Safe at Home?
Charity begins at home — and so does preventing the spread of illness. Rear Adm. Joyce Johnson, D.O., offers advice to help you keep your family safe.

When the weather gets cold and people spend more time indoors, especially visiting family and friends, the risk of spreading infectious diseases within the home increases. Infectious diseases are transmitted by several routes — respiratory, food-borne, oral-fecal, person-to-person, and within the household (including by pets).

Respiratory illnesses are a special problem during the winter months. These diseases, including the common cold and flu viruses, are spread by tiny droplets in the air. Coughs and sneezes can spread contaminated droplets across a room, where they might be inhaled by others. Aim coughs and sneezes toward the floor and away from other people, and cover them with tissues. Don’t let children leave dirty tissues around the house, and wash your hands after touching a used tissue.

Food-borne illnesses stem from improper cooking and food storage techniques, as well as unsanitary food preparation practices. The basic rule is keep hot foods hot and cold foods cold. Heating foods to the correct temperature kills bacteria. Likewise, when cold foods are kept cold, bacterial growth is impaired and foods remain safe for a normal shelf life. But if perishable food is allowed to sit at room temperature (or warmer, as on a buffet table), bacteria can multiply, resulting in food poisoning. Other ways to prevent food poisoning include careful food-handling techniques — such as never cutting raw meat, poultry, or fish on the same chopping board as fresh vegetables — that can help prevent transmission of salmonella and parasites. For the same reason, you should never eat raw eggs. Use pasteurized refrigerated or frozen egg products when raw eggs are called for in eggnog, Caesar salad dressing, and other recipes.

Illnesses such as hepatitis A and diarrheal diseases are spread by oral-fecal transmission. To help reduce the spread of these infections, wash your hands with soap and warm water before you cook or eat and after you use the bathroom. Also wash your hands every time you touch a potentially contaminated item — anything from raw chicken to a baby’s diaper.

A few diseases can be transmitted from person to person by blood, other body fluids, or sexual contact. Use care even when treating everyday cuts and scratches, and practice safe sex.

General cleanliness, especially in the kitchen and bathroom, can prevent transmission within the household. Insect and rodent control are important. Many pets, including dogs, can transmit intestinal parasites. Cats also transmit toxoplasmosis through their feces. Reptiles and amphibians can spread salmonella. Always wash your hands after handling pets, and keep pets’ cages out of the kitchen. Good hygiene can help prevent animals from spreading disease to people.