Professional kitchens are dangerous places for hands. Sharp knives, hot surfaces, aggressive chemicals, wet conditions — the hazards never stop. Every cook carries scars from years in the kitchen. But many injuries are preventable.
Kitchen Hand Hazards
Kitchen hands face cuts from knives and sharp equipment, burns from hot surfaces, liquids, and steam, chemical exposure from cleaning products, and cumulative damage from wet work and repetitive motions.
Preventing Knife Cuts
Knife cuts are the most common kitchen injury. Prevention starts with proper technique — curl your fingers, keep blades sharp, and never rush. Cut-resistant gloves make sense for high-volume prep. Self-adhering tape on the guiding hand provides additional protection.
Dull knives require more force and slip more easily. Keep your knives sharp. It's counterintuitive but true: sharp blades cause fewer cuts.
Burn Prevention
Burns happen fast. Hot handles, splashing oil, steam burns — they can occur before you realize the danger. Use dry towels for hot items (wet towels conduct heat). Keep handles turned inward. Announce when moving hot items.
Wet Work Protection
Constant water exposure destroys skin. Dishwashers and prep cooks suffer most. Self-adhering tape protects cracked skin through wet work better than adhesive bandages, which fall off in water.
First Aid Essentials
When injuries happen — and they will — proper response matters. Stock blue food-service bandages, self-adhering tape for securing dressings, burn gel, and clean gloves. Know when injuries require professional medical attention.