Flu season is well underway and it’s looking like it could be as
severe as the 2003-2004 winter season when 48,000 Americans died
of flu related deaths. This is because this season’s dominant
strain of the flu – Influenza A N3H2 – is the same as back then.
The good news is that there are easy ways to stay healthy and
illness-free during this year’s flu season. “Hand washing
continues to dominate the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) list as one of the best protection methods
against the flu and other viruses,” says Mary Ellen Hoffmann,
owner of Maid Brigade of Milwaukee. “Proper cleaning of hard
surfaces in your kitchen and bathroom is also an important step
to staying healthy.” Cold and flu germs have the potential to
survive on hard surfaces anywhere from a few minutes to 48 hours
or more according to the Mayo Clinic. Germs generally remain
active longer on stainless steel, plastic, and similar hard
surfaces such as those found in kitchens and bathrooms than on
fabric and other soft surfaces.