All this illness and absence is not necessarily inevitable, declares The Soap and Detergent Association. Although being exposed to airborne germs is one way to get sick, it's relatively minimal when compared with all the germs that are transmitted through direct physical contact. One of the most common ways of transmitting colds is to rub the eyes or nose after touching someone or something that's contaminated with the cold virus.
It's not enough to simply avoid contact with a person with a cold or virus. Many infectious diseases are contagious before the first symptoms appear. Also, some people can be carriers of germs, but are not actually sick themselves.
That's why hand washing is so important. Children should be taught to wash their hands before and after they eat, after they use the rest room and after they blow their nose. Sneezing is another way that germs spread. While the practice of covering one's mouth when one coughs or sneezes prevents airborne bacteria, it doesn't usually work well with children, particularly small ones. They may cover their mouths, but probably won't get around to washing their hands promptly. As a result, the germs that weren't spread to other people through the air may spread via direct contact.
A good solution for everyone is to "give your cough the shoulder." Lift your shoulder and arm and cough into your upper arm/shoulder. The idea is that children and adults are less likely to touch each other's shoulders than each other's hands.
Learning how to use tissues properly will also help reduce the spread of colds. Disposable tissues should be used to cover mouths when coughing to prevent cough droplets from spreading through the air and wipe noses in a way that the secretions trapped in the tissue don't get on hands.
Staying Healthy for Work
Because many people re unwilling to use precious personal or sick days for something as "common" as the common cold, the workplace is often a weak link in the fight to prevent the contraction and spread of infectious diseases, observes The Soap and Detergent Association. People come to work sneezing, coughing and sharing germs and viruses with their co-workers.
Why risk making others sick-and oneself sicker? For some, showing up at work "no matter what" is the result of an intensely developed work ethic. And then there are those with bosses who are unsympathetic to absences for "minor" maladies.
In some companies, sick days and vacation days have been rolled into a general paid-time-off benefit. The plus side is that employees could end up with more vacation time. The minus is that when employees take sick days, they feel like they are depriving themselves of vacation days.
Finally, while children don't inhibit the workplace, their presence is strongly felt. Very young children, who are building up their immune systems, are susceptible to the proliferation of germs in day-care and pre-school settings. And, they bring these germs home to share. The result may be more illness for everyone in the family. For working parents, the concept of sick days takes on a different meaning. They stay home to take care of ailing children, but not to nurse themselves back to health.
Given this increasing unwillingness to stay home when one is ill, it makes good sense to control the spread of illness-inducing germs. Whether it's adults in the workplace or children bringing germs home, everyone's health can benefit from frequent and proper hand washing. This means washing before eating, drinking or snacking, after using the toilet and after coughing and sneezing.
Debbie Wilburn is County Agent/Family and Consumer Science Agent with the Hall (770)535-8290 and the Forsyth (770)887-2418 County Extension Service.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2003/2/183161