During a school flu outbreak, it is very likely your child will come home sick and will get the other members of your home sick as well. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) http://www.cdc.gov/flu/pdf/freeresources/updated/everyday_preventive.pdf offers some guidelines to help you deal with a flu outbreak at school or at work, and here are 7 concise easy steps to follow if you are home with a sick child or spouse.
- Wash your hands and your children’s hands with soap and water every time you enter your home. Keeping germs away from the outside world is a good tip for anyone dealing with small and school age children.
- Change linens and bathroom towels daily when you are sick. Contaminating each other by using the same towels or sharing a pillow will ensure that everyone gets sick, and stay sick for a longer period of time.
- Disinfecting kitchen and bathroom counters thorough out the day will ensure that you’ll encounter less germs going forward.
- Believe it or not, feeding your children chicken noodle soup will get them through their illness a bit faster
- Covering their mouths on their sleeves instead of their hands should decrease the number of germs they spread around the home.
- Cleaning door knobs around the home will greatly decrease the germs that get passed around.
- A diet full of fruits and vegetables can do a lot of good to your child. The old saying of “An apple a day will keep the doctor away” hasn’t survived this long for no reason.
Whether you are in Akron or anywhere, this is great advice.
For more about flu outbreaks and what to do about them, check the CDC for more information.