We just endured a 2 week long span of sick, sick, sick kids. The two offenders: RSV and the stomach flu.
Only two of my three sons got the stomach flu, including the little one pictured at left. He was so sick and didn’t move or eat for a few days and threw up all over me dozens of times, poor baby.
Even with all the times I got puked, coughed, and sneezed on, I stayed healthy (which was a miracle and a great blessing – Mom can’t get sick when everybody else is!) all thanks to good, old-fashioned soap and water and Wet Ones antibacterial wipes.
With those winter germs in full force, the only way to stay healthy is to wash and sanitize constantly!
Germs are everywhere, which is why I carry around a travel sized pouch of Wet Ones® Antibacterial Hand Wipes to clean all the public surfaces we can’t avoid touching – shopping carts are my biggest fear! We weren’t around any sick children (that we knew of…) so I think Linus’s RSV could very well have come from a shopping cart that one time I forgot to wipe it down!
I use Wet Ones to sanitize door handles, toys, the TV remotes, the fridge handle, etc. Any surface that is frequently touched by multiple hands is a germ magnet and ought to be sanitized often.
I keep a container in the car for after playing at the park, visiting the library, and going to church. The container fits perfectly in my cup holders and is easy to access for my kids so they can clean and sanitize as they need to all on their own.
Spring is around the corner, but until then here are some tips on staying healthy from microbiologist, Dr. Benjamin Tanner.
- Practice Good Hygiene for at Least a Week After a Cold. Cold viruses can be found in nasal secretions of children for two to three weeks after the onset of symptoms. That’s a long time for an unwanted guest to stick around!
- Keep Your Immune System Healthy. Studies show that maintaining a healthy body weight with proper nutrition reduces risks of infection, and also may prevent inflammation (potentially damaging immune system hyperactivity).
- Keep Up on Cold and Flu Germs. Colds are most infectious during the first two to four days people are infected. And you can’t outrun their germs: droplets from sneezes can travel at a velocity of 45 miles per hour and cover a distance of 10 feet. Wash your hands and face regularly; when soap and water is not available use Wet Ones® Antibacterial Hand Wipes to kill bacteria on your hands.
- Don’t Touch Your Face. Most cold viruses are spread by contact with surfaces through “self-inoculation” when hands pick up cold viruses, and then touch the nose or eyes to start an infection. In fact, a study of kids showed that a program to discourage touching the face reduced colds by nearly half.
These are great, doable tips that will go a long way to keeping you and your family healthy all year round. And there is always Wet Ones as a back up plan…
How do you keep yourself and your family healthy during the winter??
I wrote this review while participating in an Ambassador Program for Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Wet Ones® Antibacterial Hand Wipes and received a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.
