What are daily habits for a safer and virus-free home?
- Practice Proper Food Safety Handling
- Wipe Down High-Touch Areas
- Maintain Adequate Home Security
- Clean As You Go In The Kitchen
- Sweep Your Floors
- Avoid Clutter
- Parental Supervision
When we’re inside the comfort of our own homes, it can be easy to ignore safety hazards. However, you can never be too safe, especially in these times where we’re in the face of a pandemic. The last thing you want is to find out that it is too late to do something about a dangerous situation. The good news is that we have put together this list of daily habits for safer homes that will help you identify and be aware of hazards. This way, you can keep your household clean, safe, and virus-free.
Practice Proper Food Safety Handling
Proper food handling is an essential hygienic measure. To keep yourself and your family healthy, you must start by assuring that the food you intake brings you no harm. The risk here relies on the potential harm of receiving contaminated food packages.
As a precautionary measure, food packages delivered on doorsteps or bought from grocery stores must immediately be disinfected. Fruits and vegetables must be washed thoroughly under water before cooking them well. Canned goods, on the other hand, should be stored in a well-sanitized place after disinfection. Empty grocery bags and packages must go directly to trash bins. Counters should also be regularly disinfected.
Wipe Down High-Touch Areas
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines high-touch areas as surfaces frequently touched by people throughout the day in a particular environment. This could cause transmission of infection if it was contaminated with bodily fluids or if it was in contact with another contaminated person or object.
For a household, the disinfection of commonly-touched surfaces is an important precaution. High-touch areas may vary but mostly include:
- Electronics (cellphone, computer, remote controls)
- Doorknobs
- Refrigerator handles
- Light switches
- Chairs
- Table surfaces
- Faucets
- Kitchen and bathroom counters
- Toilets
- Drawer handles
- Toys
Cleaning these areas and objects may start with dusting them off, wiping them with soap and water, and applying a disinfectant.
Maintain Adequate Home Security
As much as possible, implement strict home rules to prevent the household’s risk of infection. Refrain from receiving any guests for they may bring potential viruses varying from their travel history. More so, strangers such as delivery guys must not be let in for utmost security. If it could not be helped, provide disinfection for anyone who enters your house.
In current times that COVID-19 is surging, home security measures should be enhanced. Even family members must follow certain precautions. When going out, refrain from wearing too much down the arms such as watches and bracelets. Anything brought outside such as car keys, wallets, or phones must be disinfected. When going home, leave any footwear outside that may have been exposed to bodily fluids. Members entering from a high-risk environment must remove their clothes immediately, put it straight to the washer, and take a shower.
Clean-As-You-Go In The Kitchen
The kitchen, where food is prepared, consumed and stored, is more susceptible to bacterial growth and fecal contamination than most places in the entire house. An NSF International Household Germ Study found that bacteria are most commonly formed on 45% of kitchen sinks.
Proper sanitation in the kitchen ensures that the food we intake is clean and safe, giving us better immunity to potential viruses. Kitchen counters should always be wiped clean to avoid food contamination. Wipe spilled ingredients on the countertop, throw away food waste, and clean the tools that have been used. Always make sure that there are no dirty dishes left on the sink as bacteria can live in it for up to four days. This habit is crucial in fighting off any unforeseeable infection and diseases.
Sweep Your Floors
Dirt build-up on floors has more potential harm than we may expect. As this can accumulate from people leaving the house, floors can be sources of viral particles. Since coronaviruses last on surfaces for hours under low temperatures, tiled floors or even rugs are susceptible to it.
If a contaminated guest enters the house and coughs or sneezes, these bodily fluids can linger on the floor and can be a source of cross-contamination. It is important not to leave behind the floor surfaces when it comes to regular sanitation or disinfection. Regularly sweeping the floor and wiping it with a common house disinfectant eliminates the risk of viruses.
Avoid Clutter
Bedrooms and bathrooms are common places for all sorts of clutter. From cosmetics, unused grooming products, and even linen clutter in the closet. Anything that lies around in an untidy manner can be sources of a higher germ scale. Even wet laundry left in the machine causes germs to build up.
If our hands, which are the most common sources of pathogens, come in contact with any of these, we are more likely to acquire a respiratory infection. Hence, it is a good preventive measure that our living environments are tidy. Always declutter areas in the house. Wipe dirty items with disinfectant wipes, especially if they’ve been exposed around dirty surfaces for too long. When disinfecting, using alcohol with 60-70% isopropyl is the most effective way to fight coronaviruses.
Parental Supervision
Lastly, parents must administer overall regulations in the household. Children whose immune systems are still developing are more prone to the common cold and flu viruses. They are also more susceptible to SARS and coronaviruses.
Parents must see to it that all members of the household practice hand-washing, disinfection, proper hygiene, and all necessary measures to prevent infection. Even the practice of a proper diet to improve one’s immune system requires parental intervention and proper supervision. In turn, these daily habits are utilized and maintained, leading to a healthier, virus-free home.
Key Takeaway
While we reside indoors and consider our homes safe spaces, we must ensure that the place is healthy and risk-free. Since viruses can survive on the surfaces of our households, we recommend engaging in these habits for safer homes that will keep your home safe and virus-free.
