we do not have strong grounds yet for curing the attacked. The creation of vaccines and a cure requires large amounts of data and extensive research. The current data have suggested a few things we could do to protect ourselves from the virus. Almost all the measures recommended by the scientific community are experiencing quick adaptation by the masses. Humans are starting to rely on all possible ways to keep themselves protected.
Of the most approved and admired methods, one is keeping yourself clean. The mental disturbances, however, are stronger than the physical actions. Say someone decides to use his laptop to read some of the odyssey blogs. Suddenly he realizes that the keyboard might be contaminated. He goes to the bathroom to wash his hands. Another thought pops up in his mind. What if the doorknob was infected? What about the tap? And this vicious cycle just keeps getting worse.
So what do you clean? What you don’t?
Work smarter
The latest data suggests the spread of the coronavirus. It can be spread via hand-hand contact and later touching your face, ears, etc. Infected droplets when a person coughs or sneezes also carry quite a potency. The latest studies suggest that it can also infect a person when the infected breaths too near or when he talks too loud.
In that context, as long as you’re staying in the house; you don’t need to do a thorough cleaning. Just a little wiping and rubbing will do for a couple of hours or so.
If you have a visitor during isolation, which you shouldn’t. Consider doing a very thorough cleaning of all the places he/she steps into. If you decide to go out of yourself, you should use gloves and masks. This way you can discard the disposables before entering the house. After entering the house, clean yourself thoroughly.
If you live alone, that’s good. You don’t need to worry much about people going out or coming in. If you live in a house with more than one person, be precautious. Keep an eye on who goes out and who comes in. Insist on the usage of disposable, masks and gloves, for those who go out. Direct the thorough cleaning of all who step inside. Also clean everything they touch after stepping inside. This can include doorknobs, doors, switches… anything… everything.
However, if you do feel that you’ve contacted the virus. Keep yourself in isolation for at least 2 weeks. So that you do not contaminate your surroundings too much. Restricting the spread of viruses is easier if you live alone though. when with more people in a house/apartment, it’s best you restrict your movements at most. If no symptoms show up, great. You can continue to live normally quarantined. If symptoms show up, seek medical attention immediately.
Don’t drain your supplies
For all we know, the virus keeps tracing a positive graph. So it’s best to only clean when there is a visitor, or you become a guest to your own house after a journey outside. Vigorous cleaning every hour brings great chances of you draining yourself of cleaning supplies. Considering most of the stores have run out of stock. You should work smarter.
Also, consider using more of an alcohol-based sanitizer instead of a non-alcohol based sanitizer. The SARS-COVID 19 has a protein coat. As long as the protein coat remains intact, they are virulent. Non-alcoholic sanitizers don’t do a great job of disrupting the protein coat.
In short
- Clean thoroughly only when you have visitors, or when you come back from somewhere.
- Always wear mask and gloves before going out. This way there are fewer chances of you contacting the virus. hence fewer chances of going on a vigorous cleaning rampage.
- Discard all the disposables before entering your house, so you don’t infect your surrounding accidentally
- Do a slight cleaning every 3 – 4 hours. Things that are used most are more preferable for cleaning. Slight rubbing and wiping will do.
- Soaps don’t work on materials. Soaps function only when they produce foam. That does not happen when applied to doorknobs.
- Keep your kitchen and sink clean and practice extreme isolation if you feel like you’ve been contacted.