World Toilet Day takes potties seriously, and for good reason

Friday is World Toilet Day. It’s not about potty jokes but rather the importance of toilets and proper sanitation worldwide.

The nonprofit World Toilet Organization estimates that, in the developing world, diarrheal diseases spread via feces kill more children than HIV/AIDS. Here’s more information and statistics about the toll poor sanitation takes globally.

But good bathroom hygiene isn’t a novel concept. This “toilet timeline” includes pictures of latrines from ancient Egyptian and Roman civilizations.

And there’s an educational upside to better sanitation too. The company One Difference reports that improved sanitation in African schools draws a third more girls and a quarter more boys to enroll as students.

Here’s information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on the need for clean latrines and toilets and what goals are set globally to accomplish this task. Then check out all the World Toilet Day happenings on Facebook.