Health Talk: An advertising supplement to The Morning Journal
Establishing healthy habits can protect everyone from getting germs or spreading germs at home, work or school.
“Containing a virus isn’t easy. But there are some basic things you can do to help keep yourself, family and co-workers healthy,” says Dr. Musab Saeed, Mercy Primary Care and Infectious Disease Specialist.
“Two of the most important things we’ve done in medicine are getting people vaccinated and getting them to wash their hands,” explains Dr. Saeed. He recommends that we scrub our hands for at least 20 seconds or as long as it takes to sing the “Happy Birthday” song twice.
The type of soap isn’t critical. Regular soap works just as well as antibacterial soap. When warm water and soap aren’t available, he recommends using an alcohol-based sanitizing gel and rubbing your hands together vigorously for about 20 seconds until the gel evaporates.
“Step up your disinfecting,” says Dr. Saeed. Even if you’re not germ-obsessed on a daily basis, flu season might be the time to focus more on disinfecting surfaces in your home or work environment. “It can definitely help prevent germs from spreading.”
He also recommends you avoid close contact with people who are sick. When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick too. “If possible, stay home from work, school and errands when you are ill. You will help prevent others from catching your illness,” he says.
Make it a practice to cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. It may prevent those around you from getting sick. And avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. “Viruses spread mainly by droplets made when people cough, sneeze or talk. These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby. Less often, a person might also get sick by touching a surface or object that has a virus on it and then touching their own mouth, eyes or nose,” says Dr. Saeed.
These everyday steps are a good way to reduce your chances of getting all sorts of illnesses, but a yearly flu vaccine is always the best way to specifically prevent the flu.
While trying to prevent germs from infecting others is a noble goal, remember that people get sick and even the most careful individuals have a hard time containing a virus. “Most of the time you’re contagious before you even have any symptoms,” explains Dr. Saeed. “So don’t beat yourself up if you’re unable to prevent germs from spreading. It just happens,” he says.
If you’d like to make an appointment with Dr. Saeed at Mercy Health – Amherst Primary Care call 440-988-5226.