Don't touch that food yet. Have you washed your hands?

Clearly my MoFo isn't going so well. I'm still shooting for 20 total this month, though. The midterm, papers, and a presentation are to blame for the interruption. I'm happy to report that despite my shell-shock, I did quite well on my midterm. Now I'm busy panicking about pandemic flu and trying to keep my personal anxiety about it out of my paper.

This isn't really vegan food-related, but before you prepare your vegan food today, keep in mind that it is:


Instead of vegan food, I bring you an important public health message.

In developing countries millions of children die every year from preventable respiratory and diarrheal infections. One of the Millennium Development Goals is to reduce this number by two-thirds. One way to address this goal is to teach children how to properly wash their hands with soap and water. This may seem obvious, but in many cultures, it is not a regular practice.

We are fortunate enough to live in societies in which infectious diseases are much less prevalent and handwashing is already a cultural norm. However, a recent study in London found that 1 out of 4 commuters had fecal bacteria on their hands. Eew. Remember that the next time you skip a stop at the sink.

Also, keep in mind that colds and other winter bugs can be prevented by regular handwashing with soap and warm water.

(Don't bother with antibacterial soap. Regular old soap will get the job done without messing with your body's good bacteria.)

WASH YOUR HANDS.

Thus ends my PSA.