Goodbye hand dryers, hello paper towels!

The Covid-19 pandemic has changed the hygiene practices of Europeans. They wash their hands more regularly and pay more attention to how to dry them. According to a study, more than one in two Europeans prefer to use paper towels, the most hygienic method according to them.

No thanks hand dryer bacteria

Washing your hands is an act encouraged by the health authorities. Since the arrival of Covid-19, advice has been posted in public places, broadcast on radio or television. According a survey sponsored by the European Tissue Symposium and carried out in 10 European countries, 88% of men and 85% of women wash their hands more often during the day since the start of the pandemic.

It’s not uncommon to be offered two or three ways to dry your hands in a restaurant restroom or in the workplace. There are paper towels, fabric towels as well as electric hand dryers. And here again, the Covid has made it possible to make Europeans aware of the most hygienic way of drying their hands. Electric hand dryers. are neglected, because they would pose health risks by projecting bacteria into the air, underlines the survey which recalls that the pandemic has made it possible to highlight this phenomenon.

Men are also vigilant

More than one in two men (56%) are aware of the possible risks associated with the use of electric hand dryers. For the fairer sex, 40.4% of them have read information on health risks, a share which rises to 70% of 18-34 year olds.

According to the study, more than one in two Europeans (54%) are more likely to turn to cloth towels, considering them the most hygienic method for drying their hands. As a result, 38.5% of respondents increased their use of paper towels.

*Survey conducted among 3,400 Europeans aged 18 to 65 in 10 countries: Belgium, France, Finland, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom