Global Handwashing Day 2021 attempts to raise awareness of the importance of good food and hygiene habits, as well as the fact that access to facilities and resources to achieve this necessary hygiene is still not global. In part, handwashing actions go some way to control certain parasitic diseases as we highlight in our Global Handwashing Collection.

In this year’s renewed light, it is important to remember that Angiostrongylus transmission is also mediated by food hygiene and handwashing has a role to play but needs bolstering with other interventions. We therefore draw attention to this article.

The report by Steel et al. assessed 40 different treatments in vitro for their ability to kill Angiostrongylus cantonensis larvae. This was with the goal of identifying a safe and effective fruit and vegetable wash in order to reduce the risk of exposure to infectious nematode larvae which would otherwise survive less stringent washing conditions.

We would also like to draw your attention to this Special Issue based on cutting-edge research presented at the 6th International Workshop on Angiostrongylus and Angiostrongyliasis held in Hilo, Hawai`i, in January 2020. It provides research updates on gastropod and rat infection levels under natural conditions in multiple geographic areas, under laboratory conditions, as well as alternative parasite transmission pathways. The latest research on infection in non-human species is described. Methods for preventing infection or reducing risks of human exposure, documentation of chronic sequelae and updates on research in disease diagnosis and treatment are provided. We hope these research papers will provide clinicians, researchers, educators and the general public with information that might help to reduce the risk of infection in humans and other animals, develop more efficient and targeted diagnostic methods, rationalise therapeutic approaches in acute and chronic cases, and direct future research on this fascinating but potentially destructive disease.

We hope you enjoyed our 2021 collection update on parasites and global handwashing and we draw attention to the excellent video by Sue Jarvi (see https://youtu.be/xtLAAA6lXoQ)  who draws together this new exciting research on Angiostrongylus.