As all parents of young children can testify, small humans are essentially sprout factories.

As they learn about hygiene and how to take care of themselves, children are prone to a lot of runny nose, coughs, sore throats and infections. This is particularly true for children in day care who contract more ear and respiratory infections than those who are cared for at home.

Keeping hands clean is a big step forward in teaching children how to wash well. But the way they wash themselves could make all the difference to whether young children are getting sick.

The hand sanitizer is a better way to wash your hands than to wash with soapy water, according to a study published in Pediatrics.

Children who cleaned their hands with a hand sanitizer instead of soap and water were less lacking in school, had fewer respiratory infections and were prescribed less antibiotics.

The researchers followed 911 children under the age of 3 who attended 24 daycares in Almería, Spain, for eight months. The children were divided into three groups of hand cleaners: a group that used a hand sanitizer, a group that used water and soap, and a control group that followed the usual routines of the daycare.

The soapy water group was 21% more likely to have a respiratory infection than the hand sanitizer group. With regard to antibiotic prescriptions, the soap produces 31% more than the disinfectant.

Respiratory infections, which can range from colds to pneumonia, can be particularly worrying in infants and toddlers because their bodies and immune systems are less well equipped than healthy adults.

Finding ways to reduce them, as well as the use of antibiotics, could constitute a significant gain for public health, said the study's authors.

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