Open-space office environment, undoubtedly, generates lots of advantages. But as colds and flu season comes, all of them are outweighed by a huge disadvantage of increased risk of getting infected inside a packed office space. Yet, you can protect yourself. By making a parade of wearing your flu mask? Or by recoiling from handshaking? Well, there are some other ways, too.
Working from Home
Talk to your employer if you can do some of your job from home. That would decrease the number of “heroes” who come to work sick.
Those who are sick with cold but still go to work, please, make sure you read what a University College London study has to tell you. Researchers observed 10,000 civil servants over 10 years. They found those who never asked for a sick leave were almost twice likely to later end up in hospital with a serious heart, blood vessels and kidney problems.
Make Your Office Full of Plants
You can bring geranium into your office. Its leaves give off phytoncides that would kill germs. Rub the leaves in your palms and inhale the smell. According to scientists at the University of Texas, indoor plants in the office boost the immune system of workers and increase their performance. They compared employees in plantless offices with those working in a green environment. They found indoor plants made 82 percent of employees feel more energetic and quiet.
Eat Healthy During Flu Epidemic
Gulping down your pizza or your burger is double-senseless because you risk gaining weight and weaken your immune system at the same time. But what you need is to boost it! So, have your fresh squeezed juice at breakfast. Then, make a tea with lemon and have it with some dark chocolate at the office. Eat apples, oranges, kiwi, persimmon, natural yoghurts and nuts for your snack. Choose fish, beef liver, boiled or stewed broccoli, or a salad with germinated seeds, carrot and belly pepper for a lunch.
Wash Your Hands More Often
In a company of coughers and sneezers, you have to wash your hands more often. You would inevitably touch door handles and phones used by your sick colleagues. It doesn’t matter if you don’t put your hands to your mouth because you can get infected by just rubbing your eyes or scratching your nose. Ensure you always have some wet tissues or an antibacterial gel.
Gargle Your Throat
If your desk is right under that air conditioner, you have to gargle your throat several times during your working hours. You don’t have to make a big fuss out of making something to gargle your throat with right in the office.
Increase Humidity to Avoid Infection
The epidemics of flu and colds start with heating season. The air, dried by central heating, is what viruses need to thrive. The virus is transmitted better at low humidity of 20 to 35 percent. At the humidity levels of more than 80 percent, viral transmission almost stops. So you can buy air humidifiers and make your office more humid!
Source of the image: sxc.hu/profile/lusi.
