Coronavirus: Why can't people live without touching their faces?

Coronavirus: Why can't people live without touching their faces?

One of the qualities that make humans different from other creatures is the ability to touch the face.

We are probably the only species with a habit of touching our faces without realizing it.

That nature helps spread diseases like the coronavirus (Covid-19).

Why do we do this and how can we overcome this behavior?

What are our habits?

We often touch our faces.

In 2015, the attitudes of medical students in Australia were studied. At that time, it was found that they also had the habit of touching their faces.

Medical students should be more aware of the risks than others.

But participants were found to touch their mouth, nose or eyes at least 23 times an hour.

According to experts, this habit of touching the face can be dangerous.

It is recommended that we rest our hands, don't move them too much and keep them clean to avoid the spread of Covid-19.

Why do we frequently touch our face?

Humans and some members of the ape species have been found to be incapable of hand dancing. We may have been made the same way.

Some species rub their hands over their faces to beautify or repel insects.

Humans and some primates touch their faces for various reasons.

According to UC Berkeley psychology professor Datcher Keltner, we may be using our hands to keep our faces comfortable.

But other times we're "stepping from one stage of teasing or social drama to another" by touching our faces without realizing it.

Other experts have concluded that we try to control our emotions and attention by touching ourselves.

"It's the basic nature of our species," says Martin Grunwald, a psychologist and professor at the University of Leipzig in Germany.

"Self-touching is not designed to convey a message, it's often done unconsciously," Grunewald told the BBC.

"This temperament plays a major role in all of our conscious and emotional processes. It occurs in all humans."

One of the problems with this nature of touching oneself is that bad things or germs can easily enter our body through our eyes, nose and mouth.

For example, the coronavirus can easily pass from one infected person to another through the nose or mouth as tiny droplets.

We can also get infected if we touch an object or surface that has the virus on it.

Further studies are ongoing.

But according to scientists, the virus has been found to survive for nine days.

How powerful is the virus?

The combination of this power of the virus and our habit of touching our faces can be dangerous.

In 2012, a team of researchers from the US and Brazil found that a group of people touched surfaces in public spaces up to three times an hour.

That group of people was found to touch their nose or mouth up to 3.6 times per hour. That's less than Australian students touching their faces up to 23 times an hour.

Outside the classroom may have been less likely to touch faces because of distractions outside of the classroom.

Due to the tendency of people to touch their faces, some experts are also recommending wearing a mask that covers the nose and mouth to avoid touching the hands.

What can we do?

What can we do to reduce the rate of touching our faces?

Michael Hallsworth, a behavioral scientist at Columbia University, says: It's very difficult to translate advice into action.

"To tell people to stop doing something they don't know is a problem in itself," he told the BBC.

"It's easier to tell people to wash their hands than to tell them 'don't touch' their faces."

What is the solution?

According to Halsworth, finding the reason why we touch ourselves can lead to a solution.

"Even if we find out the reasons we have to touch, we can find solutions to them," he said.

"People who need to touch their eyes can wear sunglasses."

"Or sitting on your hands will reduce the number of hands touching your face."

Reminding yourself of the risk can also help change your behavior.

"If someone has a fearsome trait, suggesting that a friend or relative warn them about it can also help," Hallsworth said.

What happens when you wear gloves? If not washed or changed frequently, it can become even more dirty and contagious.

What is the best solution?

No matter what else you do, the habit of washing your hands is not as beneficial as any other method.

"We don't have to wait for a vaccine or medicine," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a press conference in the last week of February.

"We can save ourselves today by taking small steps like this."