Summary of week 1

Thank you for completing week one of the e-Bug Health Educator Training course, we hope you have enjoyed it so far!

This week we covered an introduction to microbes, including examples of useful and harmful microbes and where they can be found in food, our bodies, or in the home. We covered the importance of Targeted Hygiene, i.e. hygiene at key moments when harmful microbes are most likely to spread. We then looked in more detail at washing hands at critical times/moments to reduce the spread of infection. We also covered the spread of infection through our hands and through coughs and sneezes, how this can be prevented by good respiratory hygiene, and practical activities that you can use in your school or community groups to demonstrate the spread and prevention of infection.

Next week, is Week Two, and we are halfway through the e-Bug educator course. During Week Two, we will cover food hygiene and oral hygiene, including foodborne microbes, cross-contamination and how to prevent it, as well as the effect of sugary foods and drinks on our oral health. We will go into detail using case studies, videos, and interactive activities to provide an overview of these topics and suggest ideas on how you can teach about these topics in your school or community settings. We look forward to seeing you here again next week for Week Two of the e-Bug educator course.

Let us know in the comments below:

• Do you have any questions about week one?
• What was your key take-home message from this week?