Cleanliness

Cleanliness is both the abstract state of being clean and free from dirt, and the process of achieving and maintaining that state. Cleanliness may be endowed with a moral quality, as indicated by the aphorism "cleanliness is next to godliness,"[2] and may be regarded as contributing to other ideals such as health and beauty. In emphasizing an ongoing procedure or set of habits for the purpose of maintenance and prevention, the concept of cleanliness differs from purity, which is a physical, moral, or ritual state of freedom from pollutants. Whereas purity is usually a quality of an individual or substance, cleanliness has a social dimension, or implies a system of interactions.[3] "Cleanliness," observed Jacob Burckhardt, "is indispensable to our modern notion of social perfection."[4] A household or workplace may be said to exhibit cleanliness, but not ordinarily purity; cleanliness also would be a characteristic of the people who maintain cleanness or prevent dirtying. On a practical level, cleanliness is thus related to hygiene and disease prevention. Washing is one way of achieving physical cleanliness, usually with water and often some kind of soap or detergent. Procedures of cleanliness are of utmost importance in many forms of manufacturing. As an assertion of moral superiority or respectability, cleanliness has played a role in establishing cultural values in relation to social class, humanitarianism, and cultural imperialism.[5]

Cleanliness & Personal Hygiene

Personal cleanliness and good hygiene practices are essential for health and social reasons. People who are perceived as unclean are often ostracized by others. Healthy hygiene habits should be practiced daily. It is important for parents to teach and model these skills to their children. Healthy habits instilled in childhood often follow children into adulthood. Home hygiene pertains to the hygiene practices that prevent or minimize disease and the spreading of disease in home (domestic) and in everyday life settings such as social settings, public transport, the work place, public places etc. Hygiene in home and everyday life settings plays an important part in preventing spread of infectious diseases.[5] It includes procedures used in a variety of domestic situations such as hand hygiene, respiratory hygiene, food and water hygiene, general home hygiene(hygiene of environmental sites and surfaces), care of domestic animals, and home healthcare (the care of those who are at greater risk of infection).

At present, these components of hygiene tend to be regarded as separate issues, although all are based on the same underlying microbiological principles. Preventing the spread of infectious diseases means breaking the chain of infection transmission. The simple principle is that, if the chain of infection is broken, infection cannot spread. In response to the need for effective codes of hygiene in home and everyday life settings the International Scientific Forum on Home Hygiene has developed a risk-based approach (based on Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP), which has come to be known as "targeted hygiene". Targeted hygiene is based on identifying the routes of spread of pathogens in the home, and applying hygiene procedures at critical points at appropriate times to break the chain of infection. Good home hygiene means targeting hygiene procedures at critical points, at appropriate times, to break the chain of infection i.e. to eliminate germs before they can spread further.[6] Because the "infectious dose" for some pathogens can be very small (10-100 viable units, or even less for some viruses), and infection can result from direct transfer from surfaces via hands or food to the mouth, nasal mucosa or the eye, 'hygienic cleaning' procedures should be sufficient to eliminate pathogens from critical surfaces. Hygienic cleaning can be done by:

Mechanical removal (i.e. cleaning) using a soap or detergent. To be effective as a hygiene measure, this process must be followed by thorough rinsing under running water to remove germs from the surface. Using a process or product that inactivates the pathogens in situ. Germ kill is achieved using a "micro-biocidal" product i.e. a disinfectant or antibacterial product or waterless hand sanitizer, or by application of heat. In some cases combined germ removal with kill is used, e.g. laundering of clothing and household linens such as towels and bedlinen.

Hand Washing
Frequent hand washing reduces the spread of germs, bacteria and food-borne illness. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, you should wet your hands with warm, running water. Apply soap and lather for at least 20 seconds, making sure to clean fingers, fingernails, cuticles, palms and wrists. Rinse thoroughly and dry with a fresh paper towel or an air dryer. You should always wash your hands before handling or eating food; after trips to the restroom; after handling animals; before and after changing a diaper or handling a small child; after handling garbage or other dirty objects; before and after contact with a sick person; and after blowing your nose, sneezing or coughing.
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Bathing
Regular bathing reduces body odor and can help control skin problems like acne. The Mayo Clinic recommends bathing daily to reduce the bacteria that contribute to body odor, particularly in the armpits and on the feet. Personal preference and resources determine whether you should take a bath or shower, though if you are heavily soiled it is best to shower rather than wash with dirty bathwater. Wash your hair as frequently as needed based on your hair type. Dry yourself thoroughly after bathing to prevent bacteria growth.

Oral Hygiene
Proper oral hygiene is crucial in reducing and preventing problems of the mouth and gums like plaque, cavities, gingivitis, tartar and bad breath. Brush your teeth at least twice per day and floss once per day. Your dentist can assess problem areas in your mouth and recommend special methods or products you may need.

Grooming
Grooming is the act of making yourself presentable to others. At its most basic level, grooming includes keeping your body, teeth, clothes, hair and nails clean and preventing body odor by using antiperspirant and deodorant. More advanced grooming practices may also include hair styling, makeup, moisturizers, manicures, pedicures, nail polish, personal fragrance, hair removal and more.

Home and Clothing

A sanitary home environment and clean clothes are important aspects of overall personal cleanliness. Wash your clothes regularly to remove odors. Treat stains as soon as they occur, and iron when needed to remove wrinkles. Keeping your home clean reduces bacteria, helps prevent insects and contributes to overall wellbeing. Housecleaning basics include properly disposing of garbage, washing dirty dishes, and cleaning floors regularly. Wash sheets and bedding at least twice a month.

Public Cleanliness Singapore has a reputation as a clean and attractive city, in large part because of its litter-free streets and pavements. NEA plays an important role in this regard, as it oversees the cleaning of public areas in Singapore. NEA takes a three-pronged approach to keeping our environment clean, which includes:

Public Cleaning Public Education Enforcement

Public Cleaning The cleaning of public areas in Singapore went through a major restructuring in 2012. Prior to April 2012, NEA was only responsible for the cleaning of roads, pavements as well as certain private estates and public areas throughout Singapore. Besides NEA, other agencies such as PUB and NParks were responsible for the cleaning of their own assets such as drains and park areas. In order to improve efficiency and deliver a higher standard of public cleanliness, a new Department of Public Cleanliness (DPC) was formed on 1 April 2012. More information about DPC can be found here. To raise the cleaning standards in Singapore and upgrade the professionalism and productivity of the cleaning industry, NEA has also implemented a voluntary Clean Mark Accreditation Scheme for the cleaning industry on 21 July 2010. The scheme is voluntary and the application fee will be waived for another year till mid 2013. For more information on Clean Mark Accreditation Scheme, please click here

Public Education The NEA works closely with our 3P Partners (the people, public and private sectors) to rally members of the community to take ownership of their litter and keep their surroundings clean. The key message behind our education efforts is that the public should not rely on cleaners to clean up after them. Rather, they should take personal responsibility to hold on to their litter until they find a bin to dispose of it. One of the main programmes is the Singapore, LitterFree campaign.

Enforcement Strict enforcement to deter litterbugs and to complement public education is a key strategy that NEA adopts to sustain public cleanliness. A first time offender who throws a cigarette butt onto the ground or other small items, such as carpark coupon tab, sweet wrapper, bus ticket, cigarette box wrapper and matchstick, may have the offence compounded for $300.

Recalcitrant offenders or those who commit serious littering offences such as throwing a drink can, bottle or other large items in a public place are required to appear in Court, and may be served with a Corrective Work Order (CWO) requiring them to clean up public places. The CWO was introduced in November 1992 to reform littering offenders. As the offender carries out the CWO such as by picking or sweeping up litter, it is hoped that the offenders will reflect on the hardship that cleaners have to endure to clean up the mess created by them, and how litter can mar our living environment. Of course, the CWO does carry an element of shame and hopefully this will serve to deter others from littering.
The subject of cleanliness has been discussed from all angles for many years. Arguments against, as well as for, have been presented with various degrees of effectiveness. It was not so long ago that washing the whole body was considered a sin and a shame, and bath-tubs were originally introduced in spite of protests from the sanitarians. The pendulum has now swung too far in the other direction. Cleanliness is sometimes claimed to be the means of prevention and cure of almost all kinds of diseases. Health Departments are often required to spend a great deal of time and money on municipal housekeeping such as street cleaning and collection of refuse. Expense of this kind should not be charged up to health work as there is very slight chance that disease can be prevented in this way. On the other hand, cleanliness in the form of pure water, pasteurized milk from inspected dairies, fresh food from sanitary kitchens and storeshandled by people free from communicable diseaseall have a real effect upon the public health. Personal cleanliness is very much a matter of personal choice. There are certain social standards that most of us prefer to measure up to, but small habits are those most likely to affect health. Keeping the hands clean probably does more to promote our own health and prevent spreading disease to others than all the other types of personal cleanliness put together. Children can be directed toward the clean hands habit with effective results from an early age.