wash their hands with soap after handling raw poultry (45% vs. 35%). The majority (76%) reported hand washing with soap before preparing food all or most of the time, which is significantly (P < 0.0001) higher than the 54 percent observed doing this (Table 2). Sixty-three percent reported usually hand washing with soap after handling raw poultry, whereas only 41 percent were observed doing so (P < 0.0001). Although mean hand washing knowledge was high at 72 percent (7.2 ± 2.0), only 36 percent knew the most hygienic way to wash hands, and at most only 16 percent were observed actually engaging in this practice at any time during food preparation (P < 0.0001). Overall, participants were observed performing only 25 percent of recommended hand washing practices (mean = 4.1 ± 2.7; range 0 to 12), yet they reported that they performed half of the recommended practices (mean = 2.0 ± 1.3; range 0 to 4). b hold member had food poisoning in the past year (85%) and had never held a job serving (60%) or preparing (79%) food. More than 90 percent had never completed a university course in nutrition, food science, or microbiology. Most (97%) rated their food safety knowledge and skills as at least fair. A majority (60%) were observed washing their hands before beginning food preparation with at least water, slightly over half (54%) used soap, and only 16 percent rubbed their hands together for the recommended 20 seconds (Table 1). During food preparation, close to 60 percent did not wash their hands with soap and water after touching raw poultry and before continuing with food preparation activities (including touching produce that was to be served raw). In this sample of young adults, hand DISCUSSION The findings of this study indicate that young adults fail to follow recommendations for hand washing before and during food handling. Further, young adults report better hand washing behavior than is actually observed. Inad- 914 FOOD PROTECTION TRENDS | DECEMBER 2008

Food Protection Trends - December 2008

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