Would washing one's hands before touching someone else's genitals (handjob, fingering) reduce the chances of passing any sort of infection (STI or BV/yeast) to partner?

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Would washing one’s hands before touching someone else’s genitals (handjob, fingering) reduce the chances of passing any sort of infection (STI or BV/yeast) to partner?

We know that washing your hands helps from passing on other infections like the common cold.

I haven’t seen any research studies that show that washing your hands before sex would lower the risk of passing an STI. But it would make sense that washing your hands before touching someone’s genitals (especially if you were touching your genitals or someone else’s), may help.

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Health Nurse

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This answer was posted on May 25, 2014.

This answer was updated on February 7, 2022.