How To Keep Household Germs Away During A Pandemic And Flu Season

As the nation enters the flu season in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic, many families are concerned about surviving the colder months ahead. As each of these viruses spread quickly from person to person, the fear of having a house full of sick loved ones increases. While there’s not much you can do if you contract either of these vicious illnesses, there are things you can do to safeguard your family and reduce their risks.  

 

Get Vaccinated

Though there is no vaccination for the coronavirus, you can vaccinate against the flu. A trip to the doctor, pharmacy, or other participating service providers for a shot will dramatically reduce the chances that anyone contracts the virus and brings it into the house. If everyone is immune to flu, should someone come home with unusual symptoms, you can quickly rule it out and seek medical attention.  

 

Get Tested

Taking the coronavirus or antibody test can help you decrease the presence of germs in your home. Either test will let you know whether someone has contracted the coronavirus (in the past or present). A positive test result will let you know if you need to ramp up your cleaning and quarantine efforts in the house.

 

Talk to Your Family

Protecting your household from germs isn’t a one-person job. It requires the assistance of those you live with. An effective way to keep everyone safe is to have a conversation about handwashing hygiene, cleaning, and sanitizing. Discuss the importance of washing your hands frequently, but especially before meals.  

If you have smaller children, now is the time to teach them to stop sucking their thumb, biting their nails, or putting toys and other objects in their mouths. If necessary, you may want to use products like a thumb guard or   Mavala stop nail polish to help correct these unhealthy habits in small children.

Explain the essential task of wiping down countertops and hard surfaces after each use. Demonstrate how to cover your mouth after a cough or sneeze. Lastly, ensure you inform everyone about the flu and the coronavirus so that they’re aware of the symptoms and what to do if they or someone they know has contracted either.  

 

Fresh Air

While having an air purifier in the home can help keep common germs and bacteria away, it pales in comparison to the fresh air. Throughout the day, open a few windows in your home to allow proper circulation that reduces germs’ presence.  

 

Clean and Sanitize Regularly

With the flu and coronavirus’s threat spreading through communities like wildfires, maintaining a clean and sanitized home is essential. Regularly wiping down countertops, hard surfaces, windows, doors, and common areas with disinfectant products and washing or steam cleaning clothes, furniture, linens, and upholsteries is a must. Implement a cleaning schedule and share the details with your family members so they can assist.  

 

Relocate Essential Workers

If you have essential workers in the home like healthcare workers, police officers, or firefighters, you may want to consider having them relocate. As much as you’ll miss having them in the home, their constant exposure to coronavirus patients and the general public put everyone in the house at risk. You can reserve a hotel or a vacation rental. If these aren’t options, try to isolate them to one room and minimize their interaction with the rest of the family.  

 

Keep Guests to a Minimum

It may be the time of year when friends and family frequently gather to celebrate the holidays, but doing so puts everyone in harm’s way. Minimizing the chances of the flu or coronavirus spreading through your house means being mindful of who you entertain. It is recommended that you don’t have any more than ten people in your home at a time.  

 

Worrying about the flu season in the middle of a global health crisis is stressful. Keeping your family safe this year will require you to take a few extra steps to protect your health and wellness. By following the advice provided above, you’re sure to have no problem keeping nasty germs from harming those you love most.  

 

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Written by HealthStatus Crew
Medical Writer & Editor

HealthStatus teams with authors from organizations to share interesting ideas, products and new health information to our readers.

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