If you werent practicing perfect hand washing before, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reminds us now that COVID-19 is spreading that its one of the best ways to prevent getting sick .

But as often as were washing our hands, how often should we be washing, well, everything else? As you sit cross-legged on the couch while working from home, or twirl your hair without even realizing it, could you be carrying the virus on these other parts of your body?

Mobeen H. Rathore , chief of pediatric infectious diseases and immunology at Wolfson Childrens Hospital of Jacksonville , Florida, told HuffPost researchers are only beginning to understand how long the coronavirus can live outside the human body, let alone on it.

This virus is only a few months old and we dont know as much about it as people sometimes make it sound, Rathore said. What we do know is it stays on hard surfaces, likes countertops, for two to three days. Thats an important element for understanding why we need to clean surfaces . There are some studies that say it may remain suspended in the air for up to three hours. This is new, preliminary data that may change any moment, so thats something we need to be cognizant of.

If the virus that causes COVID-19 can live on a hard, smooth surface for days, how long can it survive on our skin? The exact time is unknown, but as Rathore said, Its fair to say it stays long enough to spread from person to person, hence all the reminders to wash your dirty mitts.

However, really cleaning around and underneath your fingernails is just as important. In fact, if your nail polish is chipping after social distancing from your salon, you should pay extra attention to scrubbing those areas.