With cases of Covid-19 on the rise, and flu season just around the corner, it’s a good time to make sure you’re confident about traveling safely: reducing the chance that you will be infected or pass on an infection while you’re traveling, whether it’s to work or for leisure.
Flu Season
Flu is a seasonal virus: some weather makes it very difficult for the virus to survive and transmit, while other conditions help to keep it alive longer and make it more likely you’ll pick it up. Most flu viruses survive far better when the weather is cooler and humidity is lower - broadly speaking, during the winter. We don’t yet know if Covid-19 will follow a similar pattern, but the rise in the risk of flu is reason enough to make sure you’re taking care.
Immunization
The most important step you can take is to get your flu vaccine. Every year, a large proportion of the population can claim a free vaccine against the most widespread flu viruses from the NHS. If you’re over 65, pregnant, suffering from a long term health condition or are otherwise especially vulnerable to flu, or you live with or care for someone in a vulnerable category, you can get your jab for free!
If you don’t qualify but are still concerned, you can pay for a vaccine through many highstreet chemists, reducing the risk you will be infected and go on to infect other people.
Reducing Travel
If you’re worried about the risk of flu, let alone the Covid-19 epidemic, it’s well worth looking at ways you can reduce your travel. Your manager may well be more open than usual to your working from home - at least sometimes - or starting and finishing at different times to help you travel at quieter times of the day.
It’s also worth considering alternative routes: could you walk part or all of the way? Take a quieter train even if it’s less convenient than the crowded bus? You could also explore the possibility of changing where and how you meet friends so it’s possible to walk to a mutually convenient location.
Safety on the Train
When you do have to travel, there are some simple but important steps you can take to improve your safety. Sanitising your hands regularly with alcohol gel is a good way to kill viruses that you pick up through physical contact with seats, handrails, or other passengers, meaning you can’t infect yourself by bringing your hand to your face or other people by leaving traces of the virus on other surfaces.
It’s worth keeping a stock of flu protection masks in your house, ready by the door for when you’re traveling. These go a step beyond the fabric masks many of us are using: rather than merely help to prevent the wearer spreading infectious droplets from their mouth and nose, these masks help to filter infectious droplets out of the air you breathe, protecting you from infection, not just the others around you.
Your pictures are amazing!I love the way you focused on the whole view and not just on your beauty. This post is really helpful especially for those who are planning on traveling during this pandemic
ReplyDeleteThank you Aaliziyah!
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