Even after singing all six minutes of Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody, I’m still anxious that I haven’t washed my hands long enough to ensure they’re properly clean. So I like the idea behind this clever hand stamp for kids that forces them to thoroughly scrub for at least 30 seconds before it completely disappears.
Made from nothing but the same food colouring used in kitchens around the world, the Otetepon Push Stamp, from a Japanese company called Shachihata, leaves behind a cartoonish image of an angry germ that can only be scrubbed away with at least half a minute of solid sudsy scrubbing. It’s primarily designed as a hygiene training tool for little ones, but it seems like it would provide some much needed peace of mind to adults worried about properly hand sanitizing too.
It’s important to keep in mind that the Otetepon Push Stamp should be used as part of a more involved and thorough hand-washing routine. If you stamp the back of a kid’s hand, there’s a good chance that’s where they’re going to focus the bulk of their scrubbing efforts, which is less effective. You could always put the stamps all over their hands (each bottle is good for about 1,000 applications) forcing them to do a thorough job all over, but it’s a more effective tool when used alongside videos or graphics that outline proper scrubbing techniques.
You can grab the Otetepon push stamp, available in blue or pink with matching ink, from the Japan Trend Shop for $US26 ($43), but that includes a hefty markup for importing it from Japan. If you’ve got a friend overseas, asking them to buy and ship a couple your away might be a cheaper solution.