A few tidbits on staying healthy during the Coronavirus (or any virus)…
First, remember this is a season. It will end!
The good news is the most important steps you can take are the simplest! And, you may consider blowing them off as unimportant, or even think you do them already, but follow yourself around for the day and see how often you do things that can compromise your health and those around you, and remind yourself to take extra precautions now.
Your HANDS are KEY!
Wash your hands regularly – use soap and water. Use alcohol when necessary, but focus on traditional washing first to avoid unnecessary chemicals that may be in the sanitizer.
Consider everything you are doing with your hands. What did you just touch outside your body? A food line/table where you washed your hands, then proceeded to grab the same serving spoon someone else just touched that may not have clean hands, or kids that coughed on their hand after washing and then touched the serving spoon? Door knobs. The sink handle – you washed your hands, but now proceed to turn off the water – and that’s the same handle someone else used to turn on the sink after going to the bathroom or coughing on their hand. Moving the chair away from the table so you can sit down. Touching money or your dirty phone! A cup the waitress just handed you after she has touched many other things.
DON’T EAT WITH YOUR HANDS EVER! Use utensils – even to eat things like a burger and fries. Or use a napkin to hold the sandwich.
Do not put your hands on your face - > this is one of the primary ways you will transfer a microbe from a surface to your body – by rubbing your eye, your nose, mouth, etc… Keep your hands away from your face/mouth.
You also have a role to play in keeping others from getting sick: by keeping your hands clean, not coughing on your hand, nor rubbing your nose, cover your cough with a tissue or your elbow, don’t breathe on people, don’t share food/drinks, etc… As well as not going to public places when you are ill. How much disease would we reduce by staying home when sick and avoiding places other people can catch it from you?
Bottom line, there are many things you can do throughout the day to protect yourself and others. Most of them relate to having clean hands, and being thoughtful of EVERYTHING you touch and never putting your hands on your face or the food you intend to eat.
You can also look at my prior post on influenza, but I wanted to add some further tips on how to stay healthy during these concerning times.
You can look on the CDC website for details about the virus itself.