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Stopping the Cold and Flu
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Cut cold and flu off before it spreads!
With flu season gearing up early this year, it is very important to practice good hygiene and conscientious containment of your own illness. How exactly does all of this work?
How to Cough and Sneeze
- Aim your cough and sneeze at your armpit, get your nose and mouth as close to it as possible, while crossing your forearm over your face. This causes your sleeve and chest to catch most of the "debris" (which has a 6 foot spread radius, gross!) and minimizes your hand contamination. If possible, cover your nose and mouth with a disposable tissue as well.
- If you do cough or sneeze into your hands, be sure to wash them or sanitize them immediately. Touch all doors and surfaces with a disposable tissue if possible as flu and cold can survive on surfaces for a short time.
- If you are in a situation where you may not be able to cover a cough or sneeze, such as driving, when there are others near, wear a mask and change it as soon as possible.
How to Remove a Mask
- DO NOT touch any part of the mask cloth
- Grasp the mask by the strings or elastic and remove the mask by these.
- Place the mask in a trash receptacle without touching the surface (if possible) and without touching it with your hands.
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Make sure that your mask fits snug over the bridge of your nose, the cheeks and bottom of chin when replacing the mask
How to Wash Your Hands
- Turn water on so that it is warm to the touch (no need to be scalding)
- Wet hands under the water
- Apply enough soap to create a generous lather
- Rub and with moderate friction for 5-10 seconds palm to palm, palm to top of opposite hand, palm to top of opposite hand, between fingers and under finger nails (20 to 40 seconds)
- Rinse hands with running water
- Remove a paper towel to turn off the water (don't touch dirty handles with your clean hands!)
- Dry hands with a new towel
- Grab an extra towel to open the bathroom door so that your hands stay clean
How Often to Wash Your Hands
15 to 20 times a day. This means spending half your day washing your hands, right? Not really.
Let's say you use the restroom every 2-3 hours during the day (and that you properly wash every time). That is about 4-7 times a day.
Let's say you shower at least once a day.
That puts the total at 5-8.
Let's say you wash your hands before and after each meal.
That gets the total to 8-11.
Make it a point to wash them when you arrive at work or school and again when you arrive home from work or school and you are pretty close with very little effort. Just be sure you wash properly!
In addition to the above:
Be sure to drink plenty of water. There are all sorts of reasons to drink water to maintain health, but a 10 year old boy explained to me at work last week that the most important reason is to wash the germs in your mouth and throat into your stomach acid to die. Whatever it takes to stay hydrated.
Eat a healthy and balanced diet to support your body's nutritional needs. A multivitamin can't go amiss either.
Get enough sleep. 10 hours for those under 18, and 6-8 for the rest of us.
Stop smoking. Smoking damages the lungs and invites all sorts of nasty complications from colds and flu.
Personally, I go see my favorite naturopathic physician for a Flu Buster IV therapy treatment every 6-8 weeks or when I feel the first signs of "ick" coming on. I have not been sick in over a year. And the B vitamins make me feel like superwoman for a couple of days!
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