Everybody hates being sick – especially in the holiday season. As a mom you just need to take care of so many other things before the rest of the family can enjoy the holiday festivities. But once one family member catches a flu or cold it’s hard to escape the germs and you will most likely end up sick in bed at some point. Therefore it’s even more important to be super careful throughout cold and flu season to make sure nobody in your family gets sick in the first place. We put together some helpful tips and tricks to get you and your family through this year’s holidays happy and healthy. What might seem common sense at first is actually harder to execute in your daily life than you think. You constantly need to remind yourself and your family members of it and change your habits.

1. Wash your hands thoroughly and more often than usual. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) hand washing reduces the risk of respiratory illnesses, like colds, by 21%. However, only about 5% of us do it right. To really get rid of germs you have to wash your hands with soap for 15 to 20 seconds as opposed to the 6 seconds most people spend on it. 

2. Don’t touch your face. Whether you wash your hands or not, always keep your hands away from your face. Germs spread incredibly fast and if you do them the favor of getting them into your system through mouth, nose or eyes you can catch a sickness in just a second. Watch this incredible experiment by Myth Busters to see how fast contamination happens: 

3. Don’t touch public surfaces (e.g. subway poles, door handles, shopping carts) with bare hands or gloves. Believe it or not, germs are lurking everywhere – especially in places that are frequently touched by many people. You might think gloves are a good way to protect yourself from germs, but they are the perfect ground for germs to spread. Instead use an antibacterial tool such as Pandle  to touch these surfaces. The nanosilver solution integrated into the product prevents the growth of germs and thereby helps you to stay healthy. See here, how it works. 

4. Bring tissues and hand sanitizer with you wherever you go. Sneezing or coughing into your hand is the worst idea ever, because when you touch anything afterwards you are spreading the sickness and keep reinfecting yourself. If you can’t avoid making contact with people (e.g. shaking hands) always use hand sanitizer afterwards to eliminate the risk of spreading bacteria.

5. Boost your immune system. If you make it to incorporate the tips above you are already one step ahead of most people and much less likely to get sick. However, a flu shot and a strong immune system can decrease this risk even more. Take a look at this Harvard Health article about how you can adapt a healthier lifestyle and boost your body’s power to fight off germs.

Christmas time. HAPPY HOLIDAYS!