Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Staying Health='s Quality Of Life

We all know someone who has sustained a fall that involved broken bones. Depending on the injury, that person's lifestyle can change from inconvenienced to drastically limited. Often the fall is due to osteoporosis where first the bone breaks and then causes the fall.Osteoporosis, a drastic thinning of the bone, can be prevented with exercise, Vitamin D, and Calcium supplements.
Colds, Flus, and Pneumonias can incapacitate people for brief periods or for extended times. The elderly are at risk and unfortunately can succumb to a fatal outcome.
These bouts with illness can be avoided by preventing cross-contamination when handling food and using restrooms.Hands free dispensers are used in restrooms and kitchens for this purpose.
Missed school days and workdays cost money. Food recalls due to contamination are also costly. Medical and hospital bills can be expensive. Home-bound patients miss social events. Add to this pain and suffering and you have a good case for prevention. So staying healthy definitely promotes a good quality of life.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Keyboards Don't Have To Be Germ Sources

According to the BBC News, workplaces harbor nearly 400 times as many microbes than lavatories. Sounds shocking, but true. Keyboards are big offenders because they hardly ever
are cleaned let alone disinfected. Cold and flu viruses can survive on surfaces for up to 72 hours. Foodspillls and various crumbs can support mini eco-systems of bacteria on keyboards.
Often there is more than one user/worker on a keyboard. This promotes cross-contamination that can transfer germs that cause illness. This can be expensive when it leads to employee sick days. Office equiptment can be regularily disinfected to prevent this spread of microbes. Disinfectant wipes and washable keyboards are available.

Friday, January 23, 2009

Hands And Germs

Today on the Regis and Kelly Show, Dr. Greg Yapalater demonstrated the proper way to wash one's hands in order to remove germs. According to the doctor, one should use warm water, wash for 20 seconds, and dry with a paper towel instead of cloth which retains moisture.

Next his quiz revealed these facts:

*Among personal items, lipstick contains the most germs.

*Germs enter the body mainly through the mouth.

*Women's hands have more germs than men's hands.

*The occupation that exposes one to the most germs is teaching.

*33% of Americans leave the restroom without washing their hands.

The Center For Disease Control states that simple handwashing can prevent illness.

Hands free soap and towel dispensers along with automatic faucets avoid germs.