Symptoms of Swine Flu

Wash your hands?

Did you know that there is some speculation that all of the large number of new people washing their hands maybe what saved the world from swine flu last year? There are many at the WHO and the CDC that believe this is what saved a lot of people and delayed the swine flu virus from really taking hold, giving the authorities enough time to develop a vaccine. You can read the original article in this business week article, and like they say, It just goes to show you that your mother was always right!

Did you know that there are government people that sit in the bathroom and spy on you? Last year they noted that 85 percent of the people using public restrooms were now washing their hands. That is apparently the largest volume of the public since they began tracking how many people are washing their hands in public restrooms.

Do Clean Hands Really Matter?

So why is it so important to wash your hands regularly? Cleaning out the dirt and grime on your hands does a couple of things, first you get rid of any viruses that you may have already picked up,  second you  remove all of the dirt and grime that gives germs and virus a place to hide.  Nearly every surface you touch will have been touched by others. If it is a public place where many people go daily it will have been touched a lot! And a virus can live outside of the host for a long time. Swine flu will live outside the body for around 5 hours. But can be washed of and cause you no damage if you get your hands clean before you give the H1N1 Virus an opportunity to enter your body.

How does the Virus Enter my Body

One of the simplest ways that H1N1 enters into your body is from your hands. It can work just like this, you go into the grocery store, and you pull open the door handle which has been opened hundreds of times today. Now the virus has lodged itself onto your hand, you have an itchy eyebrow and rub that hand across your eye to scratch it. Congratulations, you have just caught the flu! It really is that simple and that is why it’s so important to keep your hands washed.

Proper Hand Washing Technique

So washing our hands is pretty simple right? Well actually few people perform the task correctly. You need to begin with warm water as that helps to break up the grease and grime that may reside on your hands. There is no need for using anti bacteria soap however as normal soap will work just fine. Begin by getting your hands wet and adding in the soap, work the lather around your entire hands and between your fingers. You will need to wash for 20 to thirty seconds for this process to be effective. Now rinse and dry your hands and you are finished!

There You Have it

If you follow this process every time you use a public restroom, and anytime you return home from being out you should cut down your family’s rate of infection pretty dramatically. You will give germs little opportunity to grow and no place to hide around you! Now you can leave the house and have some fun in safety!