Jason Momoa Hand-Washing Meme Goes Viral in Coronavirus Hysteria

The COVID-19 coronavirus is impacting society in some ever-changing ways, as those throughout the world are worried about contracting or spreading the virus. The concerns have led to closures of major events and public gatherings, the delay of major movies, and some unique approaches to hygiene and preparing for a potential quarantine. One recurring tip has been for people to vigilant with washing their hands, and that's resulted in some pretty clever memes defining what that looks like. A meme, which was shared by the Facebook group "Mommies That Keep It Real", puts an amusing spin on it, asking people to wash their hands like they're "washing" Aquaman and Game of Thrones star Jason Momoa.

The meme has gotten over 31,000 shares on Facebook alone (not even counting the countless other reposts that usually plague Facebook memes). While there is a major typo in the post spelling Momoa's name wrong, it still clearly conjures a unique mental image in the minds of those who need to wash their hands.

In actuality, the CDC has released official instructions for how thorough you should be with handwashing, including to use soap and water every time. They also recommend scrubbing your hands for a minimum of twenty seconds, which is enough time to sing "Happy Birthday" twice or recite a litany of other pop culture references.

"Determining the optimal length of time for handwashing is difficult because few studies about the health impacts of altering handwashing times have been done," the CDC writes on their website. "Of those that exist, nearly all have measured reductions in overall numbers of microbes, only a small proportion of which can cause illness, and have not measured impacts on health. Solely reducing numbers of microbes on hands is not necessarily linked to better health."

"The optimal length of time for handwashing is also likely to depend on many factors, including the type and amount of soil on the hands and the setting of the person washing hands," their advice continues. "For example, surgeons are likely to come into contact with disease-causing germs and risk spreading serious infections to vulnerable patients, so they may need to wash hands longer than a woman before she prepares her own lunch at home. Nonetheless, evidence suggests that washing hands for about 15-30 seconds removes more germs from hands than washing for shorter periods."

If you do not have immediate access to soap and running water, the CDC recommends using alcohol-based hand sanitizer with an alcohol content of at least 60% to temporarily combat germs.

What do you think of this Jason Momoa-themed handwashing meme? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!