Even if we have passed the peak of flu season, I know it is still running rampant in Charlotte, and while I can't stress enough that it is still not too late to get a flu shot and that most insurance plans will cover the cost, one of the most effective and inexpensive ways of avoiding the flu may be easier than you think: hand-washing.
I'm not sure if I have mentioned it in a blog post before, but I do also work in a restaurant in Charlotte, and while we are always avid hand-washers especially while directly handling food, once flu season reared its ugly head and we realized it was going to be an even more brutal flu season than normal, I don't know that I've ever heard the faucets of the hand-washing sinks running so consistently. Hand-washing is one of the best defenses against any communicable illness, as many times germs find their way from surfaces that you touch to your hands which you then use to rub your eyes or fix your hair, and just like that bacteria can find its way into your body. Keep your hands clean, and your chances of becoming ill are magically reduced!
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| Sara models tools for keeping our hands clean and germ-free! Soap and hand sanitizer both share the dream of keeping us flu-free and healthy! |
However, the knowledge of the effectiveness of hand-washing has not always been so common. In fact, just a couple centuries ago, hand-washing had not yet been realized as an effective tool to halt the spread of germs. This morning, while I was working with Sara, our Mission Continues fellow here at Hands On Charlotte, we were listening to NPR's Morning Edition, and heard quite the interesting true story of one of the first champions of hand-washing, Ignaz Semmelweis. Mr. Semmelweis, as the article below explains, noticed that more women were dying in childbirth under the care of the medical professionals of the time at a rate five times that of women in the care of midwives. After many trials, Mr. Semmelweis realized that the medical professionals were performing autopsies while the midwives weren't, and thus the medical professionals were carrying the germs that caused the illness and death of women in labor with them. The ending of the article has quite the scary and interesting twist, too, but I'll let you read that for yourselves.
Click here to read the article from NPR's Morning Edition!
And since I am a child of the 1990's and early 2000's, any post regarding cleanliness is going to have to be accompanied by this gem. My AmeriCorps status won't let me say anything regarding my views on Ms. Clinton, but I am certainly ready for Hilary Duff!
Stay safe, y'all!
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