ASKDOCTORANCA

News flash: Mom was wrong!
When she told you to cover your mouth when you cough, she
thought she was telling you how to keep your virus from
spreading. In fact, coughing or sneezing into a bare hand is
one of the worst thing you can do.
After all, you use your hands for everything: opening
doors, answering phones, holding railings. Cough or sneeze
into your hand without a tissue and millions of
disease-causing germs are just waiting to get passed along.
When a tissue isn’t handy, the best place to cough or
sneeze is into the fabric of your sleeve. Lots of folks find
it easiest to cough into the crook of their arm, which is
why it’s sometimes known as Dracula cough.
Problem is, it took mom years to train you to cover your
mouth with your hand – it’ll take a big effort to change
those old habits. You can do it, though. And if you slip up
and use your hand, just wash up as soon as possible.
It won’t be as hard for your kids. Teach them from the
start about the sleeve cough and you’ll be doing your bit
to stop the spread of viruses.