Sunday, September 17, 2006

Sunday Scribblings

Well, we have colds again. Usually #1 gets it first and then spreads it around to the rest of us. Her immune system seems pretty fragile. So, I googled it, and here is what I found:

There is no evidence that you can get a cold from exposure to cold weather or from getting chilled or overheated. Research does suggest, however, that psychological stress and allergies that affect your nose or throat may have an impact on your chances of catching a cold. (I found this interesting, since #1 feels stressed a lot, and I’ve been wondering if she has allergies like me.)

The germs are spread through the droplets that come from sneezing and coughing and ending up on desks, doorknobs, light switches, keyboards and your mouse—pretty much anything that has a surface that we touch regularly. The germs can live on these surfaces for up to 2 to 3 hours. If you come into contact with these germs and then touch your eyes, nose or mouth before we wash your hands, then whamo! You’ve been infected.

So, the suggested practice is to cover your mouth and nose when sneezing or coughing, and wash your hands regularly. Those alcohol-based products made for washing your hand without water work too.

more google magic here.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I have found answers to many of life's difficult questions on google as well. I live by that search engine. Good stuff. Hope you guys feel better soon.

Anonymous said...

I hate that feeling - knowing you're in line for a big cold. She needs echinacea!!!

LC

Emma Jo said...

We have too many little cousins here! (I mean that in the nicest way possible!) One cold makes it's rounds for weeks before moving on to torment other poor families. We just keep passing the same crud around and around and around and around....

Abby said...

My husband's middle name is google. It's a regular verb for us. I echo Emily's comment--how are we supposed to stay away? It's sort of inevitable, and man have we got it bad!

MiandMiksmom said...

Oh, I needed this. My life as a preschool teacher has made me very aware of germs!!!! My girls have colds right now too. Thank goodness for soap and Lysol!