It seems that each time the Fall season comes around, I have a reason to write about cold/flu season. Of course this year I’ve had the distinct pleasure (not really) of seeing H1N1 wreak havoc around the country and the world.
Recently, President Obama declared a state of emergency because of the flu virus -definitely not as relaxed of an issue as most people thought it might have been. From that Huffington Post article:
The declaration, signed Friday night and announced Saturday, comes with the disease more prevalent than ever in the country and production delays undercutting the government’s initial, optimistic estimates that as many as 120 million doses of the vaccine could be available by mid-October.
Basically folks are scrambling for more vaccines and there has been more demand than previously forecasted. But with all the things that public health focuses on, prevention is a central aspect and that’s one of the things I wanted to bring to your attention with this post. Once again we have the opportunity to remind ourselves of some ways to keep the germs away and improve our odds of dodging the flu. I always love to point folks to one of my first prevention posts with a funny yet true video. Don’t be THAT person, please?
The Water Quality and Health Council, also feels that in addition to basic cold/flu prevention methods such as washing your hands often, making sure surfaces are clean is also very important.
Knowing that flu viruses can live on inanimate surfaces for hours or even days should motivate people to take personal responsibility to protect themselves,” said Dr. Chris Wiant, Water Quality & Health Council chairman. “This means disinfecting surfaces when feasible, using disinfecting wipes or chlorine bleach – especially at home and at work – as well as washing your hands and practicing good personal hygiene habits. Contacting school administrators, office managers and even health club managers will help you understand their cleaning and disinfecting protocol and how you can better safeguard against the flu.
It makes plenty of sense mainly because no matter how many times you do wash your hands, if you touch a keyboard, desk, or doorknob that has flu germs on it – you have a problem. That’s why it’s important to make sure and clean these surfaces on a regular basis.
For all my science buffs out there, here is a video on how one of the most popular surface cleaners, bleach, kills bacteria:
For more information on H1N1 prevention practices, check out the Flu and Health website.
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The Water Quality & Health Council (WQHC) is a body of independent scientific experts, health professionals and consumer advocates who serve as advisors to the Chlorine Chemistry Division of the American Chemistry Council, an industry trade association.
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