A majority of Chinese people want the government to focus more attention on public hygiene, according to a recent international survey, which interviewed 500 mainlanders.

The annual survey, conducted by Sweden-based Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget (SCA), one of the world's largest paper products company, found that 85 percent of Chinese people feel the authorities and the media should give more importance to hygiene, compared with 59 percent in the United States and 38 percent in Sweden.

More than 5,000 people in nine countries -- Australia, China, France, Germany, Mexico, Russia, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the US -- were interviewed for the survey, which found an increased awareness of personal hygiene in the wake of the H1N1 flu pandemic last year.

Some 90 percent of those polled in China said they thought more about their hygiene now than before the flu pandemic broke out.

"Going by the 2010 survey results, the Chinese attitude toward hygiene, such as washing hands frequently, has changed dramatically following a recent global (health) threat," said Rolf Andersson, senior advisor on hygiene at SCA.

According to the survey, 90 percent of respondents in China wash their hands more frequently, 70 percent clean their houses more often, 60 percent shower more often and 50 percent use antibacterial soaps more often than they did before the flu broke out.

A staggering 99 percent of respondents in China said they wanted "clearer and stricter" rules for public hygiene in densely populated areas.

"Laws and rules cannot solve all the problems. For real change to come along will require a sense of responsibility in the common man," said Zhang Jing, a 22-year-old student at Tongji University. "But the government needs to create more awareness of the importance of hygiene among the public."

About 86 percent of the respondents in China said a school's most important responsibility is to maintain high standards of hygiene.

Among them, 56 percent think poor standards of hygiene at schools impact children's ability to achieve their potential. At the same time, about 70 percent of Chinese respondents think children do not learn enough about the importance of hygiene and health in daycares or schools.

"Limited education at schools cannot make children realize the importance of hygiene and health. Schools and education departments should ensure hygiene-related information is as detailed as possible so as to make the children understand," said a mother, surnamed Yang.

About 64 percent of Chinese respondents said restaurants are the most important places where hygiene standards should be high, followed by public toilets, schools and public transportation.

(China Daily August 21, 2010)