It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Days last longer, nights get cooler, and the holidays are approaching. But with all of the marvelous positives of the season, it is easy to forget that fall and winter share their season’s greetings with the one and only… FLU!

Right now, flu season is in full play. Since the outbreak of the H1N1 virus earlier this year, the number of infected individuals with the virus, the flu, or flu like symptoms has continued to rise and is expected to increase during the season.  So why not be prepared?

Being prepared entails numerous actions and measures ranging from what you wear to what you eat and more importantly, what you do with your hands.  Whether you are at home, in the work place, or out in public, there are various actions you can take to ensure the health of you and your loved ones. Some ways to protect yourself include:

1.       Maintaining a healthy lifestyle through diet and rest. Keep in mind that your body has to work hard to enable you to keep up with day to day activities. When you become ill, your body has to work 10 times harder to keep up. Try incorporating healthy foods into your diet. This would consist of snacks and meals which include fruits and vegetables. Moreover, be sure to get a lot of rest.

 

2.       Exercise regularly. For strengthening the immune system, studies continue to support the benefit of including exercise daily. Keeping up with day to day light activities which won’t cause overexertion such as walking, jogging, simple weights and stretching, is a great prevention tool.  However, if feeling fever and strong flu-like symptoms then pushing yourself to exercise is not recommended at all.

 

3.       Reduce stress levels as much as possible. Keep in mind that stress hormones are infamous for wreaking havoc on the body. 

 

4.       Dress according to the weather and your environment.

When at work or public areas:

5.       Avoid touching your eyes, nose, mouth, and face. Germs are spread more easily this way.

 

6.       Wash your hands frequently. To ensure your hands are properly cleansed, wash with soap and water for 20 seconds. If unable to wash with soap and water, use an alcohol based cleanser.

 

7.       Cover your sneezes and coughs with a tissue or cough and sneeze into your elbow. Be sure to wash your hands after sneezing, coughing, or blowing your nose and throw used tissues into a trash receptacle.

 

8.       Keep commonly used surfaces such as telephones, door knobs, and keyboards clean.

9.       Disinfect your work station regularly. If you have to use another workers’ telephone, computer, or office equipment be sure to clean it first to avoid the spread of germs.

 

10.   Do not spread the flu! If you are sick with flu-like symptoms, stay home. Symptoms of flu include sore throat, fever, runny nose, head ache, cough, sneezing, body aches, diarrhea, vomiting, tiredness, and fever.  The Center for Disease Control (CDC) recommends that individuals who suffer from any flu like symptoms stay at home for at least 24 hours after they are free of fever and serious flu symptoms.

 

11.   Get vaccinated! People who are in high risk of getting the flu should be vaccinated as soon as it is available in your area. People who are high risk include women who are pregnant and individuals with chronic medical conditions such as heart disease and diabetes. Check with your health care provider for information and dates for H1N1 and seasonal flu vaccinations. For more information regarding priority groups for vaccination, visit www.cdc.gov/H1N1flu/vaccination/acip.htm

In the event that you experience any of these symptoms, contact your physician or a local health care provider immediately.

This entry was posted on Friday, November 13th, 2009 at 1:33 am and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.