The Importance of Keeping Your Home Clean During Cold and Flu Season

 

During the winter months, colds and influenza are widespread, and it often seems that nobody is safe from getting sick. Cold temperatures suppress immunity, which greatly increases your risk of becoming ill. However, staying indoors where it’s warm, aside from being impractical, won’t necessarily protect you against these viruses. Most people don’t realize that their house is just as likely to be a source of illness.

 

While everyone understands that public surfaces harbor a plethora of germs and viruses, few people think of their own homes as potential disease vectors. In truth, there are likely illness-causing pathogens on all of the most-used surfaces in your house. This serves to highlight the importance of not only proper hand-washing habits but also regular and thorough housekeeping. Here are some of the areas of your home you should pay the most attention to this cold and flu season.

 

The Bathroom

Due to the nature of bathrooms, they’re one of the most germ-laden areas in your house. Bathtubs, toilet seats, flush handles, faucet taps and even the soap pump can all harbor viruses and bacteria that could make your family sick. To minimize the risk, be sure to clean all of these surfaces regularly with an antimicrobial cleaner or diluted bleach.

 

The Kitchen

Surprisingly, studies show that your bathroom isn’t the dirtiest place in your home. That dubious honor goes to your kitchen. Pathogens can be found on everything from your refrigerator handle to your dish sponge. Your counter tops can also present a hazard. How often do you come home from the store and set your groceries there? Chances are good that other people touched the products before you did, or that they were sitting on a dirty shelf. When these items come into contact with your counter, they’re leaving germs and viruses behind where they can get into food. To reduce your risk, wipe your counters, taps, refrigerator handle and even your soap bottle down with a mild bleach solution. You should also change out your dish rags or sponges regularly.

 

Electronic Peripheral Devices

The objects in your home that pose the greatest threat are the ones that are touched the most. For most people, these include peripheral devices like game controllers, keyboards, mice and remote controls. What’s more, not many people think of them as part of their routine house-cleaning circuit. The easiest way to kill germs on these surfaces is to spray them with an antimicrobial product, but rubbing alcohol and cotton swabs provide a more thorough cleaning.

 

Carpets

Your home’s carpets don’t just harbor dust, pet hair and debris. They also harbor airborne pathogens. Unfortunately, when you vacuum, these become tossed back into the air where they can be inhaled by you and your family. One easy solution to this is to hire a carpet cleaner like Grimebusters Ltd. A professional carpet cleaning won’t just remove more filth from your carpets than a vacuum. It will also sanitize them, killing any germs in the process.

 

Just because it’s cold and flu season doesn’t mean illness is inevitable. Although you can’t control the cleanliness of everything you touch, you can take steps to protect yourself at home. By following these tips and understanding the importance of a clean house, you can reduce your family’s odds of getting sick.

 

Categories: clean, cold and flu, Home, importance, season

Facts You Need To Know About The Common Cold

As the colder months approach, so do the colds and flu viruses which render us bed-ridden for days. There are a number of factors which increase our risk of catching colds and viruses, such as cold weather, changes in immunity and our eating habits, and poor hygiene habits make us more susceptible to infections. It’s common knowledge that in order to fend off infections, we need to maintain a healthy lifestyle of plenty of exercise, drinking enough water each day, and getting the right balance of nutrients from a diet that’s rich in fruits and vegetables. But there are other things to consider. Here are the main factors you need to be aware of in order to stay healthy during cold and flu season.

Vitamin D deficiency

As the days become shorter, our exposure to direct sunlight also decreases. This lack of exposure to the sun can lead to a vitamin D deficiency which can weaken our immune system, leading us to become more susceptible to infections. Some food products are now fortified with this vital nutrient but there are also supplements available to help ensure you get your daily dose.

Cold air

The dry and cold air can dry out your nasal passages which can irritate the throat and lungs, leading to coughs and colds. You may even find that your struggle with your breathing during this season, as your nasal passages are often blocked. This is known as cold-induced asthma which can irritate the linings of your nose and throat which are there to protect the respiratory passages, which can trigger a cough.

Humid weather

In the summer, the hot weather leads to you sweating a lot more – this increases the chance of respiratory infections developing due to dust particles and sweat triggering a sore throat and a dry cough. Breathing is naturally affected because of congestion, particularly in crowded places.

Smog

Allergies due to breathing in smoggy air are common in the summer months, because smog contains a pollutant known as ozone which directly attacks your lung function. This causes inflammation of the protective lining of the lungs and can trigger asthma.  Coughing due to smog is often very painful as it causes uneasiness of the chest and throat.

Weather changes

Because of the way we naturally react to  weather changes, coughs triggered  during the summer months don’t go away easily. For example, during the winter we tend to keep warm, rest a lot and drink hot fluids to help encourage recovery. But in summer, we drink cold drinks and these increase the chance of a cold infection. It may even worsen your gastroesophageal reflux disease causing a cough.

Rainy season

It’s more common to catch a cold  during a rainy season, as the common cold during this season comes accompanied by headaches and sore throats which are due to damp weather. It’s during rainier months that we need to be more on our guard in terms of preventative measures and leading a healthier lifestyle, to try and  fight off any possible infections.

Climate changes

Because of erratic climate changes taking place all the time, people with a healthy immune system also catch respiratory infections. For example, with monsoons after heavy rainfall the weather can sometimes turn very hot. This can lead to a cough or cold due to infections, allergies and breathing problems, all made worse by the weather. changing so drastically.

Categories: allergies, colds, common, Infections, nasal passages, rainy season, respiratory infections, season, summer months, Throat, weather

How to Avoid Emotional Imbalance While Enjoying a Holiday

As the winters arrive, many people get busy packing and booking tickets as it’s the time where all friends and family get together to celebrate the holiday season. You wait for the entire year to go back home to your near and dear ones, to spend time with them, to exchange gifts and goodies. But many a times as the season gets closer, a lot of people find themselves emotional disturbed for various reasons such as monetary problems or dealing with a member you had a feud with last year.

 

What are the causes?

There can be a list of things that can make you upset while you are backpacking to go to your town, such as the fear of coming across an old flame or monetary issues that makes your gifts a little less fancy than others. If your spouse or your closest sibling  is busy with work and couldn’t make it for the celebration this year, do not dwell in depression; rather cheer up the rest of the family and get started.

 

Pay proper attention to your personal health. Exercise regularly; eat your meals on time in order to do away with the daily pressure you face at work and home. Staying fit and healthy will bring in a positive atmosphere for you which will enable you to enjoy the holiday season to the fullest.

 

Try and know all the reasons that can trigger any emotional imbalance in you while you are hoping to enjoy the holiday. A little extra care and determination can help you avoid such upsetting times.

 

What can be done?

It’s only you and you who can decide whether you want to stay upset during this holiday season or to do something to keep up the positive holiday spirit. Here’s what you should do:

 

Understand your feelings: Find out the true reason for your unhappiness. If you are really having trouble in communicating, allow yourself to open up or cry it out. This will make you feel better and take away the load. If someone close has passed away or a member you love isn’t around for whatever reason, try and get a hang on yourself.

 

Talk it out: Loneliness can be fought away if have someone you can talk to. Look around and tell someone you know what you are going through. Besides family and friends, companionship can be found at many events like a social gathering. Helping someone who is going through a similar problem can prove beneficial for your own positive spirit.

 

Get practical: As time passes by, trends and traditions change or at the least get altered. Adjust yourself with these changes. If your grandchildren can’t make it back home this season, do a video call while the rest are celebrating. Spending quality time with the close ones is the true shout of the season; focus on that rather than cribbing or arguing with them.

 

Let bygones be bygones: Having a fight with a family member during the festive season can ruin every one else’s positive spirit. Avoid such situations and indulge yourself in positive things. Holding grudges can also ruin your own mood. Let it go. Free yourself!

 

Budget management: Do not over spend on things you don’t really require. Holiday shopping brings in a new wave that can make you go overboard and empty your pockets. Plan a proper budget and shop accordingly so that money will not be an issue when you are enjoying the holidays.

 

Look after yourself: Look after yourself. Take out sometime for your own mind, body and soul. Remember your health is more important than anything else.

 

Its fine to say no: Missing one of the family trips due to a major reason is okay. Let them know the reason and communicate how sorry you are for not being a part of it.

 

If you still believe that you can’t cope up with the holiday blues, seek a professional counsellor’s help. There is no need for you to deal with this stress all alone. Holidays are meant to be enjoyed and if you aren’t doing that, you should help yourself.

Categories: emotional, emotional imbalance, Family, holiday, holiday season, imbalance, nbsp, positive spirit, season, time