As the spring weather moves in, and the unseasonably warm winter weather rolls out, we students are prone to getting sick. And, we all know that getting sick means falling behind in our schoolwork, missing out socially, and just feeling down. And, who wants that? So, in an attempt to stay healthy and on top of your game, here are some ideas to help out!
1. WASH YOUR HANDS. This has probably been drilled into your head since you were born, but, nonetheless, it is so important! Make sure you wash your hands before every meal to ensure you’re putting no germs in your mouth. Your hands carry the most germs so make sure to disinfect before eating! Also, always carry around a mini hand sanitizer just in case you don’t have time to wash your hands. The health center gives away free hand sanitizers, so pick up a few next time you can!
2. Disinfect your room and belongings. I know this sounds like a lot of work, but it is super easy if you have Clorox wipes and a few minutes. The number of germs in your room is disgusting. Here are a few germ facts that I hope encourage you to clean your room.
i. The average office desk is home to 20,000 germs per square inch. It harbours 400 times more germs than the toilet, which gets cleaned and disinfected regularly.
ii. Cold and flu viruses can survive for up to 3 days on surfaces such as computers, printers, phones, and other high-touch surfaces.
iii. It is estimated that the telephone ear and mouthpieces carry up to 1,400 bacteria.
So, get cleaning because your belongings are probably carrying hundreds of thousands of germs and are breeding grounds for illness!
3. Get your vitamins! When your body is missing vitamins, it won’t perform as well as it could. This includes your immune system. So make sure you’re eating balanced meals that give your body enough vitamins. If you’re worried that you’re not getting all the vitamins you need, pick up a one-a-day multivitamin!
4. Get enough sleep. We all know that our bodies don’t function as it should when we’re tired. And, we know it is easy to not get enough sleep at school. Whether you’re swamped with work or going out, it is super easy to skimp on sleeping. Just make sure that you’re in a good sleep routine. Students our age are supposed to get 7 to 9 hours of sleep. I know this sounds like an impossible amount, but you’d be surprised. Instead of putting off your work for nighttime, get your work done earlier in the day and try going to bed at midnight and waking up at 7:30, and stay in that routine. You will feel so much more energized!
5. If you do get sick, go to the health center! On Monday-Thursday, check out the health center satellite clinic walk in hours. Nurse Linda is awesome and will make sure you get the meds you need to have a quick recovery! If you need further assistance or assistance when Friday-Sunday, call the main health center to make an appointment. The doctors there are able to prescribe antibiotics and do mono or strep tests. Make sure you get the help from doctors if you need it to make sure you’re back to being the 100% you as soon as possible.
Stay healthy so that you can stay on top of your work and have a great time this spring!
If you feel yourself getting sick, head over to the C-Store and pick up Emergen-C, Zicam, Dayquil and Nyquil. It will help you power through the schoolday and sleep well at night!