Sammy's school message
Half of all men and a quarter of women don't wash their hands after going to the toilet, according to research.
That's even though up to ten billion bacteria are present between a person's fingertip and elbow – and the number of germs doubles after using the bathroom.
Good hand hygiene is an easy way of stopping infections such as food poisoning, diarrhoea and viruses like colds and flu.
That's why Hull primary schoolchildren are being given the message by some very special characters.
Sammy Soap and The Clean Team have been created by Bluestorm Design and Marketing, in partnership with Hull City Council and the local NHS.
And they are already proving to be a big hit in classrooms as part of colouring charts and quizzes.
"If we can encourage children to wash their hands properly from a young age, hopefully it will become a habit they will adopt for life," says Eileen Henderson, assistant to medical director, at Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust.
The characters are part of the NHS Give Soap a Chance campaign, to which more than 70 local businesses have signed up.
Last year in Hull there were 24 outbreaks of diarrhoea and vomiting which affected a total of 325 people.
There were also 84 confirmed cases of Norovirus.
For more infomation visit www.wash-hands.com
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