Have you ever heard an apple a day keeps the doctor away!
Prevention is the best cure for either a common cold or flu. I am sure you are asking yourself what does this have to do with your daughter. The classroom, school, or workplace can be a breeding ground for germs that cause cold or flu. Did you know many viruses can spread through droplets of moisture that travel through the air? Here are a collection of helpful tips, and do’s and don’ts for prevention for either the cold or flu in the workplace and school.

Your daughter is a part of a bigger picture when it comes to the germs that cause the common cold or flu. Let us start by looking at the bigger picture (the domino effect). Your daughter infects other kids in school; other kids infect their families; families infect the workplace; the workplace infects others; others infect the community; the community infecting each other by bus, plane, and train along with crowded places. Here lies the domino effect. Look at some Do’s and Don’ts for prevention.

The Do’s and Don’ts for school prevention:

• Try to avoid touching many things in your house or physical contact with other family members to prevent from the spread of germs
• Do not send your daughter to school if she is sick because she could infect other children
• Do not borrow crayons or pencils
• Make sure your child has compact tissue to take to school daily
• Make sure community toys are cleaned daily
• Send your child to school with mechanical pencils (because sometimes the dirtiest spot in the classroom can be the community pencil sharpener)
• Do not put hands or fingers in mouth or nose
• Cover the mouth with arm sleeve or tissue when you sneeze or cough

The Do’s and Don’ts for the workplace prevention:

• Cover your mouth with tissue when you sneeze or cough.
• Reduce your sugar intake: sugar depresses your immune system and reduces your defenses to incoming viruses and bacteria
• Increase your Vitamin C (vitamin c can reduce the length of a cold or virus)
• Supply your office with plenty of sanitizer and tissue throughout the workplace
• Encourage hand-washing techniques in restrooms and break areas
• Eat plenty of food, drink plenty of fluids, and stay at home and get plenty of sleep

Clean workstations and other community areas daily, including phone handles, doorknobs, and tables. It would also be helpful to make sure you stock hand sanitizer at each workstation. In addition, providing complimentary tissues to the public can cut down on uncovered coughing and sneezing. Germs can spread from contaminated areas to your hand. When you touch your face, you introduce germs to a warm surface, which is a breeding ground for germs.

If school and work officials would take the time to do the extra task of wiping down commonly used surfaces, in the classroom and workplace, this will cut down on the spread of germs worldwide. It is an extra task, but if we all pull together during cold and flu season, we can stay healthier longer.

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