How to Keep Your Family Healthy This Flu Season
The time of year parents dread is fast approaching. Stuffy noses, hacking coughs, and snotty kisses are the hallmarks of flu season for many families. You do not have to spend all of the fall and winter months cooped up and miserable though. There are several things you can do to keep your family healthy and germs out of your home.
Rest and Healthy Living
Making sure everyone in your home is well rested each night will allow your bodies to build up their natural defenses against illness. At the same time make sure to fuel your bodies with a healthy diet. Fruits and vegetables are a great way to give your body the vitamins and minerals it needs to build your immune system.
Pay attention especially to your intake of leafy greens and garlic. Leafy greens are fully of vitamin C and garlic help build healthy gut flora while also getting rid of bacteria and viruses. Soups are also great when you are feeling down, the hot broth will break up mucous and the protein and vegetables will create a powerful team against anything trying to harm your body.
Keep Your House Clean
A clean house will help to keep you healthy by keeping harmful germs off of your hands and out of the air you breathe. Disinfect surfaces with an antibacterial cleaner, paying attention to doorknobs, light switches, and faucet handles.
You can also consider implementing a ‘no shoes in the house’ rule, since shoes can bring in as many as 421,000 bacterium on their soles. Whether you allow shoes or not you still want to keep your floors clean, consider using the power of steam to disinfect your floors and keep back any lingering germs. View this link now to find the best steam mop for your household needs.
Wash Your Hands
Hand hygiene is one of the most efficient ways of staying healthy during flu season. Consider everything you touch each day. Door knobs, toilets, counters, other people’s hands. There are a lot of ways that germs can spread throughout the day.
It’s recommended that you should wash your hands with soap and warm water before eating or cooking, after using the restroom, after touching animals, sick friends, or after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing. You can keep your little ones engaged in handwashing by having them sing their ABC’s or Itsy-Bitsy Spider while they are at the sink.
Stay Hydrated
Our bodies are anywhere from 55-75% water depending on our age, so it’s easy to see how staying hydrated is important when it comes to your immunity and keeping you from getting sick. Staying hydrated actually can work to keep the lining of your nose moist, making it harder to germs and viruses to get to attach themselves and get you sick. Try to drink the recommended six to eight glasses of water a day and stay away from sugary drinks and caffeinated beverages.
Flu season can often be a miserable time, especially if you have small children, but it doesn’t have to be. With these helpful tips hopefully, your family can stay happy and healthy all throughout the winter months.
