Family Health, Nourish Health Food Pharmacy
Corona Virus and What You Should Be Doing.
Mar
This article was written by Nourish Health founder & pharmacist,
Linda Keane.
Covid-19 is a new or novel virus in humans which means we have no data and very little experience as to what the virus will do, how it will mutate, how quickly we can produce a vaccine. So how can we best prepare our immune systems and what can we do to minimise our risks?
What we DO know
What we DO know is that COVID-19 is transmitted via airborne droplets from someone who is coughing or sneezing. These droplets can enter your airways as you breathe if you are in near proximity or they can land on you and surrounding surfaces. Once the surfaces are touched the virus can transfer from your hands to your mouth or nose and allow for infection.
3 ways to reduce risks
1. Geographical – don’t go where you could potentially pick up the virus
- Reconsider travel to high risk areas including countries where the disease is rapidly spreading. China, Iran, Italy, South Korea and possibly Bali & Japan. Check smarttraveller.com.au for Australian Government warnings regarding travel destinations.
- Avoid large crowds where people are coming from different areas, returning from overseas
- Avoid non-essential contact with people if you or they are unwell. Especially important if you have chronic health conditions, are elderly or are immune compromised.
2. Personal hygiene – let’s remember the basic principles of hygiene and infection control.
- Avoid touching your nose, face and eyes as this is a potential route of infection
- Cough or sneeze into your elbow to avoid virus spreading to your hands.
- Wash your hands before you eat, and after you go to the toilet.
- Avoid touching door handles and surfaces that other people have touched.
- Drink out of your own cups.
- Learn how to wash your hands correctly. You’d need to sing Happy Birthday to yourself-Twice! To ensure good washing.
- Soap and water are as good as hand sanitiser, if you wash thoroughly.
- Hand sanitiser is best kept for the times you don’t have soap and water at hand.
3. Personal health
Like any good army you need to prepare your body for a potential upcoming battle. Our bodies have an amazing defence system, so let’s give it the right environment and nutrients to work efficiently and optimally to fight infections and viruses.
We need to remember that 80% of infected individuals suffer only a mild infection. Those most at risk are those that have chronic health conditions, especially breathing related and the elderly.
We can all reduce the toxins and stresses that we make our bodies suffer through and be the healthiest self we can.
- Get enough sleep
- Eat a healthy and varied diet including plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables
- Reduce your alcohol intake
- Continue with your regular exercise without putting your body through excessively stressful conditions.
- Reduce where possible the external stresses in your life. Meditate, be grateful, be mindful.
- Maintain your connections with friends and family and if you feel anxious, use your support network.
- Take a Probiotic or general immune boosting formula.
More questions? Talk to the team at NOURISH
If you are looking for some advice or if you are looking to boost your own body defenses to prevent an infection. Talk to us.
- We can supply you hand sanitiser, using our own made in store, less toxic ‘propylene glycol free’ formula.
- We can recommend a good all-round multivitamin to address any nutritional deficiencies you may have with an imperfect diet.
- We can recommend an immune boosting formula to improve your general first line nonspecific immunity.
- We can recommend formulas specific to people who are travelling to help boost their defences quickly.
At this point of time, there is no need for panic. Just sensible precautions and preparations.
As a good Boy Scout would say. “always be prepared”
