Archetypical teens Kevin and Perry

Your common-or-garden teenager is widely thought to be a spotty youth largely untroubled by thoughts of bathing. Thus woe betide the hapless parent who dares suggest that hands be washed before dinner.

Almost half of teenagers don't always wash their hands after they have been to the toilet or before eating, according to a survey by the Food and Drink Federation. And it's a habit which puts them at risk of food poisoning. Some of those surveyed said they didn't have the time, others blamed it on dirty school toilets. And some simply forgot.

But try telling that to the youth of today, and a protest chorus of "we're clean" rings out.

In the gaggle of 14-year-old girls gathered at a west London shopping mall at lunchtime, half pick up their lunchtime bagels with a serviette. No such niceties for the others, nor for the boys tucking into giant chocolate cookies nearby.

"We didn't wash our hands before eating," says Shelley, one of the year nine girls celebrating the end of exams. "They don't have free toilets here, so we can't.

Number of germs on fingertips doubles after using the toilet Yet half of all men and a quarter of women don't bother to wash after using the loo There's an estimated 5.5 million cases of food poisoning in the UK a year Source: Foodlink

"And at school you can't always wash your hands before you eat food, but if you use the toilet you wash your hands. Not that there's ever any soap."

For washing without soap and hot water leaves bugs on hands which can easily be transmitted into mouths. And even those who think they are being thorough may still be at risk if they forget to dry their hands - 1,000 times as many germs are spread from damp hands - or fail to wash between their fingers.

The boys, too, protest that they are no strangers to soap. As one of their number is jokingly castigated for not washing the paint from art class off his hands ("you're a disgrace to teenagers"), Max, 14, says that branding all teens as grubby is unfair. "People think teenagers are dirty and smelly and spotty but that's rude."

Gurtaj adds that parents in particular subscribe to this generalisation. "They say we're dirty, they say one bath a year is not enough."

Bug busters

Nearby, college students Fimal, 17, and Sumayn, 18, snack on ice creams, the cones slotted into paper shields so as to keep the food clean. Both can clearly recall childhood battles over hand-washing at mealtimes.

Fimal (left) and Sumayn

"When I'm home and I eat, I wash my hands; but if I'm in college I don't. That sounds really nasty, but if I've just come straight from class and gone down to the canteen, there's no need as most of the food there is eaten with a knife and fork," says Fimal.

"If I did that at home, my mother would shout 'wash your hands' as soon as I sat down, especially because of our culture - we eat with our hands, so they must be clean."

When Sumayn is unable to wash her hands properly, she says she holds sandwiches by the crusts and then throws the crusts away. "People say it's a waste of food but I don't care - I don't want to get sick."

While care is needed to avoid food poisoning, some scientists say parents need not be too obsessive their pursuit of a germ-free environment for their children.

The theory goes that a developing immune system benefits from some contact with dirt, as exposure to some bugs and potential allergens allows the body to become accustomed to fighting off invaders.

Add your views using the form below:

If you are never exposed to the bugs then your immune system is wasted, and allergies and other problems arise. I never wash my hands after using the toilet or before eating and I have never had food poisoning (even when eating under cooked sausages at a barbeque).
John, UK

John, last year I contracted salmonella poisoning from someone like you. I'd been invited to a barbeque and had a great time. Three days later I was in hospital with food poisoning - the bug came from human faeces, according to tests. I was in hospital for 3 weeks with a severe infection and lost over 20lbs.
Kathleen, UK

I did a quick survey of a hamburger outlet. Out of 40 customers, including several families, no-one went and washed their hands in the loos until after eating. All UK takeaways outlets should have handwash-only facilities which are out on view and not in the toilets.
Doug MacLeod, UK

As a graduate in medical microbiology, I know that hand washing after going to the toilet (esp after defecation) is essential as the bacterial load passed onto your hands can cause severe infections. If preparing food for anyone other than yourself, you ought to wash your hands as you have no idea as to the condition of their immune system.
Iain, England

I left school a couple of weeks ago, but it was always very hard to find the basin when shielding your eyes from the stale cigarette smoke. Then when you did find them, you don't want to touch the taps. And soap? What's that?
Matt, UK

I used to wash my hands quite regularly after visiting the loo, but like most people I didn't all the time. Then I watched a video - a project for uni - which showed guys coming out of the toilet without washing their hands and helping themselves to shared peanuts or crisps. I make sure I wash them thoroughly every time now.
Timo, England

I have 2 small children and try to remind them to wash hands regularly. My concern isn't food poisoning. My smaller daughter got threadworms from nursery due to poor hygiene after using the toilet. Before we realised there was a problem she had merrily passed them round the entire family. We all had to be wormed.
Helen, UK

As a mum with teenagers, I generally find they are the cleanest in the family, in the hope they can avoid those dreaded spots. My son is always in the bathroom! But he does have a habit of not drying his hands, which isn't pleasant to touch door handles etc after he has.
Jennie, UK

At school we did a science experiment that involved taking samples of someone's hand before and after they had been washed, cultivating the germs in a petri dish. A week later to the surprise of the science teacher, there were more germs on the "after washing" sample. The reason? The communal towel was found to be the cause and removed. UGH!
David, UK

I remember getting a lot of flack for not bathing or washing when I was a teenager, just because I dressed in "alternative" clothes. Yet I bathed every other day, and had a shower on the days between. Just because my clothes appeared tatty didn't mean I was unclean. I think that a large amount of teens are the same way, it's just that people don't notice.
Jon Lipscombe, UK

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