Considering the new coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, on the whole, it is vital that you keep yourself, your family and home protected against this new pandemic virus. S
everal news stories about different stores running out of alcohol, hand sanitizer, masks and other basic medical supplies that can help battle the killer illness have come out.
Nevertheless, most people have forgotten that the best way to prevent the virus, particularly coronavirus, from spreading is by starting to disinfect one's home, most especially if some members of the household are coming home from crowded places such as office, school, church, and mall, among others.
Upstate Medical University chief of infectious diseases and director of global health, Dr. Stephen Thomas said, as posted on Latin Post, it's impossible to disinfect every surface that individual touches throughout the day "and the best protection against COVID-19 is through proper hand-washing." One of the best ways to do proper hand-washing is by singing Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star or Happy Birthday, which takes around 15 to 20 seconds.
4 Products to Have at Home
According to Dr. Thomas, that if one family member is showing signs and symptoms of coronavirus like respiratory infection, or the area you live in has reported a confirmed case of any resident with COVID-19, then, it is cleaning your house becomes a must, especially an area where it is often touched by everyone in the family. Two of these common areas are the bathroom faucets and kitchen counters. Therefore, health experts highly recommend that you clean those surfaces at least three times each day.
Here's the good news: The new coronavirus is among the viruses that are easy to combat and kill with the use of the proper products. They need not be expensive nor hard to find to be classified as the right products for disinfecting. Below are 4 of the best must-haves to kill COVID-19 that you might want to try:
Soap and Water
Organic chemist and American Chemical Society member Richard Sachleben advised, to scrub "like you've got sticky stuff on the surface" and it is a must to really get rid of that dirt. More so, you must scrub the surface through the use of soap and water, making sure as well, that after using the towel, it is dipped in a clean container of soapy water to ensure that any virus particles which are alive are destroyed.
Bleach
Sachleben also said that bleach effectively works against any type of virus. Relatively, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggested for the measurement to be: "1/3 cup of bleach in every 1 gallon of water, or 4 teaspoons of bleach in every 1 quart of water."
It is important to note too, that you should never mix anything to bleach but water, and always wear gloves while cleaning with bleach. There are some limitations though, in the use of bleach. Never use it on metal for a long period as bleach is acid and may be dangerous.
When using this on metal such as faucet, be sure you rinse it right away with water to prevent discoloration.
Isopropyl Alcohol
Make sure you're using the one that contains 70-percent alcohol. According to Sachleben, alcohol, in general, is effective against COVID-19 but it can lead to discoloration in plastics, too. T
Vodka
Nowadays, vodka is a hot topic on social media as it is said to be the best product to kill COVID-19 because of its alcohol content. However, some brands like Smirnoff and Tito's among others have already released a statement saying, their products do not have enough ethyl alcohol.
Theirs only have 40 percent of it, which is low, compared to the required 70 percent amount to kill the virus.
