HYGIENE AND HEALTHY HABITS FOR TEENS

LESSON 1 HANDWASHING

In this lesson, you will learn that:

1. Microorganisms such as bacteria and viruses are microscopic organisms that exist everywhere. They can
easily transfer from objects and surfaces to people, or from one person to another.
2. Microorganisms can cause illness, so it is important to prevent their spread.
3. One way to protect yourself and others from getting sick is by proper handwashing.

By the end of this lesson, you should be able to:

1. Explain the importance of handwashing in preventing the spread of disease.
2. List critical times when handwashing is needed.
3. Demonstrate proper handwashing techniques.

LET’S GET STARTED

Microorganisms such as bacteria and viruses are microscopic organisms that exist everywhere. They cannot be
seen with the naked eye, but can easily transfer from objects and surfaces to people, or from one person to
another.

When the microorganisms come into contact with your eyes, nose or mouth, they can enter your body, and this
may result in you feeling sick.

When you see a person who is sneezing, coughing, or has a runny nose, or when a person has a fever and rashes on
their skin, it means that microorganisms have invaded their body.

TRY THIS
Try placing baby powder on your hands and pretend that the little white particles are microorganisms.
Next, try touching a surface, like your shirt or a chair. As you can see, the powder spreads easily. Lastly,
try to shake your hands. Does the powder come off? Just like the powder, microorganisms spread easily!
They can go from your hand to a surface, or from a surface to your body. They can transfer from one
person to another. They can even transfer from your hands to your food and drinks! Merely wiping or
shaking your hands will not help to get rid of them.

LET’S READ AND LEARN

Handwashing is one of the best ways to get rid of these microorganisms. Soap can kill these microorganisms, so
washing your hands properly can help prevent the spread of microorganisms that cause people to get sick.

When, and how often, should you wash your hands? These are the times we need to remember to wash our hands:

THINK ABOUT THIS

Can you think of other situations when handwashing is important?
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LET’S READ AND LEARN
Proper Handwashing Procedure
Just putting soap, rubbing our hands together and rinsing off the soap does not ensure that all the microorganisms
will be washed away. There is a proper way to wash your hands.

It is better to air dry our hands than use cloth towels. Microorganisms can also exist on cloth towels, so if we use
a cloth towel those microorganisms will just transfer back to our hands.

What if you are not able to immediately wash your hands with soap and water? What can you do to minimize the
microorganisms on your hands? Use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol to kill microorganisms. By
looking at the product label, you will see how much alcohol the product contains. But remember, sanitizers cannot
remove all types of microorganisms and is not as effective as soap and water, especially if your hands are visibly
dirty or soiled.

THINK ABOUT THIS

There are a number of infectious diseases that can spread from one person to another by one’s
contaminated hands. Search for the terms ‘handwashing’ and ‘diseases’ and see how many different
illnesses you can find that are related to handwashing. Can you name some?
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Remember, handwashing is one of the best measures to protect yourself and others from getting sick
because it prevents the spread of microorganisms and reduces the risk of getting other communicable
infections. Be responsible for your health by regularly practicing good hygiene.

NOW TRY THIS

Imagine what happens in a restaurant or at the supermarket. List down situations where microorganisms can
spread from person to person through the surfaces and objects that people touch, i.e. situations where
microorganisms from one person’s hand can contaminate an object or a surface which, in turn, can contaminate
another person’s hand, even if the two people did not come into direct contact with each other. Here are some
examples:
• A server gives a customer the menu.
• A server hands a customer a spoon and fork.
• A consumer hands a cashier money as payment

List down as many situations (i.e. opportunities for contamination) as you can come up with. Then, for each
situation, think of ways by which restaurants, supermarkets or owners of public establishments can help prevent
the spread of microorganisms through person-to-surface contact. Have a look at these alternatives to the
examples listed earlier:
• Restaurants place their menus on the wall instead of handing out menus.
• Spoons and forks are retrieved from a heated sanitizer, rather than handed out by the server.
• Customers pay electronically instead of by cash.
 Opportunities for Contamination Alternative Action

TRY THIS
Is there someone at home who needs to learn the steps for proper handwashing? Record a video of yourself
teaching them the proper way to wash hands, and share this video with your teacher and classmates, or
share it on your social media account.

LESSON 2 PERSONAL HYGIENE

In this lesson, you will learn that:

1. Personal hygiene is important in maintaining one’s health and preventing the spread of diseases.
2. Personal hygiene practices include handwashing, bathing regularly, washing scalp and hair, brushing teeth, cutting
fingernails and wearing clean clothes.

By the end of this lesson, you should be able to:

1. Describe the importance of personal hygiene.
2. Explain what acceptable and poor personal hygiene practices are.
3. Demonstrate personal hygiene practices.

LET’S READ AND LEARN

Personal hygiene refers to practices that you can do to take care of your own health, by keeping your body clean
and your surroundings sanitized. The word sanitized means, ‘free from microorganisms.’

Maintaining good hygiene is even more important during puberty and adolescence because of the increased
hormonal activity and bodily changes that occur during this period.

Bathing every day and wearing clean clothes are both important hygiene
practices, especially since adolescents are prone to body odor due to the
hormonal changes that begin in puberty.

Excessive sweating can cause body odor when sweat combines with bacteria on
your skin. While deodorants and anti-perspirants can reduce the smell, it is still
better to take a bath every day to get rid of odor-causing bacteria.

Taking a bath is especially important for girls who are menstruating. Some believe in the myth that bathing during
your menstruation is bad, but that is not true. Bathing can help you to be comfortable during your monthly period.
You should replace your sanitary pads as often as needed, or at least every 3-5 hours.

Wearing dirty clothes after bathing just exposes you again to the presence of bacteria that may be multiplying
on your dirty or sweaty clothes. Make sure to wear clean clothes and underwear after every bath.

Washing your scalp and hair is also an important personal hygiene practice. If you look closely at your hair and
scalp, you will see glands on the surface of your scalp. Oil comes out of these glands, and if you mix oil, dust and
sweat – these can result in your hair becoming greasy, making it another place where germs and bacteria may
multiply.

To properly wash your hair and scalp, you should:

• Wet your hair thoroughly.
• Use just the right amount of shampoo.
• Massage your scalp well to remove dead skin cells, excess oil, and dirt.
• Rinse until you don’t see any more bubbles or soap suds in your hair.
• Dry your hair and head with a clean towel.

Also, it’s important not to share towels, combs or brushes. Do you know why?

You should not share towels, combs, brushes or even hair accessories to avoid
the spread of head lice or nits. Lice are small, wingless insects that live on the
scalp and suck off human blood. If a person with lice uses your brush, for
instance, the lice might transfer to your brush, and it might transfer to your
head the next time you use your brush.

If your head is always itchy, it may mean that you have head lice. You should ask an adult to look carefully at the
strands of your hair to look for nits (lice eggs.) Nits do not come off by mere brushing. You will need a special
kind of shampoo to get rid of it.

Another important personal hygiene practice is brushing your teeth. Why is it important to brush your teeth?

When we chew food, some of it gets stuck to our teeth and gums, while some of it gets stuck in the spaces
between our teeth. There is a sticky film that builds up on the surface of our teeth called plaque and it has a lot
of bacteria. The bacteria in plaque produce acids that can damage the outer layer of your teeth, causing cavities
and tooth decay.

The best way to prevent tooth decay is to brush your teeth with toothpaste that contains fluoride. Here is the
proper way to brush your teeth:
• Squeeze a pea-sized amount of toothpaste onto the toothbrush.
• Brush all teeth, especially the molars in the back, for at least two minutes.
• Spit the toothpaste out, but do not rinse your mouth.
• Wipe your mouth using hands with some water.
• Rinse your toothbrush with clean water.

Did you know that you are not supposed to rinse your mouth out with water after brushing your teeth? This is so
that the fluoride in the toothpaste will remain on your teeth to protect them against plaque.

Cutting your fingernails is another important hygiene practice. If your fingernails are long, dirt and bacteria can
get trapped under your fingernails.

You should be cutting your nails short enough, following the shape of the nail, but not so short that you cut too
close to the skin underneath. Keeping nails trimmed is important to maintaining your health.

As we said earlier, wearing clean clothes is an important hygiene practice. Dirty clothes carry dirt and sweat,
and of course, microorganisms. Body odor can also result from wearing dirty clothes. You must make sure that
your clothes are washed after every use to remove the dirt, sweat and microorganisms stuck to them.

Underwear – like undershirts, boxer shorts, panties and briefs – are right next to our skin so they collect sweat,
dead skin cells and body fluids. These clothes must be washed after every use to prevent bacteria from multiplying
on them.

TRY THIS
Make a recording of yourself explaining the importance of these personal hygiene habits. These videos can
be used to educate younger siblings or cousins about the importance of good hygiene. They can be
uploaded on a social media platform or even turned into a video blog. You can collaborate online with one or
two friends on this activity. Each should prepare a recording and get feedback from the others to
improve the recordings. If you are not able to record a video, you may instead create flyers or
infographics that can be shared with younger siblings and cousins.

Remember: Personal hygiene is important because it affects your health and well-being, as well as the
health of those around you. Be responsible for your health by regularly practicing good hygiene.
LESSON 3 HEALTHY HABITS TO HELP IMMUNITY

In this lesson, you will learn that:

1. A strong immune system defends the body against the millions of microorganisms it is exposed to every day,
offering protection against a range of illnesses, from the common cold to chronic disease.
2. Along with keeping good hygiene, habits that support one’s immune system are as follows:
• Choose nutritious and varied food
• Manage portions
• Choose to drink water and milk
• Enjoy meals together
• Play actively
• Care for the planet

By the end of this lesson, you should be able to:

1. Understand the nature and importance of the immune system.
2. Explain the role of Healthy Habits in building up one’s resistance and preventing communicable diseases.
3. Practice Healthy Habits to support normal immunity and prevent the spread of communicable diseases.

LET’S READ AND LEARN

Have you heard of the words ‘immune system’? We also use the terms
‘immunity’ or ‘resistensya’. Does anyone know what these terms mean?

The immune system refers to the cells, tissues and organs of our body that
work together to protect the body against infection. Remember, our body is
constantly exposed to millions of microorganisms. If bad microorganisms
enter or attack our body, our immune system is supposed to send cells to
find the bad microorganisms and kill them.

If our immune system is strong and functioning properly, then it can defend
itself against the microorganisms that cause sickness. But if our immune
system is weak, it may lose against bad microorganisms.

White blood cells are an important part of the immune system. They circulate
throughout the body, looking for foreign bodies like bacteria, viruses and
parasites.
White blood cells include:
• Neutrophils – these circulate throughout the body to look for foreign substances
• Eosinophils – these protect the body from parasitic infections
• Basophils - these respond during allergic reactions
• Monocytes – these ingest invading microorganisms
• Lymphocytes - these help the body remember the microorganisms and destroy them

Some types of lymphocytes are as follows:

• B-cells – a type of lymphocyte that produces antibodies, a protein molecule that helps to fight off antigens
• T-cells – a type of lymphocyte that helps get rid of infected cells and cells that are different from normal
body cells, such as cancer cells
Antigens are toxins that trigger the body’s immune response. They may come
from substances produced by invading viruses or bacteria, or from the
environment like chemicals or allergens. When the body does get sick
because of the presence of antigens, the immune system gets rid of them
and remembers how to combat the infection by producing protein molecules
called antibodies. As these antibodies circulate, they attack antigens that
trigger the immune response by binding to them, facilitating their
destruction.

TRY THIS
Research the following online:
• What are the signs and symptoms of a weakened immune system?
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• What consequences and diseases are associated with a weak or compromised immune system?
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In the previous lessons, we learned to Keep Good Hygiene. This lesson talks about other Healthy Habits
that can help support our immune system. The immune system is always working to get rid of any
infection. You can help your immune system do its job by practicing the Healthy Habits. These Healthy
Habits strengthen your immune system so that it can ‘resist’ or fight off infections.

LET’S READ AND LEARN

Let’s look at the first habit that strengthens your immune system: Choose Nutritious and Varied Options. It is
important to eat a nutritious and balanced diet that is rich in protein, fruits, vegetables, dairy and whole grains.

Choosing nutritious and varied options allows us to get the different nutrients that our bodies need for a strong
immune system.

Vitamin A is an important vitamin that nourishes the skin and tissues in the mouth,
stomach and intestines. When the skin and tissues in the mouth, stomach and intestines
are intact and healthy, they act as a barrier against infection.

Vitamin A is found in yellow and orange vegetables like squash and carrots. It can also be
found in fruits like papayas, melons and mangoes. You can also find vitamin A in sweet potatoes, organ meats like
liver, and fortified milk.

Vitamin C is another important vitamin that supports the normal function of the immune
system. It is found in yellow and orange fruits like papayas, pineapples, mangoes and
oranges. Dark, leafy vegetables like malunggay and kangkong are also rich in vitamin C,
along with fortified milk and chocomalt milk drink.

Vitamin D contributes to maintenance of normal bones and muscles and normal absorption
of calcium. You can find vitamin D in fortified milk and chocomalt milk drinks, cheese, eggs
and fish like salmon, tuna or sardines.

Vitamin B6 also helps in producing the cells that fight microorganisms. Vitamin B6 can be
found in potatoes, bananas, fish, eggs, chicken and organ meats like liver. We can also get
this vitamin from nuts and beans, whole grain cereals, fortified milk and chocomalt milk
drink.
 Zinc is another nutrient that supports normal growth and normal function of the immune
system. Zinc also helps in wound healing. It is found in protein-rich food like fish, eggs,
chicken, red meat, shellfish and fortified milk.

Iron helps in forming substances that kill bacteria and inactivate invading microorganisms.
Iron is found in meat, poultry, fish, beans, and green leafy vegetables, as well as fortified
milk and chocomalt milk drink.

Last but not least, folate is another nutrient that helps our immune system respond to
microorganisms. It is found in dark green, leafy vegetables. It is also found in nuts, beans,
whole grain cereals and citrus fruits, such as orange.

Our immune system needs a lot of different vitamins and minerals, and we
can only get the vitamins and minerals we need if we choose nutritious and
varied options for food. If we eat the same thing every day, we are
preventing our bodies from getting all the nutrients it needs to help maintain
our immune system.

Let’s talk about the second Healthy Habit that that helps support our immune system: Manage Portions.

This is Pinggang Pinoy®. It is an easy-to-understand food guide that reminds us what

our meals should look like every day. A nutritious meal consists of Go, Grow and Glow
food which should be eaten with a glass of water and/or a nutritious beverage like
fortified milk. Following Pinggang Pinoy® helps to strengthen our immunity.
Pinggang Pinoy® reminds us that half of the plate should have fruits and vegetables,
with more vegetables than fruits. The other half is for grains and protein sources,
with more grains than protein. Having the correct portion sizes in every meal ensures that we get the vitamins
and minerals needed to strengthen immunity and prevent infection.

Which brings us to our next Healthy Habit: Choose to Drink Water and Milk. Water
is an important component of lymph, a fluid part of the immune system. Fortified
milk has calcium and vitamin D for normal bones and teeth. It also has nutrients like
iron, zinc and vitamin C that may contribute to the normal function of the immune
system.

Lack of water leads to dehydration, with the following signs and symptoms: thirst, fatigue, discomfort, dizziness,
weakness and loss of appetite.

Another important Healthy Habit is to Play Actively. Children need to regularly get
30 to 60 minutes of physical activity. Doing so strengthens the body, making it more
capable of fighting against infections. Doing moderate to average intensity physical
activities – like brisk walking, jogging or skipping rope – also strengthens the immune
system. These kinds of activities temporarily improve blood circulation, which means
increased circulation of the cells that fight infection.

Physical activity does not just refer to sports and exercises. Physical activity also includes the things you do to
get your body moving, like doing household chores or going for a walk with your family.

Another important habit for staying healthy is to Enjoy Meals Together.

Studies show that children who always eat meals with their families are more likely
to eat fruits, vegetables and milk which are all rich in vitamins and minerals. In other
words, eating with the family encourages healthier eating habits which help build
stronger resistance.
 The last habit we will discuss has to do with our environment: Care for the Planet.

We do our best to keep our bodies clean and our immune system strong so that we
can avoid getting sick, but another important thing to remember is that we should
keep our surroundings clean.

If we make sure that our surroundings are clean, then we minimize the presence
of disease-causing microorganisms that may cause sickness.

We can keep our surroundings clean by not littering, and making sure that trash is safely collected, stored and
disposed. We can also make sure that we regularly clean household surfaces like table tops, kitchen sinks and
bathroom surfaces with soap and water, to prevent microorganisms from multiplying.

NOW TRY THIS

Which of these habits do you need to start practicing today? Try any of these Healthy Habit Challenges
below!

Identify nutritious foods that you need to add to your diet. Perhaps you do not eat enough
vegetables and fruits, or you only eat one kind of protein (such as chicken).

Research recipes (or come up with one of your own) for a vegetable, fruit, or protein source that
you should add to your diet. Share this recipe with your friends and teacher through email or social
media.

With a friend or classmate, think of ways you can remember to drink water throughout the day. For
instance, you can use an alarm to remind you every hour, or you can remind yourself to drink water
each time you walk into the kitchen. For seven days, you and your classmate can record the number
of glasses of water you drank each day to see if your ideas helped to increase your water intake.

Ask your family members to answer this question during your next meal: “Name three things you
are grateful for.” Come up with similar questions that you can discuss while enjoying your meal
together and share these questions with your teacher and classmates.

Make an exercise video that you can share on your social media account, or choose a day and time
when you can meet with friends online to exercise together. Record you’re your group exercise and
share this video with your teacher and classmates to encourage them to have physical activity as
well.

Walk through your home with a member of your family and observe areas where cleanliness can be
improved. Come up with tips on how to properly clean surfaces of your house, to keep your home
clean and sanitized. Share these tips in a video or create a poster that you can send to your teacher
and classmates.

This handout is made for the purpose of Wellness Module Implementation of Punta Integrated School. The content of this handout is copied from the module provided by Nestlé.