Keep a disinfectant spray in your car, remove your shoes at the door and more.
All of us need to do what we can to stay healthy. The COVID-19 pandemic will not be with us forever but for the time being, washing your hands each time you come home and disinfecting all the surfaces in your home throughout the course of each day is key to helping stop the spread of COVID-19. Together we can overcome this disease.
In order to ensure you do not bring the virus into your home after visiting the grocery store or the drug store, or after doing some other essential chore like picking up an order of takeout food, Scottie Andrew of CNN has put together a check list of tips to follow, and we have added in some of our own. Check it out.
Have a Designated Errand-Runner
Choose one person in your household to be the one who plays fetch. Let them be the one to get groceries, and other essentials. This helps to organize how often your household is being exposed to the virus, if you are all working from home now. Try to stock up on groceries and pharmacy needs in large amounts so that you can last about two weeks b7etween trips.
Keep a Bottle of Disinfectant Spray and Paper Towels in the Car
In addition to other disinfecting measures, if you do not have access to disinfectant wipes, keep a bottle of approved disinfectant spray in your car, along with a roll of paper towels. This way you can wipe down your grocery cart before handling it.
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You can also immediately spray your hands upon finishing your shopping and entering the car. You can also spray down the steering wheel, your seat belt and your dash immediately once you are done. Having these things on-hand will ensure you do not forget to use them.
Wash and Disinfect Again and Again
Of course, wash your hands with soap, scrubbing for twenty seconds, each time you come back home. Also do so often throughout the day. You may have the virus and not know it. Be sure to disinfect all common surfaces multiple times per day. This includes doorknobs, light switches and more. Check out these instructions provided by the CDC
Limit Takeout and Buy Groceries in Bulk
The CDC states there is no evidence to prove that the coronavirus can be transmitted through food. This is great. So, if the chef making your sauce is infected and she sneezes into it, you should be OK.
That being said, it is obviously better to limit your interactions with other people outside your family in order to limit your exposure to the coronavirus. Every time you order food, you are “exposing yourself” to others. You come into contact with the people at the restaurant who need to handle the containers your food comes in, the driver who delivers it, and potentially the hands of other previous customers, if you need to touch the payment machine in order to pay.
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We are not saying never get takeout. Go easy on it, though. Try to keep track of how often you are really getting it. If it amounts to every few days, think of cutting back to stay safe.
In order to limit your trips to the grocery store, that haven of possible infestation, buy your groceries in the largest quantities you can afford. Wash and disinfect your hands, body and groceries once you are home.
Pay Online
If and when you do order something, try to pay for it in advance, online. This way you do not have to handle that potentially grimy, virus-infected machine.
No Guests, Ever
It cannot be said often enough: do not have anyone over to visit. And do not go anywhere. This includes not seeing your sister who does not live with you, your aunts and uncles, your cousins and your best friends. This is a lonely time but it is necessary that we all self-isolate in order to get a grip on the virus. No guests, ever, no matter who you are.
Super-Wash Your Laundry
You may want to save dollars off your energy bill. Now is not the time to wash in cold water, however, if you can avoid it. Wash your clothing in hot water, and avoid shaking any laundry out before placing it in the machine. If you are by any chance infected, this will spray the virus around your home, or the laundromat. Crumple your shirt and pants and place it in the machine.
Take Your Shoes Off
You may be accustomed to wearing your shoes inside your home. Try to break that habit.
According to infectious disease expert Mary E. Schmidt talking to the New York Post, the coronavirus could potentially live on your shoes for up to five days. It is not a likely method of transmission, getting the virus from your shoes, but if we are covering all our bases, you would be best to take them off at the door and not track your soles all throughout your house, Schmidt says. Stay safe.
