13 Easy Tips To Help Keep You From Touching Your Face All The Time

It's harder than it seems.

With the number of cases of coronavirus on the rise in the US, it's more important than ever that we attempt to prevent the spreading of germs — specifically by trying to STOP touching our faces.

Peter Aldhous / BuzzFeed News / Via Johns Hopkins University CSSE / Via buzzfeednews.com

So, we recently asked the BuzzFeed Community to tell us about how they try to stop touching their face. Here are their tips and tricks.

1. Keep a fidget toy available at all times to keep your hands busy when you feel the urge to pick at your face, touch your lips, or rub your eyes.

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"I carry fidget toys everywhere I go. Since I always have something in my hands, I never have the urge to absentmindedly touch my face." —allisonistired

The toys pictured above are available at Amazon; fidget cube for $9.59, fidget spinner ring for $7.99 (available in sizes 4–11 and seven styles).

2. Take a few moments to reflect on how vile the germs on your hands are before putting them where they don't belong — ahem, in your mouth.

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"Imagine that your hands and fingers are dirty. Just imagine the nastiest funk lingering in your nail beds. Once you realize that your hands are dirty little germ magnets, you’ll keep your hands as far away from your orifices as possible." —mandyciampa

"I just remind myself of all the things I’ve touched when I’m out. Door handles, phone, etc. It’s really gross, so I just think about that." —aztecwater

3. Wear a turtleneck and use it as a makeshift divider between your fingers and your face. Have an itch on your nose? Use the clean inside of the sweater to scratch it.

Amazon

"Today I wore a turtleneck sweater. If I want to touch my face, I pull up the collar and use the inside to touch my face. Obviously not a perfect system at all, but you do what you can right?" —thelategreatnobody

The turtleneck pictured above is available at Amazon for $25.88+ (available in sizes S–XL and 17 styles).

4. Use a tissue for any necessary face-touching. It's gotta be better than directly putting your germy fingertips into your eyes, right?

Warner Bros.

"If I need to touch my face for any reason — an itch, an eyelash, pushing up glasses — I grab a tissue and do it. I understand this isn’t a perfect solution, but it’s better than nothing." —aementzer

5. Pick up a set of squishy toys for an adorable and fun way to keep your hands away from your orifices.

Amazon

"I have really bad acne, so I try not to touch my face normally and what I use are little squishy toys. You can buy a bunch for not much money from various places, and every time I feel the urge to pick at something I pull one out and play with it." —feminista

The set of squishies pictured above is available at Amazon for $11.99.

6. Make a conscious effort to only touch the plastic or metal brim of your glasses when inevitably pushing them up on your face so you don't touch your eyes all day long.

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"I’m always pushing my glasses up, so touching my face accidentally keeps happening — I’ve started trying to train myself to touch a part of my glasses that aren’t as close to my nose/eyes but it’s hard after doing the same habit for 20 years!" —clparisian

7. Put on something like under-eye concealer, lipstick, or eyeliner, and you'll be less likely to touch your face throughout the day.

Kayla Suazo / BuzzFeed

"If I have a full face of makeup on, you can be sure I’m not gonna touch my face to mess up my blending or smudge anything." —juliab4a762ec5e

"I just don't want to run my foundation. Always stops me." —TH

The Maybelline concealer pictured above is available at Amazon for $7.89 (available in 18 shades).

8. If you have very little self control (me), try sitting on your hands to stop yourself from touching your face.

ABC

"Sit on your hands when you can or put them under your leg. Use the inside of your shirt if your face itches." —guacandroll

9. Try a bottle of bitter-tasting Mavala Stop to make your nails taste terrible so you'll be way less likely to touch your face or put your hands anywhere near your mouth.

Amazon

This product was literally designed to help you avoid putting your fingers in your mouth. It works great! You won't add any more unnecessary germs into your body and your nails will look fabulous.

Mavala Stop is available at Amazon for $15.50.

10. Keep a rubber band on your wrist and snap it back against your skin every time you get an urge to touch your face. Or, I guess, give a friend permission to smack your hand each time you go to pick at a pimple.

NBC

"I used to always touch my forehead, causing it to break out and then I would complain about it. One day, my friend slapped my hand as I touched my forehead. I got three little half moon cuts from my fingernails. I never touched my face again, and that was over 20 years ago." —esbeeme

11. Treat yourself to an over-the-top acrylic manicure, because if your nails look absolutely fabulous, you won't want to ruin them by chewing them and it'll be harder than ever to pick at your acne.

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"I have a bad habit of picking acne and I’ve tried literally everything to get me to stop. There’s been one thing that helped kill the habit and made me stop touching my face all together. Acrylic nails. That’s the only solution I’ve found works." —maryelizzy

12. Simply create a visible reminder to STOP. TOUCHING. YOUR. FACE. Seriously — write it on a sticky note, create a temporary tattoo on your hand, do what must be done.

Emma Lord / BuzzFeed, Amazon

My coworker Emma Lord suggested:

"The fastest way to ingrain a new behavior is to have it at the top of your mind. Ask people to remind you if they catch you touching your face, and if they ask you to do the same, look out for them too. Beyond that, try setting little alarms on your phone or your desktop to remind yourself, or put Post-it Notes in places you know you'll look often — the desk window you stare out of when you're thinking, your computer monitor, your vanity mirror, the kitchen table. Heck, invest in a temporary tattoo pen ($9.98) and write the words 'Stop touching your face' on your own hands, so you have to look at them every time you type. Make it easier by setting yourself up for success — you'll feel better if you get reminded before you do it than if you're beating yourself up afterward."

Check out her other suggestions here.

13. And purchase gloves to wear on public transportation or while shopping (there are disposable and machine-washable options available).

Amazon

This way, you won't pick up germs from your environment and then expose your very precious face to them later on in the day.

The gloves pictured above are available at Amazon: the disposable for $10.45 (for a pack of 200) and machine-washable for $12.59.

You're welcome.

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Submissions have been edited for length and clarity.

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