NEWS YOU CAN USE: There’s A Better Way To Wash Your Hands. Actually, what’s disturbing is how little even thorough washing does to reduce bacteria levels on your hands: “Those who used the three-step technique saw the average bacterial count on their hands fall from 3.08 colony-forming units per milliliter to 2.88, compared to 3.28 to 2.58 CFU/mL for those who used the six-step method.”