5 Ways to Protect You from the Flu-5

1st December 2008

5. Wash hands frequently, but avoid antibacterial products.
This seems counterintuitive, but the best way to kill environmental germs is to use soap and hot water and scrub hands thoroughly. Bacteria live all around us. They are on every surface we touch and in every breath we take. Without bacteria, our immune system wouldn’t learn to be strong.

Our internal bacterial system fights off invaders and thereby gets more effective at winning the battle. It’s just like working out: In order to become stronger, you must work hard in the gym. Your child’s body is a bacterial gym. Again, this comes back to the immune system. If you foster a strong immune system, your child’s body will fight off invaders and therefore become more resilient to future battles.

While it is imperative to wash hands frequently during flu season, remember that the hands are only one very small way that germs enter your child’s system. Killing off the germs on hands with antibacterial products is futile and weakens your child’s- and the world’s- future ability to confront germs.