While there’s no foolproof way to ensure that you won’t get sick this flu season, there are steps you can take to reduce your risk of getting sick. Here are some tips to help your family stay healthy this flu season.
Flu Season: 8 Tips for Staying Healthy
Know What Flu Symptoms Look Like
It can be difficult to distinguish the flu from the common cold, but the combination of muscle aches, fever, and cough are typically telltale signs of the flu. Other common flu symptoms include chills, sore throat, headaches, and vomiting.
Fill Up Your Medicine Cabinet
Stock up on supplies before someone in your family gets sick. Make sure you have tissues, hand sanitizer, and hand soap in the house. Check expiration dates on medicines and replace them as needed.
Get a Flu Shot
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that everyone 6 months and older get a flu shot every season. Getting vaccinated against the flu is important to prevent contracting the flu and reduce serious complications if you do get the flu, especially for higher-risk individuals.
Related Story: Health Experts Urge Public to Get Flu Vaccine Amid Virus Uptick
Keep Your Hands Clean
The flu virus spreads quickly through infected hands. Wash your hands frequently using warm water and soap. Keep hand sanitizer on you so you can wash your hands frequently when you don’t have access to a sink.
Also, disinfect items around your home that are touched frequently by different people, such as doorknobs and remote controls. Avoid touching your face without washing your hands first.
Stay Home If You’re Sick
Staying home when you’re sick gives you a chance to rest and recover more quickly. It also reduces your chance of spreading the virus to other people. While you’re home, take over-the-counter pain relievers such as acetaminophen and ibuprofen, and drink plenty of fluids, including water, decaf tea, soup, ice chips, or ice pops.
Mask Up
If you’ve put your masks away after mask mandates were lifted, it might be a good idea to take them back out. Even if you’re vaccinated against the flu and Covid-19, putting on a mask, especially in crowded indoor settings, can reduce your risk of getting sick.
Reduce the Spread of Germs
When possible, cough or sneeze into a tissue, then discard the tissue and wash your hands. If you don’t have a tissue, sneeze or cough into your elbow instead of your hands. And while sharing is usually caring, don’t share things like food and drinks during flu season.
Practice Healthy Habits Throughout the Year
Getting enough sleep at night (seven to nine hours for most people) will help make your immune system stronger and make you less susceptible to getting sick. Exercising regularly, eating properly, and staying hydrated are other good ways to keep your immune system strong.
-Via New York Family
