Back to school germs...
School is back in session! Let's be honest for a second here. Children are disgusting. They are full of germs. They may not like sharing their toys or their school supplies, but they sure do love to share germs. They'll share those colds like they're going out of style. It's worse now that school is back in session. Think about it. You have forty kids in a room for an hour. Then forty more come in and touch the same stuff. This happens, continuously, all day, and all it takes is one kid to touch a door handle or sneeze on a neighbor. Here are five tricks and tips to minimizing the effects of back to school germs.
1. Hand hygiene. It's the simplest thing you can do, but it works. Wash your hands. That doesn't mean put your hands under some water for a few seconds and call it done. Use soap and warm water. Really get in there and clean your hands. Most importantly, use a paper towel to turn off the water when you are done. If you touch the faucet to turn off the water, then you're getting the germs back on that you just washed off.
2. Hand sanitizer. Sometimes you're in a pinch or not near a place you can thoroughly wash your hands. This is were hand sanitizer comes in handy. Put some next to your front door, in your car, at your desk, on the night stand. You name it, put some hand sanitizer there. When the kids get in the car, have them use the hand sanitizer before they start touching everything, especially those younger siblings who may not be exposed. Nowadays, hand sanitizers come in a variety of bottle shapes and scents. You're certain to find one you like the smell of that fits in any space.
3. Tissues. Go ahead and put a box of tissues next to all of those hand sanitizers. A great way to keep a cold from spreading is "catching that sneeze". Teach your children to sneeze into a tissue instead of on their hands. This will help keep them from sneezing on a hand and then playing with a toy while their is snot on their hand.
4. Cleaner of your choice. You never want to run out. It doesn't matter what you're using, whether it's Clorox, Mrs. Meyers, or whatever you choose. You want to make sure you have some on hand. Remember those toys that on sick kid touched. It's, now, sitting there, covered in germs and waiting for another unsuspecting kid to play with it. This is how those germs spread. Always, having something handy makes it easy to wipe down toys and surfaces in between play times.
5. Keep your kid home. I know this is the hardest one to follow. It's hard to find a sitter and it's nearly impossible to get off of work to stay home with a sick kid. But hear me out. This is the way germs spread. All it takes is one sick kid to get a whole class sick. When you send your kid sick to school, that sweet gem of yours is sharing it with another child. That kids then takes it home and shares thelove germs with newborn sibling. Newborn sibling is, now, being hospitalized with a respiratory infection that can't be fought off. You might think I sound dramatic, but I'm not. I've seen it happen multiple times.
Cold and flu season is hitting hard and fast. Faster than Starbucks released the pumpkin spiced latte for the season. There are already cases of the flu being reported, and it's only September. September! You and your family can still enjoy the fall and winter seasons. However, you might have to work a little harder to keep everyone healthy. Remember, it's aways worth it.
1. Hand hygiene. It's the simplest thing you can do, but it works. Wash your hands. That doesn't mean put your hands under some water for a few seconds and call it done. Use soap and warm water. Really get in there and clean your hands. Most importantly, use a paper towel to turn off the water when you are done. If you touch the faucet to turn off the water, then you're getting the germs back on that you just washed off.
2. Hand sanitizer. Sometimes you're in a pinch or not near a place you can thoroughly wash your hands. This is were hand sanitizer comes in handy. Put some next to your front door, in your car, at your desk, on the night stand. You name it, put some hand sanitizer there. When the kids get in the car, have them use the hand sanitizer before they start touching everything, especially those younger siblings who may not be exposed. Nowadays, hand sanitizers come in a variety of bottle shapes and scents. You're certain to find one you like the smell of that fits in any space.
3. Tissues. Go ahead and put a box of tissues next to all of those hand sanitizers. A great way to keep a cold from spreading is "catching that sneeze". Teach your children to sneeze into a tissue instead of on their hands. This will help keep them from sneezing on a hand and then playing with a toy while their is snot on their hand.
4. Cleaner of your choice. You never want to run out. It doesn't matter what you're using, whether it's Clorox, Mrs. Meyers, or whatever you choose. You want to make sure you have some on hand. Remember those toys that on sick kid touched. It's, now, sitting there, covered in germs and waiting for another unsuspecting kid to play with it. This is how those germs spread. Always, having something handy makes it easy to wipe down toys and surfaces in between play times.
5. Keep your kid home. I know this is the hardest one to follow. It's hard to find a sitter and it's nearly impossible to get off of work to stay home with a sick kid. But hear me out. This is the way germs spread. All it takes is one sick kid to get a whole class sick. When you send your kid sick to school, that sweet gem of yours is sharing it with another child. That kids then takes it home and shares the
Cold and flu season is hitting hard and fast. Faster than Starbucks released the pumpkin spiced latte for the season. There are already cases of the flu being reported, and it's only September. September! You and your family can still enjoy the fall and winter seasons. However, you might have to work a little harder to keep everyone healthy. Remember, it's aways worth it.
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