Picture This! Is He Washing His Hands at the Urinal?

Yes! He is. …And there is nothing wrong with this picture.

A Latvian designer named Kaspars Jursons is trying to help solve European water shortages by redesigning the men’s restroom.

“It’s not just a fancy piece of art,” he says. “You are washing your hands in the sink on top of the urinal, and the same water that’s running is also used to flush. You don’t have to use water twice…”

The tap is hands-free and sensor-activated: an in-your-face reminder to wash your hands. The creators purport that their invention is more suitable for hygiene. Fewer men will forget to wash their hands!

While 85 percent of men and 93 percent of women  in North America wash their hands after going to the bathroom, a Michigan State University study has found that only five percent of people wash their hands for long enough to kill germs that can cause illnesses. One-third of the hand washers don’t even bother using soap, according to the study, which was based on observations of 3,749 people in public restrooms. If you aren’t using soap and washing for at least 15-20 seconds, you aren’t killing germs that can make you ill. The study found that on average, people were observed to wash their hands for only six seconds. Yuck.