How to keep the home safe from COVID-19, CDC

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a clean household is one way to help keep COVID-19 at bay. Americans should follow the below advice:

  • Clean hands at the door and at regular intervals
  • Create habits and reminders to avoid touching their face and cover coughs and sneezes
  • Disinfect surfaces like doorknobs, tables, and handrails regularly
  • Increase ventilation by opening windows or adjusting the air conditioning

For those with underlying health conditions, COVID-19 can be more severe, so protecting the vulnerable at home is imperative safe. These conditions could include, but are not limited to, heart, lung, kidney disease, diabetes and those that suppress the immune system. The elderly are also more at risk.

iStock Family Hand Washing
Stock image: Keeping the home clean can help delay or prevent the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19).ISTOCK

Advice from the CDC is as follows:

  • Have healthy people in the household conduct themselves as if they were a significant risk to the person with underlying conditions. For example, wash hands frequently before interacting with the person, such as by feeding or caring for the person
  • If possible, provide a protected space for vulnerable household members
  • Ensure all utensils and surfaces are cleaned regularly

For households with sick family members, taking extra precautions can help delay or prevent the spread of the virus.

If there is a sick person in the home, do the following:
  • Give sick members their own room if possible, and keep the door closed
  • Have only one family member care for them
  • Consider providing additional protections or more intensive care for household members over 65 years old or with underlying conditions

What is COVID-19?

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COVID-19, as it is officially named by the World Health Organization (WHO), is a novel coronavirus that has not been previously identified—according to the CDC, coronaviruses that commonly circulate among humans cause mild illness, like the common cold. The virus was first identified in Wuhan, China.

From already reported illnesses, we know that patients suffer from mild symptoms through to severe illness. There have been numerous deaths confirmed as resulting from COVID-19. Symptoms to watch out for, according to CDC, include:

  • Fever
  • Cough
  • Shortness of breath

The symptoms might appear two to 14 days after exposure to the virus.