12 Quirky but Effective Tactics to Avoid the Flu this Season
[10/20/2009 | 6 COMMENTS HERE ]


I'm goin' Sarah Palin on you guys - I'm a Flu rogue. I'm going to share with you my quirky keys to success in avoiding the seasonal flu (and the dreaded swine flu) this fall that you don't see reported in the mainstream press. I'm not a doctor or microbiologist, but I am somewhat of a germophobe and I've spent years of my professional and personal life evaluating, studying, and avoiding the transfer of microbes onto my person and from my person to other objects and people. Here's why:



For years, I spent anywhere from 60-90 hours per week garbed in these rather ridiculous looking, but highly effective clean room suits meant to halt the spread of particulates and microbes from myself to a manufacturing environment where I oversaw sterile biotech and pharmaceutical product manufacturing. With the knowledge that a single microbe could infect an entire batch and (likely be caught due to turbidity or microbial testing, but if not...) had the potential to make a patient very ill or worse depending on the offending organism.

So, in a nutshell, I spent years obsessed with backing into doors, opening doors with my elbows, punching keys with my knuckles instead of fingers, walking around with my hands up in the air like a surgeon and more - never touching my hands to my body, etc. at work, which, depending on how you look at it, translated positively into my daily life. As such, I think the training and behavior has actually translated into a lower rate of infection compared to other people I know. I've never missed a day of work due to illness in my life and I only get about 2-3 colds per year whereas the average is about twice that. I've never had the flu, but I did start to get vaccinated over the past few years, which is generally effective against at least a large portion (often not 100%) of the seasonal strains.

Honestly, everyone's got a line. On one end of the spectrum, you can hunker down and become a hermit living out of your basement Y2K crazy-style. Conversely, you can make no efforts whatsoever to employ routine hygienic customs and hang out in Emergency Rooms for fun this fall. There's a middle ground somewhere and I'm going to give you some ideas that you may not be employing now that might make sense this flu season. I try not to look too "nuts" and drive my wife crazy with ridiculous germophobic behavior when people are looking. However, there are some very simple rituals that I employ covertly (and now I'm broadcasting to several people, so the friends and family that read my blog have just confirmed their suspicions that I'm nuts) that help prevent the spread of germs - and they're not the ones you see on CNN.

Now, keep in mind, I'm not a total freak. And we all have our little tactics we employ in life that might seem odd to publicly state them - but you all do them. Well, I'm sharing mine for the greater good here. I hug my kids who are complete germ-factories, I shake hands with people, I go congregate in places with crowds. I don't avoid germs to the point of lunacy, but I do take some precautions that are relatively low key to protect myself and my family. So, don't judge, just keep an open mind and hopefully these ideas will curtail the spread of the flu a by at least a few people this season.

How to Avoid Getting the Flu

-Opening doors -

I am eternally frustrated when I am confronted by a door that requires me to pull on a handle. I know, that sounds weird. But you're basically forced to put your hands on a surface that hundreds/thousands of other hands have touched during high flu season. I like push-doors, handicap push-buttons, motion detector doors, etc. Unfortunately, there's not much you can do about it without looking totally weird. For some not-so-weird approaches to avoiding contracting flu virus material immediately, you can try the following:

1. It's fall. I'm wearing long-sleeved shirts for the most part. When I approach a door handle that I MUST pull on, I subtly pull my hand into my sleeve a little bit and have my sleeve make contact with the handle instead of my hand.

2. Timing is everything. Often times, someone is either approaching the door from the other direction or you're walking toward the door at the same pace or slower than someone else. Let them get the door, right? Why race to the door. If they're in such a rush, they can open the door and hold it for you.

3. If you absolutely MUST open the door with your own hand, I actually use just 1 finger to grasp the handle and pull pretty hard. Depending on the resistance of the door, I sometimes just use my ring finger and pinky. Why? I rarely touch either of these fingers to my face whereas I use my pointer and middle to scratch, rub and eye, etc. It's all about odds. (And yes, I guess being odd if people see notice this subtle tactic).

4. When leaving a public restroom, after washing my hands, I take the paper towel I dried my hands with and open the door with that paper towel. There's often a trash can at or within throwing distance of the door.

OK, enough on doors, now for some more quirky germ-avoidance tactics.

-Long Sleeves -

5. Can also be utilized to flush toilets, turn off the water when washing hands, etc.

-Public Germ Factories -

6. I've read studies before demonstrating that public phones (conference room phones for cube dwellers since pay phones aren't relevant any more) are actually more bacteria-ridden than toilets and urinals. Everyone's touching that phone and buttons routinely. They never get cleaned whereas bathrooms do. Avoid using a phone other than yours. Avoid using someone else's desk. When you go to a conference room, avoid touching the table top and phone unnecessarily. This might seem a bit unrealistic, but it's all about minimizing risk. If you normally lean all over desktop surfaces, use a shared computer, etc., by making some slight alterations and only doing what you MUST, you decrease your risk of contagion.

-Sneezing-

7. So, don't get me wrong. The right thing to do for the greater good is to cover your sneezes. However, this doesn't actually "prevent YOU from getting the flu". This is one of the bigger factual inaccuracies out there that you see in every brochure and every internet article. Every outlet says that by covering your sneeze (historically, with your hand), you are dodging the flu. Not the case. You're actually potentially spreading it even more by a) sneezing into your hand and then touching something else b) putting your own hand right next to your mucus membranes which are susceptible to disease. What you should do if you've got to sneeze is to actually sneeze into your elbow. I know, we weren't taught to do this as kids, but this is actually the "scientifically-correct" way to sneeze.

-Knuckles, Not Fingers -

8. I'm often forced to touch a public surface that hundreds of people have recently touched. When forced to use a touch-screen at say, the picture developer, Wawa when ordering a sub, or self-checkout at the grocery store, I use my knuckles to make selections rather than my fingertips. You're more likely to transfer flu virus around with your fingers, which are required for virtually all motor activities, versus your knuckles.

-Paying for goods and services -

9. As a habit, when I'm ordering a coffee, food, whatever, I usually have to go up to a counter and pay. I find myself habitually leaning on the counter or touching it with my hands. It's kind of the thing to do when waiting I've found. This is totally unnecessary and since everyone else does it, it's a high risk area. Just stand there and keep your hands to yourself this season.

10. I tend to use a credit card for virtually all commerce anyway since we pay our bill every month and enjoy cash-back rewards. However, cards beat cash and change for other reasons too. Cash and coins have been shown to harbor all kinds or microorganisms (and cocaine actually!). If you're getting cash back from a transaction, it's likely been touched by several people in just the last several hours, whereas, at least with a card, it's only 1 other person - the store employee. Lower risk.

-Avoid Touching Nose, Mouth and Eyes (FOCUS!) -

11. As difficult as it is, making a constant effort to avoid touching these areas will definitely decrease your risk of flu and the common cold. There is some evidence that the H1N1 strain isn't completely susceptible to handwashing since it's spread through aerosolized droplets, but shutting out one pathway via touch is surely going to help. If you have a massive itch that's just killing you and you haven't washed your hands recently, perhaps you can use a knuckle that you didn't use previously, or a pinky which is less likely to be a hot spot (if you're following the rules above!). Again, all about risk management.

-Hand sanitizers often aren't effective -

12. Many people think they can kill/remove virus particles by simply using the nifty hand sanitizer. Well, usually, they're effective only against bacteria and have no claims for viruses. Normal handwashing is generally much more effective since you're completely removing materials and viruses from your skin rather than trying to neutralize it. If given the choice between a hand wash and a gel, I always opt for the old-fashioned way. Plus I don't support the use of triclosan in hand soaps anyway. It's terrible for the environment and has limited benefits - it's totally a gimmick that the American public has fallen for once again - you can barely even find hand soaps without it these days. And many other chemicals in hand sanitizer gels do not have a claim for virus deactivation.


The Obvious

I'm not giving these a number since they're well known and not quirky - but worth repeating:

Wash hands - Probably the single most effective means of prevention aside from vaccination. Better than gels, masks or anything else out there if you live amongst other humans.
Vaccination - The vaccine is the most obvious and effective means of prevention. However, many people either can't get their hands on one or are concerned over potential safety concerns. Nothing I say here is going to change your mind on vaccination, so I won't spend time on it, other than to say that at least for this year, both the seasonal and the H1N1 appear to have decent efficacy against the current strains and no known safety issues. If you're anti-vaccination, #1-12 are especially important to check out.
Eat right, Sleep and Exercise - While it's difficult to definitively quantify exactly what this means given millions of variables and draw a line in the sand, you probably know whether your habits are "good" or "bad". If you sleep 5 hours a night, eat junk food and sit at a desk all day, all other things being equal from a genetic and exposure standpoint, you're more likely to get sick than someone who sleeps 7 hours a day, gets some fresh fruit and vegetables each day and exercises a few times a week. It's simply the way your body was meant to be treated and is more prone to fight off foreign invaders.
So, there you have it. Now you know me. I'm a bit of a germ freak, and now you can be too!

What are your Quirky Tips that you aren't embarrassed to share?




photo credit: sarah,

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6 COMMENTS HERE
Matt SF said... @ October 20, 2009 11:34 AM
As an infectious disease guy, this is music to my ears.

You covered most of the good stuff, but the only quirky thing I do is hold my breath when someone coughs or sneezes until I get out of the aerosol zone. It's kind of odd and people make fun of me, but since I get at least two colds a year, I go a little above and beyond.

Microbiologically, it makes some sound sense and supposedly it only takes 1 virion to start the illness.
Kelly said... @ October 20, 2009 1:24 PM
Love this post! I'm a fellow germophobe (despite the appearance of my house LOL), and I've learned to be less drastic in most measures by figuring out what really works. Like wiping down phones and washing hands thoroughly.

And no nothing you can say will change my anti flu vaccine stance. ;)
Elliott said... @ October 21, 2009 1:57 AM
I dig the post! I have a question about the sleeve trick, though. Is the main benefit of using your sleeve that you are less likely to touch your sleeve to a mucous membrane, or is it that the cloth is a less hospitable environment and the microbes don't survive there? If it's the former, isn't it likely that at some point you'll unwittingly transfer the cavorting beasties from sleeve to hand and then rub your eye in a moment of weakness?
Debt Help said... @ October 21, 2009 7:47 AM
If I get flu now - I know who to blame :-)
Everyday Finance said... @ October 21, 2009 8:03 AM
Glad you like the post!

Kelly, that's funny, I'd have to say the same of my desk at work. Complete disaster but hopefully devoid of germs.

Elliot,
On the sleeve thing, good point on the surface issue; hadn't really considered that. The primary driver in my strange head is that it's not my fingers touching the surface. While my sleeves are somewhat contaminated and could surely somehow shed onto my keyboard, desk or whatever, it's another degree of separation as opposed to direct handle to hand. I know, I overthink it; but that's my rationale.
beyr85 said... @ October 21, 2009 9:39 PM
Love the Post! My quirk is similar to Matt's- whenever someone sneezes by me, i make sure to subtly blow a stream of air and not take a breath until i'm away from the "blast area" youtube some sneezing videos and you'll see what i mean.

germaphobes will rule the earth someday...if we could just open the door to get outside....
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