Keep fit, have fun

Hal Johnson and Joanne McLeod were on to something with their commericals

With flu season upon us, proper health practices are a necessity. It’s nice to see the university cleaning staff doing their part in sanitizing and cleaning things like handles, rails and faucets but sometimes that just isn’t good enough. It comes down to the efforts of the thousands of students to do their part to keep our school as germ and bacteria free as we can.

The first thing that you should all do is wash your hands after you use the washrooms. This may seem like common sense, but I have encountered a handful of people while in the washroom who have not done this.

I don’t care if you don’t think you need to wash your hands because all you think you touched was the toilet paper. Think about all the other things you have had contact with throughout the day; your cell phone, your pens, door handles, used textbooks, the list goes on.

I know I am not the only one who does not want to be touching the door handle after you just wiped your soiled extremities all over it. Be courteous, because that is the foundation of defending other people from the flu. So wash your hands.

Secondly, cover your mouth when you cough. Once again, another fundamental but valuable tactic in preventing the spread of germs. I don’t need you sitting behind me in class, hacking up a storm, and spitting all over the back of my head. And cover your mouth with your elbow. Remember rule number one about how dirty your hands are? If you are using your hands to cover your cough please don’t be the first one to run out of class smearing your throat bugs all over the door for the rest of your classmates to put their hands on.

Another good idea is to carry around hand sanitizer. One little dab can kill up to 99 per cent of the bacteria that have been infesting on your hands. One little container of it is about one dollar at a drug store, and that could last you until the end of the semester. It’s a great investment even on a student budget. Because, once you become sick, having to buy 6 boxes of Nyquil can really put a dint in your wallet.

One last piece of advice, stay healthy. Basic stuff here, like eating right, getting lots of sleep, drinking lots of fluids.

With winter season approaching, I know we all wish we could sit around the fire, eating smores and drinking hot chocolate every day, but remember to include time to stay active. Having an active lifestyle will help you keep those flu bugs away.

Not to mention, with this being the season of Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners, working out can help you keep that unfortunate winter weight off, which is always a bonus.   

Preventing the flu can be easy if you follow simple steps to keep yourself healthy and germ free.

So, in the words of Hal Johnson and Joanne McLeod: Keep Fit and Have Fun. Oh yeah, Body Break!   

Paige Kreutzwieser
Contributor