Cleaning, health and wellbeing
Cleaning is a cornerstone of modern life on which our health and wellbeing are founded.
Cleaning helps protect our health, and underpins the ever-increasing standards of health and life-expectancy that we enjoy today. If it wasn't for good hygiene and sanitation, infectious diseases that used to claim lives daily in the UK a century ago would still be claiming lives - as they do every day in less-developed countries.
In the home, just as in public places, cleaning helps keep our families fit and well, and avoid common illnesses like stomach bugs, colds and flu that for some people can become more serious. Cleaning also helps minimise symptoms of people with allergies such as asthma by removing things that can trigger attacks.
“Cleaning is a cornerstone of modern life on which our health and wellbeing are founded.”
Cleaning also supports our wellbeing in many ways, through fabrics and furnishings that stay fresh and attractive and don't wear out, and clothes that are comfortable to wear. A house that looks clean brings pleasure and self-esteem: it brings a sense of security and order - a welcoming refuge from the pressures of modern life.
Though soap is age-old, modern cleaning products let you clean clothes, dishes and the whole house in a fraction of the time it used to take, and in a safer and more sustainable way. Being germ-free has never been easier.
Cleaning is just as important for supporting public health and wellbeing outside the home. Clean schools and offices, clean hotels and restaurants, clean hospitals and public buildings - not to mention clean food factories - are vital in maintaining a healthy population and vibrant community life.