2008 Woodie Awards
Drinking lots of fluids, not sharing food helps prevent sickness
By Amber Wilhelm
Rocket Contributor
Issue date: 9/14/07 Section: Focus
She cracks her eyelids open at the sound of her alarm clock. It sounds distant, like there is cotton in her ears. Sinuses throbbing, she turns off the alarm and immediately the coughing fit begins.
It's not cold season yet, but here she is with the sniffles. How does this happen?
The common cold is an infection caused by viruses, which are the result of the spread of germs from hand to mouth.
Stuffy nose, sneezing, watery eyes, cough, low grade fever (one that is less than 101 degrees) and feeling run down are all signs that indicate the body is fighting off an infection, which is what cold symptoms are a result of.
However, the best way to beat a cold is to prevent it from happening in the first place.
"The most important three words are, 'wash your hands,'" said Kristina Benkeser Chiprean, director of Student Health Services.
Chiprean, a nurse practitioner, has been working at the McLachlan Student Health Center since 1992.
Chiprean said a little extra effort in hand washing is all it takes to more effectively stop the spread of virus causing germs.
She said just running hands under water and a quick pat drying is not enough to kill germs.
Use soap and warm water, and lather hands "long enough to sing the 'Happy Birthday' song, or your ABCs twice," Chiprean said. Drying hands thoroughly is also important to prevent chapping and cracking of the skin.
"It's stuff you learned on Sesame Street, but most people still don't do it," Chiprean said. "Wash your hands after you go to the restroom, before you eat, after you blow your nose and after any major kootie contact."
Chiprean said that examples of "kootie contact" include shaking hands or touching objects used by many people, like in a computer lab.
Any time there is mouth and hand contact, like smoking and eating, hands should be washed.
Chiprean also said to be wary of touching eyes with dirty hands because the eyes are susceptible to infection. Chiprean said if there is no soap and water available, hand sanitizer is the second-best germ killer. She said hand sanitizer is a good compliment to hand washing, but it is not a replacement.
It's not cold season yet, but here she is with the sniffles. How does this happen?
The common cold is an infection caused by viruses, which are the result of the spread of germs from hand to mouth.
Stuffy nose, sneezing, watery eyes, cough, low grade fever (one that is less than 101 degrees) and feeling run down are all signs that indicate the body is fighting off an infection, which is what cold symptoms are a result of.
However, the best way to beat a cold is to prevent it from happening in the first place.
"The most important three words are, 'wash your hands,'" said Kristina Benkeser Chiprean, director of Student Health Services.
Chiprean, a nurse practitioner, has been working at the McLachlan Student Health Center since 1992.
Chiprean said a little extra effort in hand washing is all it takes to more effectively stop the spread of virus causing germs.
She said just running hands under water and a quick pat drying is not enough to kill germs.
Use soap and warm water, and lather hands "long enough to sing the 'Happy Birthday' song, or your ABCs twice," Chiprean said. Drying hands thoroughly is also important to prevent chapping and cracking of the skin.
"It's stuff you learned on Sesame Street, but most people still don't do it," Chiprean said. "Wash your hands after you go to the restroom, before you eat, after you blow your nose and after any major kootie contact."
Chiprean said that examples of "kootie contact" include shaking hands or touching objects used by many people, like in a computer lab.
Any time there is mouth and hand contact, like smoking and eating, hands should be washed.
Chiprean also said to be wary of touching eyes with dirty hands because the eyes are susceptible to infection. Chiprean said if there is no soap and water available, hand sanitizer is the second-best germ killer. She said hand sanitizer is a good compliment to hand washing, but it is not a replacement.
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