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How to Clean & Sanitize Fingernails

Your fingernails function as a safe harbor for the germs you come into contact with, such as when wiping after a bowel movement or blowing your nose. Even if you consistently wash your hands with soap and warm water, those nasty, disease-causing microorganisms can hide out underneath your nails and contaminate the things you touch. Cleaning and sanitizing your fingernails helps eliminate germs. Yet you must carry out both procedures in a specific way to effectively get rid of the germs.

Things You'll Need

  • Running water (110-120 degrees F)
  • Fingernail brush
  • Liquid soap
  • Paper towels
  • Hand sanitizer
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Instructions

  1. Cleaning

    • 1

      Turn on warm water. The water should be approximately 110 to 120 degrees F. Wet your hands, including your fingertips and nails. Hold a fingernail brush under running water to wet it.

    • 2

      Pour 1/2 teaspoon or 2 to 3 milliliters of hand soap onto the wet bristles of the fingernail brush. Scrub your fingertips and underneath your fingernails with the soapy brush to create a lather for approximately 20 seconds.

    • 3

      Rinse your fingertips under the warm running water to wash away the germs. Rinse the fingernail brush and place it, bristles up, to dry.

    • 4

      Wet your hands, fingertips and fingernails under the running water. Pour 1/2 teaspoon or 2 to 3 milliliters of soap into one of your palms. Rub your palms together to create a lather. Lather your fingernails, fingertips and hands for approximately 20 seconds.

    • 5

      Rinse the lather away under the running water. Turn off the faucet with a clean paper towel. Dry your hands, fingernails and fingertips with another clean paper towel.

    Sanitizing

    • 6

      Pump 1/2 teaspoon or 2 to 3 milliliters of an alcohol or benzalkonium chloride-based hand sanitizer into one of your hands.

    • 7

      Distribute the sanitizer on top of and underneath your nails and in the groove surrounding the nails.

    • 8

      Rub the sanitizer into these areas for approximately 15 to 20 seconds to sanitize your fingernails. Allow to air dry before touching anything else.

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