Flu season is at its peak, and to keep yourself protected during this time is more crucial than ever. Flu is a contagious viral infection that affects the respiratory system and causes a wide range of symptoms such as fever, body aches, coughing, sore throat, chills, feeling tired, etc. While it gets better on its own, sometimes it can make you hospitalized. To prevent that, it is best you follow prevention strategies to keep yourself safe from the flu. Learn the 12 best tips for staying healthy in this flu season. Log on to www.doralhw.org for a consultation.
12 Tips for staying healthy this flu season
To keep yourself safe and healthy during flu season, here are some tips you should follow:
- Get a flu shot:
The best way to protect yourself during the flu season is to get a flu vaccine yearly. It is recommended that anyone who is older than 6 months and medically well should be vaccinated against the flu. The vaccine can create antibodies in the body to protect you against the virus around 2 weeks after you get vaccinated. While everyone should get vaccinated, it is vital to people who get easily sick, are older, planning to get pregnant, or have weak immune systems. So, make sure you get vaccinated at the beginning of the flu season rather than wait until people start getting sick.
- Clean your hands:
Washing your hands regularly will keep you safe from germs. You should wash your hands with soap and water, and in case it is not available then use an alcohol-based hand rub. Washing hands after coming from outside, before and after cooking, after using the bathroom, and after contact with people who are sick or maybe sick is a necessary precaution for everyone. You should make sure your children wash their hands properly and frequently. For maximum effectiveness, you should scrub your hands with soap for at least 20 seconds. To ensure you wash your hands properly, sing your favorite song twice. Make sure you properly scrub your palms, the back of the hands, between the fingers, and under the nails to ensure you physically remove germs.
- Avoid sharing things with others:
If someone asks you to share your pen or other stuff in the office or class, instead of asking them back, give them and keep an extra one. Never share toiletries or makeup, especially razors, eyeliners, lip balm, or anything that directly comes in contact with your skin.
- Avoid making close contact with a sick person:
To keep yourself healthy during flu season you should limit close contact with others who are sick or exhibiting flu symptoms especially if your child or another family member is sick and you’re caring for them. After staying close to a sick person, you should wash yourself and your clothes and clean the surfaces they touch.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or your mouth:
The most common areas where germs can enter your body are the eyes, nose, or mouth. So, you should avoid touching them as much as possible. Or if you touch them, make sure your hands are clean.
- Get enough sleep:
While people ignore getting enough sleep at night, getting good sleep is crucial for your body to heal and make your immune system strong to fight illnesses. So, make sure you get enough sleep at night by following good sleeping habits like fixing your sleep schedule, avoiding heavy meals at night, listening to calming music, avoiding blue light emitting screens at least 1 hour before sleep, etc.
- Stop biting your nails:
Even when you keep your hands clean or use hand sanitizer all the time, your fingers touch everything, and your nails collect it all including germs and bacteria. So, touching your face or biting your nails can make those germs enter your body and make you sick. So, avoid biting your nails.
- Clean all highly infected areas:
Germs and viruses can live on hard surfaces from some hours to several days rather than on soft surfaces like clothing or toys. That’s why they can survive on commonly used surfaces like kitchen and bathroom countertops, door handles, gym equipment, etc. So, make sure you keep those objects clean by disinfecting them with a sanitizing solution. You should also keep your phones, remotes, and light switches clean too.
- Wear clothes according to the weather:
Both under and overdressing can affect your health. So, before leaving home you should check your weather app and make decisions about how you should dress. While temperature prediction can fluctuate, wear layers so that you can remove them or put them as you need. Invest in a warm winter coat, hat, gloves, and earmuffs before winter starts.
- Pay attention to your overall health:
To prevent getting sick during flu season, practice habits that keep you in good health. The healthier you are, the more resilient your immune system will be. So, make sure you consume a healthy diet with a high intake of immune system booster nutrients like vitamins C and D, healthy fats, fiber, probiotics, etc. Exercising regularly and staying active will also help you to stay healthy along with staying hydrated. Other things that keep you healthy during flu season are getting plenty of sleep and management of stress.
- Take steps for cleaner air:
You should also improve air quality by taking fresh air, purifying indoor air, or going outdoors in nature. Clean air lowers the risk of exposure to viruses.
- Stay home:
If you fall sick, then you should stay at home to prevent spreading the flu to others. Whether you are a child or an adult, avoid going out in public when you’re sick, even if your symptoms are getting better. Make sure you are completely cured first before stepping outside from home.
While the flu is not serious, in some cases, it can cause you to be hospitalized. So, it’s better that as soon as the flu season starts, you start following the above-mentioned tips to stay healthy during flu season and protect yourself from illness.
If you need help with the flu, visit our infectious disease specialist in Doral Health & Wellness’s Brooklyn clinic to get professional medical help. Call us to book your appointment now!!!!! Our infectious disease doctors make sure your condition gets diagnosed and treated properly. For more information or to make an appointment, call us to get a consultation. Call us on +1-718-367-2555. If you need any information on infections, log on to www.doralhw.org get a consultation. We have the best doctors that can help you and improve your quality of life!
