This year’s flu season has been one of the worst in the past decade. The season has begun to decline however, experts predict that a late bump may occur. According to the Washington Post, “Public health officials have said this flu season is likely to continue until mid-April, and the intensity of illness has made it the worst since the swine flu pandemic of 2009-2010. An additional 17 child deaths were reported across the country for the week ending Feb. 24. That brings the total of child deaths to at least 114 for the 2017-2018 season.”
Did you get your flu shot at the beginning of the season? It will certainly help, but it will not make you one hundred percent immune. In fact, this year’s vaccine is only about thirty-six percent effective overall.
This flu season is nothing to take arbitrarily. Beyond washing your hands or using hand sanitizer as much as possible there are a few extra things that you can do to protect yourself:
Practice Good Health Habits
Avoid contact with sick people, even if this means avoiding a loved one for a short period of time! Don’t touch your eyes, nose, or mouth without washing your hands first. Finally, clean surfaces that may have come into contact with sick individuals.
Maintain Your Immune System
According to Medical News Today. Easy ways to make sure your immune system is at top caliber are consuming a fruit- and vegetable-rich diet, exercising frequently, aiming for a healthy BMI, sleeping for 7–9 hours each night, and reducing stress.
Another way to keep your immune system boosted is to limit your alcohol intake. According to Popsugar, “Alcohol is a big immunosuppressant, so it does suppress your immune system. Drinking excessively in terms of the number of drinks and the frequency of drinking or binge drinking will reduce your immune system and make you more likely to get a cold.”
When you are feeling under the weather, you are likely taking prescriptions or over the counter solutions to make you feel better. It is vital that you take your medicine safely. The Focus glass helps reduce medical error by allowing those with low vision to read and take their medications correctly.
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