How do you keep your toddler's hands clean?

[gobadgers]

Our family is just recovering from an awful fight with a stomach bug. My DH and I are trying to decide if we can change any habits to avoid another one...

At 16 months DD is too little to wash her hands in the sink yet (esp a public one), so I've been using antibacterial wet wipes or hand sanitizer. I'm mildly concerned about the chemicals in them, but then, it certainly seems better than the dirt, grime and germs...

What do you do to keep a little one's hands clean when you're out of the house?

[carolinamama]

When ds1 was that age, we didn't use any of the antiseptic wipes or hand sanitizers as I didn't want him to ingest any of it. We washed his hands alot with soap and water. Of course it was always us doing the rubbing and rinsing. When out and about we still did this - just held him up to the sink to wash before eating etc. We never let him touch anything, esp in public bathrooms. He got the hang of it very quickly from a young age, like around a year old.

[KrisM]

I just hold them up to the sink in public and have stools at home. For public, I sort of sit them on my knee and balance them there.

[brittone2]

I just hold them up to the sink in public and have stools at home. For public, I sort of sit them on my knee and balance them there.

In a pinch I've also used a small travel bottle filled with a little vinegar and distilled water plus some essential oil drops (so it doesn't smell so funky). Target also has a hand sanitizer without Triclosan. It has a high alcohol content, so obviously keep out of reach from a child that might be tempted to actually drink it.

[tarabenet]

CleanWell. It's an organic hand cleaner spray that claims 99.99% effectiveness. No triclosan, no alcohol. Seems to be working well. Smells nice, too! A friend from here told me about it and we get it at Target, in the handsoap area, but today I saw it in Whole Foods, too.

[brittone2]

CleanWell. It's an organic hand cleaner spray that claims 99.99% effectiveness. No triclosan, no alcohol. Seems to be working well. Smells nice, too! A friend from here told me about it and we get it at Target, in the handsoap area, but today I saw it in Whole Foods, too.

Huh...I'll look for that. Didn't know it existed! Thanks for sharing

[Piglet]

Honestly, I just try to wash before meals and when I notice hands are extra dirty, but I never carry hand sanitizer for that age. When we are at a touchy place (kids museum, play area), I use the hand sanitizer that is available. We have 3 thumb/finger suckers in the family and we have been spared from too many nasty bugs, so it might just be a matter of luck or a matter of immunity. Also, I don't know if your DD is in daycare, but I find most of the germs originate there. The good news is that all 3 of mine were daycare kids and the older ones are hardly ever sick now. I relaly do feel that a bit of dirt isn't so bad!?

[gobadgers]

Thanks for all the advice - I'm going to get some CleanWell, and might even try holding her up to the sink the next time we're out. DD isn't in daycare, so I've always figured that the germs she's exposed to in other places (except maybe the airport) are probably good for her in the long run... but after this last stomach bug, I'm ready to be a little more cautious! It will be nice to have an option in my diaper bag that I feel confident about :-)

[egoldber]

We have 3 thumb/finger suckers in the family and we have been spared from too many nasty bugs, so it might just be a matter of luck or a matter of immunity.

My oldest is a thumb sucker (well she's almost completely stopped at this point) and Amy is a paci user. I really don't even bother to make them wash hands except before meals or when they've been playing in the dirt. I think a lot of whether or not you get sick is just a) luck or b) some people just have hardier tummies than others. Neither me nor any of my kids has ever had any type of stomach virus (knock on wood) and we do soooo much less than others do in terms of washing hands. I know in the past I have eaten things that made others very ill and I think for some reason I just have a high tolerance for these types of bugs.

[hillview]

We hold him up to the sink. In airport bathrooms I do use purell or cleanwell (whatever I pull out of purse).
/hillary