advice on cleaning surfaces to prevent cold/flu infections

[lamettarules]

I'm paranoid that DD will catch whatever it is I've got ( dry cough ,temp ,sneezing ,wild headaches )in time for A2 unit exams in January .
Googling tells me that flu germs ( or whatever they are ) survive longer than colds and more so on hard surfaces .
I'm washing my hands endlessly ,also using gel and wiping keyboard ,phone etc with those spectacle wipes .
I don't have any special wipes and figured these might be alcohol based .
Feel to run down to look in shops .
Any advice ?

Hot water and detergent ie washing up liquid, or normal surface cleaner is adequate to kill most germs.

The single most effective way to prevent the spread of airborne infection such as viruses is to catch it, bin it, kill it.

Ie catch it in a tissue (sneezing, nose wiping)

Bin it immediately.

Kill it (wash hands in hot soapy water).

You don't need alcohol wipes or antibacterial products, but they can be handy for small surfaces that can't get too wet.

I've never even tried to protect against viral infections (is it possible??? - I mean a sneeze goes everywhere!!!) beyond using tissues & just general domestic hygiene

(for D&V have always been really careful to clean loo seat, taps & bathroom door handles with anti-bacterial stuff as that seems a useful precaution but for viruses, what can you do?)

lametta, if DD is ill enough in January for her exam performance to be affected, I think you can get some sort of dispensation (with a GP cert) to cover poor performance?

What is an A2 exam?

Thorough regular hand washing is the single most important thing you can do.

Wash your hands first thing when you come home, and as often as you reasonably can when out and about. Train your DCs to do it on arrival at school.

A-Level exams are split between 2 years now - they do AS in Y12 (lower 6th) & A2 in Y13 (upper 6th), plus some are modular so they do some in January & some in June

(a bad result in January can be resat in June though)

(quite a bit easier than the bad old days )

Thank you - but don't you think bugs/germs ( what are they actually ? ) are easily inadvertently transferred to doorknobs ,key board ,phone ?
And can't they live there for a while ?
Thank you ponders ,I just don't want her to be ill ...
Think the illness is making me bonkers ,loose sense of proportion .
I'm off to bed .

If you wash your hands well and regularly, then you are unlikely to be spreading a viral load around to doorhandles etc.

Try not to worry too much

yup, wash your hands...keep them away from your face,most germs are transported in via touch to eyes/nose/mouth

and stop worrying...if it's not your cold then it'll be someone else's.

She's a big girl if she's doing A2 exams. She'll live. Even if she gets it, it wont prevent her doing well if she's done her groundwork.

I only wish A-levels had been so easy in my day:

"A-Level exams are split between 2 years now - they do AS in Y12 (lower 6th) & A2 in Y13 (upper 6th), plus some are modular so they do some in January & some in June

(a bad result in January can be resat in June though)"

That is a piss take! I had exams at the end of a two year course and one or two extended essays which were only 20% of the mark. No wonder there are so many A's now and with modules and re-sits they seem almost unfailable.

I digress though

Ok ,I'll carry on with the handwashing .
I do think that if she gets it ,it will prevent her doing well .
I literally couldn't get out of bed and have barely eaten for 4 days .
Less of the piss take .
I'm 60 and took my A levels under same set up as you describe ,so I know where you're coming from .
But she's doing sciences and it seems to me that all this module taking means that every single thing on the curriculum is examined .
And that it's just one long succession of exams - I can't remember a Christmas which wasn't dominated by the need to study .
And quite how the school finds time to squeeze in any teaching into the schedule of tests,real exams ,mocks etc I don't know .

Imo handwashing is the most important thing you can do, in addition to "normal" domestic hygiene.

Also if you/your dd have habits such as putting hands in/near mouth or face then try to stop it.

Realistically if you wash hands prior to preparing food and prior to eating this will be a big help. Change hand towels frequently and keep tap handles clean. (hot water and detergent)

Have plenty of tissues ready, to avoid the spread of snot if a cold/flu does strike.

lollipop, normal domestic hygiene includes hand-washing, surely

True, Ponders.

However I always wash my hands several times a day, but I don't necessarily do domestic/household cleaning every single day. :)

There is lots of information on this on the CDC's archive webpage from last year here.

It stresses the importance of handwashing (and not touching your face, or biting your nails) and catch it, bin it , kill it.

It also mentions the virus living on surfaces - it can live for quite a long time, but they estimate its ability to infect lasts only 2-8 hours - it's most infectious if the contamination arose from droplets (eg from a sneeze) landing directly on the surface. Wiping with ordinary household disinfectant deals with it.

I use detol spray on surfaces, says it kills flu viruses.

If you want to be paranoid, you could always worry about all the chemicals you are spraying around if you disinfect every surface with anti-bacterial and anti-viral spray...

(Oh, I'm just so helpful...).

I'm washing my hands a couple of times every hour, easy when you still have germy toddlers and one in nappies.

Don't touch eyes or bite nails. And I try not to eat with the dc's this time of year, which is probably taking it too far but it means I can eat in peace with clean hands. We had a bad run of illness last yeat and I don't want any time off work this year. We only have those nice soft ultra-balm tissues in the house so I can keep on top of runny noses without them getting sore.

I also take stupid amounts of vitamins and supplements as I have IBS so can't eat too much fruit and veg.

I don't wipe things like door handles though, I need to get in the habit of it.

im due to have a baby in 4 wks ans am already paranoid about visitors passing her around.I will be banning people from the house if have colds but expect you carry it before symptoms.Any sensible precautions i can take?and will my flu vac help baby fight it off at all?cant bf as have had mastectomy.

Keep yourself as well as possible - lots of fresh fruit /vit C and rest /
I'm sure you'll be fine .
I tried to discourage the passing round the baby thing ,people didn't seem to mind .
Good luck.

The CDC website has information on this.

Babies born to immunized mothers have lower rates of flu , so there is some protective effect, but it's not certain.

Incubation period is 1-4 days, and it'e estimatated a person is infectious for two days before onset of symptoms.

You remain infectious for up to 7 days after onset (typically 3-5 days) but it can be longer. Rule of thumb is that you are unlikely to be infectious when your temperature has returned to normal (without painkillers) and you are not coughing.

thanks ladies,ginger will you come and discourage my mil haha.How did you discourage it btw,i am already going to insist she is put down by vistors when she sleeps as dd1 was hideous due to 3 over keen big bros who didnt put her down for 3 wks before the novelty wore off and i was left with a baby who wouldnt be put down

it's just the flu, as long as you keep your hands clean and turn DC's around so they face away from you when they sneeze germs everywhere I wouldn't get too paranoid. No matter how diligently you clean your children are absolutely teeming with germs, which they wuill pass to you at every opportunity so just make sure you're getting enough rest and sleep so when the flu inevitqably hits you have the resaources to get over it quickly. Flu is not actually that dangerous to anyone without underlying medical conditions, and if you have other conditions you should be offered a flu jab.

my MIL is very much into complementary medicine. she does this with her DS and he is very rarely sick. she puts tea tree oil in handwash and in the bath and also on the top of his shirt. tea tree oil is a very powerful antibacterial (can even kill MRSA) and she believes it helps stop him getting sick as because its on the collar he is constantly breathing it in so if there is a bug in the air the tea tree will kill it before it infects him. she likes it to because its more natural than other harsh anti bac chemicals.

i started doing it with DD and she is a lot less runny nosed since i started doing it.

Handwashing is the main thing - however what will you do when DD goes back to College after Christmas and she's surrounded by people who may well have flu/other illnesses then?