The prevalence of Swine Flu in the news recently seems daunting to millions of Americans. A question that many people are struggling with at the outbreak of this influenza strain is “What are the best Swine Flu prevention methods?” As I, too, have sought out this information, I wanted to inform all of you with the best ways to help prevent yourselves from getting the Swine Flu.

            What many people do not know or have not been told is that the Swine Flu is very similar to a common flu in many ways, one of which is how it spreads and how you can protect yourself against it. While there is not yet any vaccine against the Swine Flu, there are many things you can do daily to prevent spreading germs that cause respiratory infections like the flu.

- Wash your hands

o It is crucial to wash your hands with soap and water multiple times a day, especially if you have been out in public places or exposed to someone with flu symptoms. If soap and water are not available, the CDC recommends the use of an alcohol-based hand sanitizer as another effective way to kill germs.

- Avoid touching your eyes, mouth or nose

o When people who are infected don’t wash their hands or sneeze without covering their nose and mouth they spread their germs over a large area. Your hands touch all of these infected areas so if you avoid touching your eyes, mouth, or nose until you have washed or disinfected your hands you can reduce the risk of catching an illness. Most colds and cases of influenza are spread from hand to mouth/nose contact.

- Boost your immune system

o People with healthy immune systems are much more likely to be able to fight off a cold or flu if they are exposed to it. You can improve your immune system by eating immune boosting foods or taking an immune boosting supplement.

-          Don’t panic!

o       It doesn’t do anyone any good to have widespread panic.  Just educate yourself on the necessary precautions you should take and put them into practice.

-          Don’t go into hibernation

o       As long as you are being cautious, there is no reason to not go about your daily activities as usual.

-          Don’t get suckered into buying Swine Flu Treatment products

o       The U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that the only approved swine flu treatments currently are oseltamivir or zanamivir which are prescription antiviral drugs that are only used for severe cases of influenza. There is a Swine Flu vaccination now on the market, but do your homework before getting the shot; there may be harmful side-effects

An obvious, yet extremely important aspect of Swine Flu prevention is to avoid close contact with sick people. If, however, you do happen to experience flu symptoms, the CDC recommends that you “stay home for 7 days after your symptoms begin or until you have been symptom-free for 24 hours, whichever is longer.”

Some of these necessary steps to protecting yourself against the Swine Flu may seem inconvenient at times, but if we all do what we can to protect ourselves, our chances of contracting the flu will be drastically reduced. The time to protect is now, so get out there and kill those germs!