The habits children develop when learning to use the potty are likely to last a lifetime, so it is important to teach them to wash their hands and wipe properly, and to rinse the potty bowl and flush the toilet after each use. This is a good time to teach other points of etiquette, too, such as putting down the toilet seat and lid, wiping up splashes in the sink after hand washing, and straightening the towel before dashing off to play. Toddler boys need to be taught to pay attention when they urinate so they do not spray the floor and walls, and to clean up if they do. In general, youngsters need to learn to do their part to help maintain a room of the house they will use lots in the years to come.

Parents spend so much time dealing with their youngsters' waste, they can begin to take it for granted to the point that they forget to follow basic rules of hygiene. Similarly, parents find themselves spending so much time struggling with their youngsters' potty training problems and accidents, they do not want to make an issue of wiping and hand washing. Good hygiene really is important for your entire family's health. Be sure to give it the attention it deserves.

Hand Washing

Hand washing does more than keep toddlers' hands pretty and presentable; it protects them from disease. Failure to wash hands properly after using the toilet can cause illness — and it often does! Toddlers will inevitably get stool on their hands when they wipe themselves, as will caregivers when they change diapers and handle soiled laundry. Even traces too small to be seen contain germs. If a contaminated hand has a small cut, or if it touches the mouth or an eye, germs that cause illness enter the body. Be fastidious about washing your hands after you touch soiled diapers and laundry, and have your child come to you for a clean hands check after he has used the potty by himself.

Public restrooms are especially germ-filled, and studies show that about a third of people do not wash their hands at all, and another third don't do it correctly. Consequently, almost every surface is contaminated. Here are instructions on how to get the hand-washing job done right:

• Wet hands.

• Use liquid soap whenever possible; avoid wet bar soap.

• Rub hands vigorously to dislodge microscopic bacteria and viruses from ALL areas of the skin for fifteen to twenty-five seconds.

• Rinse thoroughly.

• Dry hands on a clean, dry towel.

Antibacterial soaps are all the rage these days, but scientists warn that their widespread use will result in resistant superbugs, as has happened from antibiotics and insecticides. Stick to plain soap.

Wiping

Children will not do a very good job of wiping themselves until kindergarten. Besides their lack of practice, their arms are just too short for their bodies. Teach your child to use several small pieces of toilet paper to clean himself, tossing each one as it becomes soiled. This is far more effective than toddlers' natural tendency to use a single big wad. Moistened towelettes can do an even better job, but children will need adult help to use them at first, too.

Starting at the vagina, girls should wipe forward with clean tissue after urinating so as not to get bacteria in the vagina or urethra. For the same reason, they should start just behind the vagina and wipe back along their buttocks after a bowel movement.

Keeping the Penis Clean

You need to make a special effort to keep the penis of an uncircumcised boy clean in order to reduce the risk of infection. The foreskin of an uncircumcised infant cannot be pulled back, but make it a habit to lift the foreskin gently as soon as it begins to loosen and wash the area carefully during each bath to prevent infection. Do this by gently wiping with a soft washcloth that has been dipped in warm water, and teach your tot how to do the same when he is old enough. When the foreskin is fully retractable so that it can be folded back over the penis like the cuff of a shirt sleeve over an arm, be sure your child returns it to its normal position after urinating or washing himself. If the foreskin is left folded, it can function like a rubber band. The resulting constriction can cause problems serious enough to require medical treatment.