Healthy habits can protect everyone from getting germs or spreading germs at home, school, or work. Many people believe that germs are most often spread through a sneeze or cough, but it's really our hands that spread the most germs. If people really knew what kind of germs they were spreading, they may be washing their hands more often-and when its appropriate.

Nurse Nancy Hansen suggests you "wash your hands before eating and after personal hygiene. Certainly in healthcare there are more opportunities that we need to wash our hands when we work with patients."

College student Stephanie Thorp says "It's amazing how many people don't wash their hands after using the bathroom." If soap and water are not available, and your hands are not visibly dirty, using an alcohol based hand sanitizer with at least 60 % alcohol can significantly reduce the number of germs on your skin. "I always carry that hand sanitizer in my purse. I'm not really a germ-a-phobic but I do like to be clean" says Thorp.

Knowing how to wash your hands correctly is just as important as knowing when to wash them. Just rinsing them quickly is not enough. Hansen states, "It should be getting your hands wet first of all and then soaping them up and lathering them really well. You need to apply a little friction because the only way germs come off is when we apply a little pressure. It should be at least 10 to 15 seconds."

Washing your hands makes a big difference, that's because viruses and bacteria can live up t two hours on surfaces like cafeteria tables.

One survey showed that, 91 percent of adults say they always wash their hands after using public restrooms; however just 83 percent were observed doing so.