There are many ways to defend yourself from flu and common cold attacks. You don’t have to resort to a flu shot every winter, which isn’t a guarantee you won’t get sick. I am currently fighting some kind of flu right now as I suffer from body aches, stuffy head, mild fever, and sore throat. At least I’m not coughing. I hate coughing. It’s annoying for the people around you and it’s a sure way to keep spreading what you have onto others. In my previous about how to avoid becoming sick, I emphasized three methods: wash hands, wear gloves, and wear a hat and scarf. These are all excellent suggestions but I want to reiterate only one of these methods.

Wash your hands as often as possible! Think about it. You use your hands for almost everything in life. Imagine if you suddenly lost both of your hands. You would be helpless. I mean, there are people with lost hands and they’re very capable of doing everything, but they probably needed to learn and adapt to live without their hands. I’m sure if they had a choice, they would choose to have hands. Think of how many different things your hand touches in any given day. Think of how many other people’s hands your hand shakes in any given day. Your hands are probably the most unsanitary part of your entire body. You must keep it clean to avoid becoming exposed to flu and cold attacks.

I believe there are many occasions where people just forget to keep their hands clean. There’s no excuse for not washing your hands. I’ve listed a few of these occasions where people tend to overlook washing their hands.

1. Bathroom – Wash your hands after taking care of your business. Men and women both need to wash hands each and every time they use the restroom. The restrooms are unsanitary. If you touch anything, you need to wash your hands. If you touch the flush lever on the toilet, you need to wash your hands. If you touch the door knob, you need to wash your hands. If you touch the faucet, you need to wash your hands. Don’t just rinse your hands, wash them with soap and water.

2. Meals – Wash your hands before and after eating each and every meal. It doesn’t matter if you don’t eat with your fingers. Even if you use a fork and knife to eat your food, you need to wash your hands. Don’t just rinse your hands, wash them with soap and water.

3. Pets – Wash your hands after handling pets and other animals. Whenever I go to my friends house and pet their dog, I always make sure I wash my hands soon after. I’ve seen their dog go through trash cans and other unsanitary items. Also wash your hands if you come in contact with other pets such as lizards and reptiles. You don’t want to take any chance with salmonella contamination. Most pet owners will claim that their pets are very clean, even cleaner than humans. Don’t believe their lies. Wash your hands if you pet them.  Don’t just rinse your hands, wash them with soap and water.

4. Work – Wash your hands when going home from work. Your fingers probably have been touching that keyboard of yours all day. You’ve probably made a few phone calls as well. The keyboard and the office phone are probably two of the most unclean items sitting in your office. Don’t bring those germs back to your home. Don’t just rinse your hands, wash them with soap and water.

5. Public Transportation – If you use the subway or metro bus, you need to wash your hands immediately as soon as you get off of them. Carry a small travel size hand sanitizer with you and use them after you get off of these public transporters. Hundreds or thousands of all kinds of people use the same bus or subway. Thousands of different hands touched the exact rail you hold onto. Don’t just rinse your hands, wash them with soap and water if you have access to a restroom. Otherwise, use your hand sanitizer.

I plan on practicing these as often as I can. I hate being sick and I refuse to be sick again.

If you’re like me, I hate getting sick! I always cringe when people are sneezing and coughing, and blowing their nose near me. The last thing I want now is to catch whatever they have! If my coworker is feeling ill, I want her to stay home and not spread whatever she has onto me. Getting sick sucks and I hate every aspect of it.

I have been able to avoid getting the flu for the past 3 years…that is until this year. I know the rampant growth of the infamous Swine Flu, or H1N1 virus is on everyone’s mind these days and I’m sure you’ve already researched at least a little about it to become more knowledgeable of it. That’s a good thing since we’re right smack in the middle of the winter season. For the past several weeks now, it has been the coldest of the season so far here in the suburbs of Maryland and learning ways to stay healthy this summer is not a bad idea. I’ve already been sick with the flu earlier this year and I do not want to catch it again. Here are some of the extra precautions I practice whenever I am outside or in public area:

1. Always Wash Hands: When I arrive at work, I will wash my hands. Before I eat anything, I will wash my hands. After using the restroom, I will wash my hands. When I come home from work, I will wash my hands. When I’m out to the grocery store, I will wash my hands when I come home. When I shake many people’s hands, I will wash my hands. And when I don’t have a chance to wash my hands in between these activities, I will never touch my face with my hands. I will never eat any food with my unwashed hands, unless I’m using utensils. See where I’m going with this? Wash hands whenever possible. I also keep a bottle of hand sanitizer on my work desk. That helps too.

2. Wear Gloves: I don’t just wear gloves outside when it’s cold, I wear them indoors too. I try to wear them when grocery shopping. The shopping cart is used by dozens of different people every day and I doubt the shopping centers sanitize the carts at all. So by using my bare hands to push the carts, I’m contracting all kinds of germs on my hands. If I accidentally rub my eyes after pushing the cart, the chance of contracting those germs into my body becomes very high. If i’m wearing gloves, I will minimize that chance. I also wear gloves when riding on the bus or the metro. Those handrails are full of germs and holding onto them bare hands is illness waiting to happen.

3. Wear A Hat and Scarf: My mom always told me to wear a hat and scarf when going outside when I was a kid. I hated wearing them because I got too sweaty too quick. But my mom knew what she was talking about. Most of the body heat escapes through our neck up, so by covering our necks, faces and heads, we retain heat in our body. Being exposed to cold itself won’t get you sick, but your body’s immune system becomes more vulnerable at chillier temperatures and you become more prone to contracting germs and viruses. So keep warm and keep germs out!

These are a few simple tips that I practice everyday. You can also exercise more to become more healthy and drink lots of citrus juice to boost your vitamin C intake. They’re good tips as well. So stay warm, stay clean, and stay healthy and avoid getting sick this winter!