5 Simple Safety Tips To Stay Healthy During The Coronavirus Pandemic
How do you handle coronavirus for yourself and your family?
Brooke Cagle/unsplash In the midst of the current pandemic, here's an important fact you may not be aware of: Coronaviruses are not new. They have been around for decades.
Coronavirus was first identified in the 1960s and is the "parent" virus of both SARS and MERS.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention:
"Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses. Some cause illness in people, and others, such as canine and feline coronaviruses, only infect animals. Rarely, animal coronaviruses that infect animals have emerged to infect people and can spread between people. This is suspected to have occurred for the virus that causes COVID-19. Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) are two other examples of coronaviruses that originated from animals and then spread to people."
Coronavirus is called an "epizootic disease" and, unfortunately, it is becoming more common.
Human-induced changes, such as cultural and social customs, along with human alterations of the natural environment like deforestation and agricultural and farming practices can promote this viral host-switching.
Does the virus spread through food?
No. Coronaviruses are generally thought to be spread from person-to-person through respiratory droplets.
Currently, there is no evidence to support the transmission of COVID-19 associated with food, according to the CDC.
Can you get it from surfaces, goods, or shipments?
In general, because of poor survivability of coronaviruses on surfaces, there is likely a low risk of spread from products or packaging. Even if they are shipped over a period of days or weeks at ambient, refrigerated, or frozen temperatures.
However, it may be possible to get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching your own mouth, nose, or eyes — but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.
Fortunately, there are healthy ways to handle the coronavirus that also double as self-care habits while you're in isolation.
This virus, like all viruses, needs a host. And it mutates over time to become stronger to ensure its own survival in all hosts, human or animal.
To avoid being a virus host and make the most of this uncertain time, here are 5 easy and healthy safety tips to help protect you and your family, even while you're in quarantine.
1. Wash your hands often.
Before handling, preparing, or eating food, it is important to always wash your hands with soap and water for 20 seconds for general safety.
It's also a good practice to wash your hands throughout the day, especially after blowing your nose, coughing, sneezing, or using the bathroom.
2. Can't find hand sanitizer? Use essential oils.
People are panicking and grabbing up every product they can get their dry, raw, over-sanitized hands on. Instead of stripping your skin and panicking — go natural for your health and your home.
To give your body a break, try the natural route. For thousands of years, homeopathy and natural remedies have been passed down.
Instead of panicking, stop at your local health store and pick up some therapeutic-grade essential oils.
A few drops of therapeutic-grade essential oils in a spray bottle and you can make your own hand sanitizer. You can spritz your desk, keyboard, phone, car, yourself, and it can even be used for cleaning kitchen counters and bathrooms.
Citrus oils like lemon and orange are especially known for their antibacterial, antimicrobial, and anti-viral properties, as are lavender, rosemary, oregano, and tea tree oils.
Most essential oils are safe for children and pets, so there are no chemicals to worry about!
You can also add essential oils to a diffuser for your home and office.
Or for a real treat, put on some meditation music, draw a bath, and add a few drops into a carrier oil such as almond, avocado, or olive oil. Carrier oils protect your skin from the potency of essential oils and do a great job both killing germs and relaxing you.
Put the same mixture into a spray bottle and spritz your hands, kids, and nostrils before you leave the house. Your skin will be soft, germ-free, and smell fantastic. Good luck, germs.
Essential oils have proven mood-altering benefits. Many regular users enjoy increased concentration, alertness, and can reduce ailments like headaches and muscle aches.
If you're stressed with all the changes (or losses in your portfolio), add lavender to induce reduce stress and encourage relaxation.
3. Boost your immune system with organic food.
Humans are designed to encounter germs and viruses of all sorts, from birth through old age.
This is how our immune system learns and how we get stronger and build our resistance to all viruses. And, yes, learning is sometimes uncomfortable. Think of your last cold or flu.
Feeling achy? Have a fever? Your immune system is ramping up, and your body is doing exactly what it's supposed to be doing.
Did you just get over a cough or cold? Congratulations, your immune soldiers are ready to work for you.
Here’s the coolest part: Your immune system learns how to recognize and become naturally immune to not only the strains you experience, but it also becomes more resistant to other strains of germs, as well.
While we are born with innate immunity, we also must achieve and maintain acquired immunity — this is a lifelong process.
There is no quick fix, pill, or shot for lifelong, natural immunity. It must be learned and earned by your body and your body alone.
Every illness you’ve had since your birth, even that minor sniffle last week, was an immune system strength-training exercise.
One of the best ways to fight the virus is to stay active and eat healthily.
Reward your immune-boosting soldiers (your T-Cells and B-Cells, among others) with healthy, organic foods and rest, and keep them away from preservatives, additives, excessive alcohol, and chemicals, and they will keep fighting for you!
This is their full-time job, 24/7/365. They never stop fighting for you, so you should never stop supporting them!
Remember to wash your food well before preparing it. And while you're at it, why not try cooking up your own bone broth or stew? The natural immune-boosting properties of bone broth are well-documented.
4. Cocoon with a purpose.
Experts are recommending maintaining social distance while the pandemic is still at large.
So, if you're suffering from last-minute changes in plans due to social distancing, now's a great time to knock things off your list.
Try some new recipes, inventory your freezer, clean out your cabinets, finish that online scrapbook of your recent trip, or sort and clean out your old files!
With a lighter schedule and some downtime, now is the time to get those things done that have been on your list for a while.
5. Have fun.
Although we're living in crazy, uncertain times, all is not lost! Much of surviving hard times is how you cope. Exercise your coping skills by adding more fun to your agenda.
Instead of getting lost online, put your phone down, turn off the TV, and do some of the things you've been putting off.
- Play board games or cards
- Teach your kids to cook
- Pick up a long-forgotten craft
- Rediscover your favorite instrument and play a tune
- Plant some seeds or prepare your garden beds
- Go outside and find an offroad hiking trail
- Practice yoga or meditation
Most importantly, remember that your mood and mindset are both affected by movement. Staying positive in uncertain times means doing what you can to stay active and connect with others (virtually) with activities you love.
If you have elderly family members and friends, stay connected. Pick up the phone, or better yet, teach them how to use one of the many face-to-face meeting and video conferencing tools.
Seeing those you love (even if via digital means) is so powerful to staying connected.
As my mom always said during trying times, "This too shall pass."
Perspective is everything. And as long as we have to deal with uncertainty, one of the best methods is to do things that ground us and keep us safe and healthy.
The five simple strategies above will help you keep your thoughts, environment, and life as positive as you can during this trying time.
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