Some 84 per cent of British adults don’t wash their hands for long enough to clean them of the bacteria that can cause infections such as upset stomachs, or viruses that can cause colds and flu, a new survey from the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has revealed.

Around 30 per cent of diarrhoea and 16 per cent of respiratory infections can be prevented through handwashing and doing it effectively can also reduce the number of antibiotics prescribed, helping to prevent antibiotic resistance. The recommended time to spend washing your hands is 20 seconds – or as long as it takes to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ twice.

RPS president Ash Soni said: “Even when we remain unaffected by the bugs we carry, if we don’t wash our hands we can transmit infections which then become a real problem for those who are more vulnerable, such as children and the elderly, who may then need to be prescribed antibiotics. We can never know what we are carrying or what impact it may have on those around us, which is why good handwashing is so important.”