WITH almost 22 million school days lost every year in the UK due to the common cold, hygiene experts Dettol have created a new programme aimed at improving the personal hygiene of children to protect them from harmful germs.

The Dettol Handy Helpers Programme has been designed to educate children on the impact spreading germs can have, and uses behavioural science to teach simple steps to improve hand hygiene.

The project was started with an experiment with more than 1,000 children across the country, and it saw a ten per cent increase in children’s behaviour to adopt better hand washing behaviour, with 75 per cent of children taking part now practising good hand hygiene.

Children who took part are more likely to wash their hands regularly and for longer, and before important moments such as eating and after going to the toilet.

Those who took part are now more aware of the importance of washing their hands to avoid becoming ill.

There was a 20 per cent increase in children recognising the number of handwashing steps, meaning children remembered important details recommended by public health bodies.

These include washing their hands for at least 15 seconds and ensuring they clean under their nails and on the backs of their hands.

An extra eight per cent of children in the trial also started washing their hands before eating, which is one of the most effective ways to reduce the spread of cold and flu.

The programme comes after a particularly severe strain of flu has hit over winter and Spring, so Dettol is working to protect those who are most vulnerable to the illness and the spread of germs.

Pat Cattini, president of the Infection Prevention Society, said the organisation supports the Dettol Handy Helpers Programme.

She said: “Hand hygiene is something all children should learn from an early age in order to protect themselves and others from infection.

“Dettol’s programme will go a long way to ensuring students have the knowledge they need to look after themselves and avoid unnecessary illness, as evidenced by the substantial increase in healthy hygiene behaviour amongst participants in the experiment.”

Wei Chen, Dettol senior brand manager, added: “At Dettol, we constantly strive to keep people healthy by protecting families as part of their everyday lives.

“We are proud to have inspired a genuine change in the hygiene habits of children across the UK through the Handy Helpers Programme.”

Doctor and author Dr Ellie Cannon has also shared her top tips for fighting off cold and flu as part of the project to inspire more people to have healthy hygiene routines.

There were to; wash your hands using warm water and antibacterial handwash to prevent the spread of viruses, not to share cutlery, crockery or towels with someone who has cold or flu, eat a balanced diet with plenty of fruit and vegetables and to exercise regularly, get plenty of sleep to maintain a healthy immune system to fight of cold and flu viruses, and if you are a vulnerable person - such as pregnant women or aged 65 or over - to get the free NHS flu jab to protect from flu and protect others around you.

All schools which took part in the programme were provided with educational material produced by Dettol in collaboration with the National Schools Partnership, and were also given an ample supply of Dettol antibacterial handwash to ensure children put their learning into practice.

Fun coursework completed as part of the programme included a glow-germ experiment and a reward chart for healthy handwashing, as well as homework packs to help children pass on their healthy habits to their family at home.

Dettol has been providing cleaning and disinfectant products to hospitals and the general public for the past 80 years.