It has arrived. Flu season. According to the CDC’s flu page, November is a typical beginning of the flu season, but most of the time February is the peak month for the seasonal flu. So, it is time to kick those precaution efforts into high gear!
So, as promised on Twitter, here is a post on some tips to help your family avoid spreading the flu and other bugs…
First of all, the cardinal rule is to wash your hands often. I myself do not use antibacterial soap at all times, but after bathroom trips and during flu season it is used at every sink in my home. A little tip for kids is to have them sing the ABC’s while washing their hands. This usually is about the amount of time needed to get hands clean. You can also utilize a hand sanitizer such as GermX. This is NOT a replacement for good handwashing, but use in between hand washings can always help. I use GermX each time I wipe a nose and after washing my hands following a diaper change. I also use it before feeding infants or preparing meals in addition to washing my hands.
Some other illness prevention cleaning tips include:
- Rinse dishes in bleach water (you can do a 2nd rinse in clear water if you wish)
- Use the sanitize feature on your dishwasher
- If you use feeding chairs instead of high chairs, run them through the sanitize cycle (if they are dishwasher safe of course!)
- Switch to a dishsoap with bleach
- Wipe frequently touched surfaces often with a bleach solution, I also spray with a sanitizer such as Lysol or Oust a few times a day as well. These include door knobs, sink knobs and handles, light switches, remotes, phones, and so on.
- Wash toys in a solution of bleach and water frequently.
Some other tips include sneezing or coughing into the bend of your elbow, minimizing the surfaces you touch (both to not spread germs should be ill and to not come in contact with flu germs), and of course staying home if you are not well. Your employer would much rather you take a day off than have 5 others take a day off after you pass a virus on to them.
www.cdc.gov/flu has great tips on flu symptoms and prevention.
Keep healthy!!
Tags: bleach, Cleaning, flu, sanitizing
