The new wave of flu is coming! Is your family prepared? 10 tips on how to keep your family safe during this new flu season

Flu season means that you must take caution and ensure safety measures to avoid yoursealf and your family from falling prey to its detrimental health effects. If you have got flu shots, good enough! But do not rely on these vaccinations to protect you from the flu, because these may be ineffective owing to various reasons. So, for instance,the influenza virus has mutated a new strain that the vaccines cannot combat, or the model used to predict these strains had been ineffective and the resulting vaccines are thus not as good as intended!

Whatever may be the reason for these vaccines becoming void, here is a list of tips that you must follow to keep your family safe from the flu!

Tip#1 Consume fresh vegetables and fruits

Make sure to incorporate more green vegetables and citrus fruits in your routine diet to ensure sufficient supply of vitamin C in the body. Vitamin C will boost the immune system, making it all the less vulnerable against the flu virus. You can also choose to season foods with the help of fresh garlic, ginger, turmeric, and lemon which are also great for an immunityboost.

Tip#2 Wash your hands thoroughly

This is very essential and you need to make sure all family members are careful with this little tip. This is probably the best defense mechanism against the flu virus. Keep your hands clean at all times. The CDC recommends washing hands for as long as you can sing the Happy Birthday song twice to get rid of all germs and bacteria. Wash hands before, after each meal, before, and after touching objects and people.

Tip#3 Sanitize all surfaces

You must also disinfect all hard surfaces within the house with the help of a disinfectingspray. Hard surfaces that need sanitizing include doorknobs, handrails, faucets, countertops, consoles, electronic devices that exchange hands more often and toys. You must also mop the floor twice on a daily basis if your kids prefer playing on it.

Tip#4 Avoid shaking hands

When you come across people, avoid shaking hands. A pat on the shoulder and even a hug will do! The flu virus is majorly transmitted bypeople through handshakes. So, avoid this friendly gesture but don’t let the other person notice for it may come off as rude behavior. A wide smile and a wave will substitute this gesture pretty well. Try and keep your hands inside the pockets to avoid contact as much as possible.

Tip#5 Avoid excessive socializing

This follows from the previous point. For the flu season, you can afford to miss a few parties and gatherings, as not only do you stand a chance of catching itbut if you have somehow caught the virus already, you are most likely to spread it. So, try to limit social gatherings and parties for the time being and stay at home!

Tip#6 Stay at a reasonable distance from sick people

You may have friends and relatives who have the flu. You need to distance yourself and your family members from contacting such people as the flu virus can spread. There is absolutely nothing wrong with exercising cautionand trying to keep your family safe. Substitute direct contact with Facetimeand Skype.

Tip#7 Avoid chronic stress

Taking too much stress will hamper your everyday sleep routine which is likely to weaken the immune system. With the flu out there, you cannot afford to have a vulnerable immune system. Try and avoid excessive chronic stress, get ample sleep and keep your immunity top-notch to combat the flu, just in case you fall prey to it too!

Tip#8 Get sufficient Vitamin D

Spend time out in the sun to give your body a much-needed dose of Vitamin D. If you don’t like spending too much time outdoors or if you’re busy with your daily work life, then use supplements. A higher intake ofVitamin D is inversely related to the likely chances of flu.

Tip#9 Don’t use anti-bacterial sanitizers and cleansers

Anti-bacterial sanitizers and cleanser only weaken the natural defenses, making the immunity muscles more likely to catch the flu virus. So, avoid these as much as you possibly can. These chemically powered anti-bacterial soaps are doing more harm than good to your skin in the long-term, so beware!

Tip#10 Stay hydrated

Lastly, the most fundamental of all tips is to keep your skin and body hydrated at all times, especially during the flu season. The more water intake, the more toxin disposal there will be, and the lesser your immunity’s vulnerability against the flu virus. So, keep a water bottle handy and pack one with your kids’ daily lunch!

By following these tips religiously, you can secure yourself and your family against the detrimental and sometimes fatal effects of the seasonal flu. Caution is definitely better than cure!