My Purse Makes Me Sick

We carry them around filled with important stuff. Big ones, small ones, over the shoulder and perched on our arms. All the essentials are “neatly” packed inside. My favorite is Vera. I love my Vera because it was a birthday gift from my wonderful daughter. Vera never gets placed anywhere but in my lap when I’m not carrying her around. She never gets carelessly tossed or put down on the floor. When I went to rainy football games, Vera was the one who was covered with my raincoat and umbrella, even when it meant I would end up getting wet instead. But, there are times when Vera stays home. I refuse to take her to work and shove her inside a crowded, smelly locker that I’m forced to share with some unknown co-worker. In that case, I opt for one of my other, cheaper purses. That’s when my purse can end up making me sick.

When we go into public restrooms, many times there are no hooks in the stalls to hang our purses. So, aside from balancing your purse on your lap while hovering over the toilet seat (for fear of catching something) we end up placing our purse on the floor beside us. As disgusting as it sounds, fecal matter does exist on public restroom floors, so it stands to reason you’re transferring this bacteria-infested poop onto the bottom of your purse. Ewww. Viruses that cause the common cold, diarrhea and other contagious germs are rampant in any public area. Even when you eat in a restaurant or fast food place you better think twice before placing your purse on the table. Germs, bacteria and viruses thrive there as well.

So, you’re out for a day of shopping and you need your purse so what do you do? Stuff everything in your pockets instead? Cover your purse in plastic? Carry it and expect that as long as you don’t chew on your purse you’re safe? Unfortunately, we touch our purses often and, chances are you’ll also end up touching your face at some point. The best defense is the same as avoiding any other virus, bacteria or germ. Wash your hands often. Use antibacterial soap or lotion. If your purse is washable then wash it on a regular basis. If it’s leather or suede use a good, safe cleaner. As long as it’s safe for the purse, spray it with an anti-bacterial spray. We spend alot of money on our purses and we love to show them off. But don’t let them be the cause of your next cold or stomach bug.

Why Do You Think They Call It The Common Cold?

Nasal sprays, zinc lozenges, mega-doses of Vitamin C, chicken soup. They’re all thought to be cures for the common cold. But do they work? The truth is none of these “remedies” have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration as being effective at preventing or curing colds. The best way to keep acute viral nasopharyngitis or acute coryza, otherwise known as the common cold, at bay is the same as it always has been. Avoid infected people, avoid touching your mouth and face and wash your hands. And speaking of washing your hands, forget thinking you must only use anti-bacterial soaps because they don’t have any more effect on the cold virus as generic hand soaps have, hence the name “anti-bacterial”. It’s purely the mechanical process of hand-washing that removes the cold virus particles. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers don’t have any effect on the common cold virus either. The common cold and cold weather do not go hand-in-hand. With the cold weather comes the necessity of being inside, often with many other people, thus providing the opportunity for a higher rate of exposure to the virus.

Most common colds are caused by rhinoviruses. There are no immunizations to prevent the common cold because it’s a viral infection and not a bacterial infection. This also means there are no antibiotics either. The now common practice of automatically prescribing antibiotics just leads to more drug resistant infections. It becomes an entirely different matter when a cold progresses to something more serious such as bronchitis, sinusitis, pneumonia and other opportunistic coinfections and superinfections because those can be treated with antibiotics.

Save your money and don’t buy those nasal sprays meant to prevent colds. They’re just not going to work. If you do get a cold there are things you can do to help alleviate the symptoms. Decongestants, pain relievers and cough medicines are all effective ways to help make a cold a little more tolerable. I, myself, do not use nasal decongestants. I find they work for awhile, but when they wear off my nasal passages are even more swollen than before, causing a need for more nasal decongestant and so on. Steam inhalation has also been proven to be ineffective and can also be dangerous. There have been reports of children being badly burned when inhaling steam to alleviate cold symptoms.

Most colds last about seven days and, while they can be a discomfort, most times you just have to wait it out. And have you ever wondered why it seems that just when you’re getting over a cold you seem to get it right back? It’s actually not the “same” cold. The common cold virus mutates frequently during reproduction resulting in constantly changing virus strains. Colds have been around since ancient Egyptian times so chances are it’s not going anywhere. It’s just a nuisance we’re going to have to continue to live with.