Back-to-School Lesson: Keep Your Children Healthy with H1N1 Prevention
News Release: August 25, 2009
Contact: Janice Osborne, Director-Communications and Marketing; American Red Cross of the Greater Lehigh Valley (610) 865-4400, ext. 262; pager (610) 830-9771

As a new school year gets under way, health officials are bracing for another wave of the H1N1 flu virus to hit the United States in the months ahead. And one of the first lessons that parents can teach their children this school year is healthy living steps.

The American Red Cross encourages parents to take a series of flu-prevention steps now to help keep their children healthy and to prepare for the possibility of a flu outbreak in schools. These include:

Teach kids proper and consistent hand washing techniques:

-- Wet hands with water and apply an amount of soap recommended by the manufacturer to hands.

-- Rub hands together vigorously for at least 20 seconds, covering all surfaces of the hands and giving added attention to fingernails and surfaces where jewelry is worn.

-- Rinse hands with water.

-- Dry thoroughly with a disposable towel.

-- Use towel to turn off faucet.

For younger children who may rush their hand washing, have them sing a short song such as "Row Row Row Your Boat," or the "Happy Birthday" song, which will ensure they wash for at least 20 seconds. Placing hand-washing reminders at a child's eye level will also help them become consistent hand washers.

Teach kids to adopt these other healthy habits in order to prevent the spread of germs:

-- Avoid sharing objects such as utensils, cups, and bottles.

-- Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze and wash your hands afterwards. If tissue-less, cough or sneeze into your elbow or upper arm, not your hands.

-- Keep your hands away from your eyes, nose and mouth to keep germs from entering your body.

Parents and teachers can reinforce kids' hand-washing habits by using interactive Web tools such as The Scrub ClubŪ, http://www.scrubclub.org/home.aspx, which offers free materials to raise awareness about the benefits of hand washing to fight germs and prevent illness. The fun, Web-based experience is complete with educational materials, music, games and cartoon "Webisodes." The educational materials were developed in a collaborative effort by the American Red Cross and NSF International (NSF), or National Sanitation Foundation.

Parents should also prepare for the potential spread of swine flu by talking with family members and loved ones about how they would be cared for if they got sick. Also ask your child's school or day care if there are plans to encourage sick children to stay home to reduce the spread of the disease.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that people with flu-like symptoms stay home - except to seek medical care or other necessities - for at least 24 hours after their fever is gone. The fever should be gone without the use of a fever-reducing medicine.

Currently the Red Cross is monitoring the developing situation and is in close contact with federal, state and local officials, including the CDC and the Department of Homeland Security.

At this time the best action the public can take is to prepare for and prevent further spread of the virus.

The American Red Cross of the Greater Lehigh Valley serves nearly 690,000 residents of Carbon, Lehigh and Northampton counties. Last year the Red Cross provided health and safety education training; Lifeline, a personal response service for seniors; and emergency relief to more than 24,000 greater Lehigh Valley residents. For more information about the American Red Cross of the Greater Lehigh Valley or volunteer opportunities, call (610) 865-4400 or visit www.redcrosslv.org.