Skip to main content

Hygiene, empirical

2020-02-20 — 2020-04-06

quality 3.3

Wherein Common Practices of Handwashing, Masks and Surface Measures Are Examined, and Handwashing Routines and Particulate Mask Efficacy Are Empirically Considered as Means to Reduce Infectious Disease Transmission.

DIY
health
Figure 1

1 Empirically effective hygiene

How do I avoid infectious disease? What is the best trade-off of robust-immune-health versus exposure to nasty pathogens? Do particulate masks do anything useful against disease? What?

I am no particular expert. Perhaps I can outsource my thinking on this issue to the useful obsessives on the internet?

Figure 2

TBD: Does covering things with copper help?

TBD: Do zinc lozenges help?

2 Hygiene instincts

Figure 3

How are we so bad at avoiding contagion? Are other animals any better? Keyword: “Disgust instinct”.

🚧TODO🚧

3 Masks

See hygienic masks

Figure 4

4 References

Boyce. 2004. “New Insights for Improving Hand Hygiene Practices.” Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology.
Curtis, de Barra, and Aunger. 2011. “Disgust as an Adaptive System for Disease Avoidance Behaviour.” Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.
Davey. 2011. “Disgust: The Disease-Avoidance Emotion and Its Dysfunctions.” Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.
ECRI. 2016. “Antimicrobial Copper Surfaces for Reducing Hospital-Acquired Infection Risk.” 63.
Fischer, Fischer, Grass, et al. 2020. “Low-Cost Measurement of Facemask Efficacy for Filtering Expelled Droplets During Speech.” Science Advances.
Mitze, Kosfeld, Rode, et al. 2020. “Unmasked! The Effect of Face Masks on the Spread of COVID-19.” VoxEU.org (blog).
Oaten, Stevenson, and Case. 2011. “Disease Avoidance as a Functional Basis for Stigmatization.” Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.
Sarabian, Curtis, and McMullan. 2018. “Evolution of Pathogen and Parasite Avoidance Behaviours†.” Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.
Shove. 2003. “Converging Conventions of Comfort, Cleanliness and Convenience.” Journal of Consumer Policy.
———. 2004. Comfort, Cleanliness and Convenience: The Social Organization of Normality (New Technologies/New Cultures).
Taylor. 1978. “An Evaluation of Handwashing Techniques.” Nursing Times.
Yasuyuki, Kunihiro, Kurissery, et al. 2010. “Antibacterial Properties of Nine Pure Metals: A Laboratory Study Using Staphylococcus Aureus and Escherichia Coli.” Biofouling.