Well, she did not exactly name it as swine flu or H1N1 but she did warn us about the danger of sickness and epidemic. Read my report here.
What is happening currently is actually worse than an epidemic. It's already termed a pandemic by WHO. In case you don't know the difference between epidemic and pandemic, read here.
In Malaysia, the number of H1N1 cases continue to rise. Fortunately, this flu is not deadly otherwise we would be in a state of panic. However, elderly people and those with poor immune system must be extra cautious during these times.
I hate getting the flu - any types of flu. And I hate getting colds too. Don't know the difference between cold and flu? Check that out here.
The reason I hate the colds and the flu is I will almost always end up with fever, headaches, stomach upsets, sore throats, cough, breathlessness, nose blocks, and to top it all, anxiety. I don't know how some people can have colds or flu and still go about their daily job as if they are not sick. I can't do that! I have to be in bed and simply cannot function properly.
That is why I do everything possible to avoid getting the flu and cold virus! So if you happen to hate the flu and colds as much as me, then let me introduce you my personal top 10 ways to beat those pesky bugs! (Warning : Some of my methods are pretty extreme!)
1. Wash your hands
Contrary to popular belief, the flu and cold virus spread easier through touch than by air. So all this practice of wearing masks to prevent getting the H1N1 may not be truly effective.
Do you know a flu virus can survive outside the human body for up to 48 hours? So when a flu infected person touches the door knob with his hands and you happen to touch that same door knob within 48 hours, and then touch your eyes or nose with your hand, you will very likely get infected!
The viruses normally enters your body via your eyes and nose, so if you think you have touched an infected object, wash your hands as soon as possible! If you do not have access to water for some reason, avoid rubbing your eyes and touching your nose with your hands and you will prevent the virus from entering your body.
Now you can see why the H1N1 virus can spread so easily? Everything you touch is a risk! Whether it's the book at the bookshop, the buttons inside the lift, the computer keyboard at the internet cafe, the equipments in the gym, the hand railings in the bus and LRT, or those banknotes or cash you just received! In fact, your wallet or purse may be the most virus laden object you have in your possession!
So, make washing hands a habit. Don't know the right way to wash hands? No problem, read here.
Image courtesy of E.Excel
2. Carry a hand sanitizer
Just in case you do not have access to soap and water for some reason, a hand sanitizer will save the day! Most hand sanitizers contain alcohol in them to kill germs, so it's a good idea to have one with you by your side at all times!
I have one in my car and another one at the place I work. I don't keep one in my house though, as I can normally get to wash my hands with water at home.
3. Use knuckles or wrist to rub your eyes and nose
What happens if your eyes and nose are really itchy and you are dying to rub them, but you think you have just shook hands with a person who had flu? And there is no washroom anywhere near you to wash your hands?
Well, let me teach you this tip. Instead of using your fingers to rub your eyes or nose, use your knuckles or your wrist instead! Your knuckles and wrist are less likely to be contaminated with virus than your fingertips!
The average person rubs his or her eyes and nose at least 20 times a day, so this tip can come in very handy!
Image courtesy of USANA
4. Double the intake of your supplements
At the first sign of cold or flu, double the intake of your health supplements. Any good quality and safe supplements that are beneficial in strengthening the immune system are helpful in fighting your cold and flu. This means, do not follow the recommended dosage on your supplements but exceed them!
Do not be afraid to overload your body with these health supplements as you are doing this only for a few days and not over a prolonged period of time. When you are sick, the rate your body uses up the vitamins and minerals are much faster, hence you would need to double your intake of these supplements.
From my own experience, pumping my body with these health supplements have stopped the cold or flu from progressing most of the time. Coupled this with lots of sleep and rest, and your cold and flu will not even have the chance to develop! In any case, taking health supplements are much better than taking drugs to suppress the cold and flu.
5. Stop breathing for a minute
When someone with cold or flu sneezes and you happen to be in the same room with him or her, what do you do? Of course wearing a mask helps, but what if you are not wearing one? Are you going to run out of the room? Well, that depends how fast you run because the flu viruses can travel up to 90 miles per hour from a sneeze! Of course, it also matters whether you are running towards or away from the viruses, that is, if you can see them. Haha!
My best strategy when faced with situation like this is to just stop breathing. That's right! Stop breathing for a minute and let the viruses disperse. Maybe during that one minute, you can try walking slowly out of the room so that you don't look like you are running away like a mad person.
The next best strategy is to place a stand fan directly in front of you facing the offender so that the wind will blow away all the viruses that comes your way! Haha!
Image courtesy of eHow
6. Exercise moderately
People who exercise have better immune system and are therefore, less likely to get the flu and cold. A minimum 3 times weekly for about 30 minutes each time is recommended. Exercise also helps to take away stress, which suppress the immune system.
However, be careful not to over exercise as doing this also lowers your immune system. I have to admit I sometimes fall sick after straining myself too much in the gym. So take it easy and don't be like me!
Of course, if you are sick with flu or cold, avoid the gym altogether. Your body's immune system is already working hard to fight the flu viruses and you don't need to weaken it any further with a strenuous workout at the gym! Besides, be considerate and not spread your germs around to others!
7. Use paper towels in public toilets
Normally, after using the public toilet, you need to open the door to walk out, right? Now some people do not wash their hands after using the toilet and guess what? Every one of them touches the door handle on their way out!
So what do I normally do in such a case? Well, I will take the paper towel or tissue provided and wrap it round the door knob or handle to open the door. The paper towel or tissue act as a barrier between my hand and the handle. Just make sure you throw away the paper towel afterwards!
Of course a better way is to choose a toilet with no doors or with doors that are left open all the time.
Image courtesy of worktop4u
8. Do not touch the tap
When you wash your hands, you need to turn the tap for the water to flow out right? Since most people touch that tap to wash their dirty hands, you can be sure it is full of germs! It's OK to turn the tap before washing your hands, but after washing and your hands are clean, you don't want to be touching that tap again to turn it off. So what do you do?
Well, for me, I will gather some water in my left hand first, then after turning off the tap with my right hand, I will use the water I gathered in my left hand to rinse my right hand!
But an even better solution is simply choose a washroom which uses automatic "no touch" taps. Like the ones you find in the washrooms at The Gardens Mall (which by the way is my favourite public washroom in a shopping mall) where you just need to place your hands close to the water outlet and the automatic sensor will activate the water to flow out to your hands.
9. Take probiotics instead of antibiotics
Many people who are down with flu and sore throat always pressure their doctors for antibiotics. However, this is a wrong move as colds and flu are caused by viruses. Antibiotics only kill bacterias, not viruses. And even worse, antibiotics kill off the friendly bacteria that is part of our healthy immune system.
Instead of antibiotics, take probiotics. Probiotics help promote growth of friendly bacteria which in turn help to strengthen our immune system to fight the cold and flu.
10. Massage your neck and hands
At the first sign of cold or flu, massage the back of your neck by placing both hands against the bony part just behind your ears and rub your palms back and forth about 30 times. This is an acupressure technique that can help avert a cold or flu!
Image courtesy of rhizome.net
Another acupressure technique you can use is apply pressure to the fleshy web between the thumb and index finger of your hand. Press towards the bone at the base of your index finger for several seconds until it aches. Repeat on each hand several times. (Caution : Do not do this acupressure exercise if you are pregnant)
So there you are! My personal top 10 ways to beat the cold and flu. Now, maybe some of you may think that my tips border on the extreme, but with the H1N1 virus spreading around like nobody's business, an extreme situation like this definitely calls for extreme measures!
FIRST COMMENTER
Interesting. Thanks for your tips.
But using paper towels will anger the green-minded fellas...
paper towels r cool. i been using them a lot recently
Avoid travelling to countries with high cases of the flu...if possible.
good tips!
GOSH! You are sucha wonderful source of info. Thank you very much for all the detailed insights into various topics that you've covered. I'm amazed! ^_^
+Ant+
Jeez! No wonder I couldn't get to be FC! Look at the amount of good info I had to go thru. hehe..
May I add No. 11? Works for me: Get a flu jab yearly.
Great practical tips, Foong. Thank you.
chop!
Thanks for the tips, they will come in handy during this not so healthy time. :)
Thanks for the advice. Now i rarely let my son touch things at the mall or supermarket. Afraid of the flu.
interesting and quite helpful tips, guess by doing all those you are never down with a flu huh?? hehe.. thanks for sharing, and may the pandemic get over soonest possible~~
Better prevention than cure. :D
And avoid people coming back from high risk areas at all cost. :D
no touching tap???
that's a first. lol
drink more water. take more fruits. eat healthy. sleep well, don't stay up too late. take supplements eg cod liver oil. sweat it out.
true lah, bout the door handle/knob part.
never bother wondering how much germs are living there.
hmmm, but water tap?!! aiyo, might as well dun wash hands. but wait, that's even worse .... hmm.
I actually have the sniffles right now and no, I'm very sure it's not swine flu ... LOL! But I'm being careful all the same ...
may be i will try ur method once i kena flu lagi..
oh ya...do you mind to exchange link with me?
khengsiong, using paper towels will anger the green-minded environmentalists? Well, sometimes it's a necessity as long as we don't waste it : )
bengbeng, haha! I don't know whether if it's cool, but I use them if necessary : )
mei teng, yes, it's better not to go to high risk areas.
sherry, thanks! : )
anton, thanks! Glad you find my posts helpful. I just happen to read a lot and also have interests in all those topics that I blog about : )
happysurfer, haha! I take that as a compliment! But let me give you a tip - next time, just put in a comment first before reading the post. After reading, you can comment again : )
Flu jab is a good preventive measure. I thought of that too but that would be more than 10 ways already. Besides, it's better that I don't reveal all the ways so that my readers (like you) have the chance to contribute : )
mariuca, you are welcome : )
willie, you are welcome. Yes, children like to touch anything they see, so it's better to watch them.
SK, I still get the cold and flu sometimes cos of my own fault and carelessness. It happens when I overdo my workouts in the gym, or when I get too stressed over work and stay up late at night.
And sometimes I am too busy to notice the first sign of cold and continue to stress myself instead of taking supplements and rest. I guess whenever I have the cold or flu, I only have myself to blame! : )
lina, yes prevention is always better especially when there is no cure for the flu! We depend on our body's immune system to fight the flu and cold. That's why people with AIDS can die from a simple cold or flu!
Yes, avoiding people coming back from high risk countries is a wise step. Delay visiting them for at least one week.
medie007, bet you never heard doctors or anyone for that matter advising the public not to touch the taps right? Haha!
Wow! That's a lot of good advice coming out from a future doctor, but I guess probably only 10 percent of your patients will bother listening to your advice? : )
J2Kfm, haha! If door knob is full of germs, then logically, water taps will be full of them too, right? : )
nick phillips, so did you quarantine yourself as a responsible citizen? : )
limpek, yes, please put my tips to the test! I've been using these methods with great success many times.
Sure don't mind exchanging links with you! I'll put you under "Blogs I Follow" : )
good tips Foong!! ;)
nice tips foong...btw, why is it prohibited to do that accupresure for pregnant?
What? Lilian Too actually predict this will happened? So accurate? Sounds like she is Nostradamus or something huh! But then again her prediction is kinda vague right? Ha :D So now we should buy more feng shui items to enhance our health? ;P
Yeah! The number of H1N1 cases continue to rise albeit a little slower right now. So old people and kids should be really careful.
I seldom get sick. It's been like a few years since I last got any disease or sickness. :D
Ouh...so you are with Usana lar! :D HOw's the products? I heard it is a tad expensive.
Your 5 methods which is stop breathing for a minute might just work. because everyday we have to meet up and mingle with so many people, hence the risk is there.
I always do the no 10 method. Which is to massage my neck and hands. Especially the hands...just like shown in the picture. Maybe that's why I seldom got down with flu. hahahaha :D Now I know.
I thought I knew most of the ways to prevent cold and flu but this really helped especially about using my knuckles!
Good tips! I think taking more organic garlic pills might helps too.
"Of course a better way is to choose a toilet with no doors or with doors that are left open all the time."
Erm.. I don't think the ladies can handle going to the loo with no doors. As for the doors that is left open all the time? Hmm what makes you think it was not used long before anyway? Germs still stay anyway... we can't be waiting at the restroom and see if someone uses that stall haha.
I like those automatic taps. But if comes to a chance where the taps are required to be touched, I always wash the tap as well then wash my hands again before turning it off.
Yes probiotics are good! I take them regularly. It even helped on female cramps. I know I never have them anymore :P and haven't been falling sick as much as I used to anymore :).
Thank you for sharing!
Oh it was predicted for the epidemic thingy.. The Tsunami was also predicted. But guess no body took precaution or paid much attention to it.
Very high-level Buddhist masters are aware of happenings - past, current and future. It is just that they are not supposed to reveal them, especially future events. All they can say is that such and such a thing will happen meaning to hint that we need to take precautions. I heard of one such warning many years ago regarding disasters, air disasters in particular. Look at the frequency of air disasters these days. Enough said.
pandemic/epidemic? cold/flu? gosh, i dun know the differences.. and i call myself an english tutor. fail big time!
monica, thanks! : )
ayie, err..not sure why. I read this tips from a book some time back. Probably it would affect the pregnancy in some way.
tekkaus, haha! Lillian Too is no Nostradamus. She just predicted it based on feng shui calculations. Buy more feng shui items to enhance health? Yes, if you believe in it. Get a wu lou to protect your health : )
It's good to know you seldom get sick. That means you have a good immune system. Keep it that way!
Yes, I am a USANA member. They have great products. I normally take their multivitamins and minerals and the Omega 3 oil. Although I must caution against taking too many multivitamins and minerals daily. It's different when you are sick, you can double the recommended dosage.
Yes, slightly on the expensive side, but aren't all MLM products expensive? : )
Oh, you always massage your neck and hands? Good for you! That hand massage that you always do also help to prevent headaches : )
heidi, oh you already knew a lot about prevention of colds and flus! But these are just some of my personal ways. Yes, using the knuckles help a lot! : )
molly, I've not been taking any garlic pills, but I guess anything that helps to build up the immune system is good! : )
ladyviral, what do you mean? There are many ladies' toilets that have no doors or the doors are left open all the time in shopping malls. But outsiders cannot see inside as the door does not face the inside directly.
You wash the taps too? Well, that's another way too. It's just that I prefer not to wash a public tap with my hands. LOL!
So you also take probiotics? Good for you! Yes, it's helpful with a number of ailments : )
You missed out one, wear space suit....ha ha ha! LOL
ladyviral, I guess not many believe or pay attention to predictions : )
happysurfer, I think feng shui experts are not the same as those soothsayers (eg. Nostradamus) as they use feng shui calculations to predict a certain event or outcome. I have also learnt (although not an expert in it) how to predict the luck of houses if I am given the plan of the house.
As for Buddhists masters who know the past, present and future, it's quite likely as I've read somewhere before that actually everything is happening now. Meaning, time is just an illusion to humans - it's our way of taking in things one thing at a time. For all we know, time is just another dimension which we have not fully understand yet.
merryn, oh! I didn't know you are an English tutor! Gosh! I have to be extra careful on my grammar now. LOL!
pete, wear space suit? Now that's really extreme! Haha!
do not touch the tab?
omg.
then how?
hmmm now i wash my hands like dont know how many times a day. hands all dried up already :( and hey i cant imagine u, as a guy, use tissue to wrap the door nob!!! hahaha. :P
I thought only girls use tissue to wrap the door knob!
Btw the no. 1 advice is STAY AT HOME when you have flu. :)
Foong, read that Mariah Carey will be performing at memorial service for MJ tonight. If so, you wouldn't want to miss it. Watch CNN or E! Entertainment.
brian kinney, haha! Didn't I say my preventive measures are pretty extreme? I've already mentioned the "how". But the easiest way is to use auto-no touch taps : )
xin, well, extreme situations call for extreme measures! : )
che-cheh, well, let me change that perception! : )
Of course stay at home is the best way to stop the spread of the flu, but there's no guarantee anyone will be that responsible and disciplined. So we have to take other preventive measures like what I shared here : )
happysurfer, oh yes I heard the news too! Wonder what song will she be singing? Probably "I'll Be There" which was previously sung by MJ. Looks like I will be staying up tonight! : )
i agree the first aid should come to your self by simply starting out with proper way of wahing hands and hygiene
by the way foongpc i just gave you the 150 EC for getting the highest number of votes last roung
congrats
Oh, these are great tips Fong, i suffer from allergies so my eyes and nose are itchy when my allergies are high and my problem is how to control myself from scratching them, now, i learn what to do with it from your tip :)
ahhh ok. just that looking at the massage routine, it's so simple but the I saw you noting there that not for preggers. It gave me a big ? after reading that =)
Ladies restroom with no doors or doors left open? Ok now I am lost... But like I said even if it is left open, what makes you think no body have been to it and putting germs on the door? We don't like stand at the restroom for hours to ensure that stall wasn't used! hahaha.
But as for no doors... hmm I don't know haven't encountered one before. You have foong?! Gasps!
Oh no no.. I don't wash it with my hands :P. I just put water over it a number of times or yes if i feel that the restroom is really dirty, clean the tap with my hands first, then soap my hand and wash my hands :P.
Yep probiostics is good for a number of ailments :). Said to cure tumors too o.O I wonder...
I prefer no. 10. The rest are too extreme. I might as well just stay at home if I need to perform them.
while there is bound to be a certain degree of anxiety over the flu, it's unlikely to stop some ppl from traveling overseas.
s the world becomes smaller, a sneeze can always lead on to something bigger, don't u agree?
enjoy your wednesday Foong.
Right you were, Foong. Your idol did sing the song you guessed. I guess she kept it sombre and nice, shall I say? Frankly, I don't enjoy her sudden key-changes, rather irritating. Oops! No offence but that's just my opinion.
haha nice tips!
but dont breathe for a minute??
i dont think i can do it! lol =P
oh yeah.. i hate getting sick too! =)
I know I know, ask the person beside you to turn off the tap! Lol..
bluedreamer, thanks so much! I never expect to win! Wow! Thanks again! : )
betchai, glad to be of help! : )
ayie, even though the acupressure look simple, but massaging those acupressure points can have a big effect, so better heed the warning : )
ladyviral, it's OK if the door is full of virus, because as long as we don't touch it, we won't get the virus. That's why I advise people to choose a toilet with doors that are always left open. When I mention door, I mean the main door, not the individual door for each toilet cubicle.
A lot of shopping malls do not close the main door of the toilet or washroom : )
jam, well, didn't I say these tips are somewhat extreme? There's no harm in practising them however, as they effectively cut down the chances of getting infected with the flu and cold viruses.
life ramblings, yes it's not stopping me from going China! haha! But I really advise people not to go to countries with H1N1 infection. At the very least, if they go, they must quarantine themselves when the come back.
happysurfer, it's OK if you find it irritating. For me, she can do no wrong, haha! : )
kenwooi, why not? One minute only, not five minutes! : )
eiling, you mean ask the person next to you who have not wash his/her hands yet? That's a good idea! But they may not agree to your request. Haha!
yeah the effect is pretty big, will take your word for it =)
So, I do not actually believe it is likely to work.
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