Article: Follow good personal hygiene habits and use common sense to control your exposure to germs that can cause infections like the common cold. In addition to adopting healthy lifestyle habits and maintaining a healthy diet, avoiding contact with unwanted germs is the next most effective step in helping your immune system to keep you healthy. The best way to prevent catching a cold is to keep your hands clean and wash them frequently.  Always wash your hands after using the bathroom, assisting a child to use the bathroom, and changing a diaper.  Be sure your hands are clean before you begin food preparation. Wash your hands frequently as you prepare your meal. Keep surfaces as clean as possible, especially those used to prepare food.  Keep door knobs, sink handles, mats used for napping by children, and bathroom surfaces clean.  Disinfect surfaces using EPA-approved products. The websites for both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Environmental Protection Agency provide more information.  The CDC and the EPA publish information on agents that are approved as disinfectants for commercial, hospital, and residential use. Examples of residentially approved products include two familiar brand names, Lysol® products and residential cleaners made by Clorox®, among many others. If you are around someone that is sick, be aware that their germs are likely on their hands.  Pay attention to objects touched by the sick person and properly clean the objects as soon as possible to control the spread of germs.  Do not hug, shake hands with, or kiss, someone with an infection. Avoid using fabric or cloth towels when several people need to dry their hands after washing. Using hand sanitizer is a good way to clean germs from your hands without the need for a towel. Exposing your child to other children at an early age is not necessarily a bad thing, as this helps to strengthen their immune system.  To prevent some colds, the flu, and other infections, choosing classes with smaller numbers of children enrolled may help to limit your child’s exposure to an excessive amount of germs.  Breastfeeding an infant is key in boosting the child’s natural immune system, even years later.
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Take practical steps to prevent infections. Wash your hands. Clean your environment. Avoid touching contaminated objects. Use paper towels. Select daycares with smaller classes.