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Three Tips for Surviving Cold and Flu Season
Special to The Truth
It’s that time of year
again. From minor colds to severe flus and fevers, seasonal
sicknesses are unpredictable and can sneak up on your family
at any time.
Unfortunately, even the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention cannot predict
the timing, severity and length of a seasonal virus.
Luckily, there are steps you can take to ward off illness
and better monitor symptoms when you’re sick.
Check in with Your Doctor
Make an appointment with
your primary care physician to get a look at the family’s
vitals. These are good indicators of overall wellness. Plus,
it’s a great time to schedule that annual flu shot, if you
haven’t already done this.
If you’re pregnant, have
kids, or are a caregiver to elderly parents, it’s an even
better idea to get vaccinated, as these are the most at-risk
groups for complications from flu. If you don’t have time to
schedule a full exam, many pharmacies like CVS offer quick,
in-store vaccinations.
Practice Healthy Living
Maintain a healthy
lifestyle. Get enough sleep, eat the right foods to ensure
proper nutrition, drink plenty of water and exercise
regularly. Avoid close contact with sick people, and
maintain a safe distance from others when you are sick. If
necessary, stay home from work or school to keep your germs
from spreading.
Cover your mouth and nose
with a sleeve or tissue when coughing or sneezing. Sanitize
doorknobs, light switches and work areas with germ-killing
soap. Also, don’t forget to wash your hands or use an
alcohol-based hand sanitizer throughout the day to combat
contamination.
Keep Your Cool
Even the best preparation
can leave your family susceptible to cold and flu. Fever and
chills could be a sign you’re getting sick. Remember, a
fever isn’t always a bad thing. It means your body is
working hard to fight off infection. But for parents of
small children, putting feverish kids to bed at night can
still be unnerving.
New technology can help
you rest at night. For example, TempTraq, available at
Amazon.com, is a Bluetooth wearable temperature monitor in
the form of a soft, comfortable patch. It records your
child’s temperature every 10 seconds for 24 hours, sending
the data to your smartphone via a free, downloadable app.
You can view real-time data or receive alerts when your
child reaches a user-set “red zone” level.
“A 24-hour temperature
monitor that continuously records a child’s temperature
readings could alleviate many parent’s concerns when caring
for a sick child,” says Aris Eliades, director of Nursing
research, Akron Children’s Hospital. “The child can rest,
the parent can be alerted if anything changes, and we as
nurses and physicians get needed information to make better
decisions for patients.”
Find yourself with a
stubborn fever? Adults can use it too. Consider keeping
TempTraq in your medicine cabinet for unexpected fevers all
season long.
Take proactive steps for a
healthy household. And, when all else fails, grab a hot cup
of tea with honey and lemon, a warm blanket and a good
movie.
Courtesy StatePoint
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