Transcripts

Dr. Bob Bogosian:
Most people think that it comes through the air when people sneeze in your face. And that's pretty rare if you think about it.

Dr. Bob Bogosian, Medical Director of the New England Institute for Infection & Immunity…

We know that eighty-five percent of these infections you pick up with your hands. And then you touch your mouth, nose, eyes and ears when you do that, you introduce bacteria and viruses into your body that can cause you to become sick. And that's generally what happens - you pick up these viruses from paper money, from ATM keypads, from shopping carts and that type of thing.

So frequent hand washing is the key. And of course being careful what it is you touch in the first place. And if you're planning to fly…

Don't ever use the pillows and blankets; they're usually used by people who are sick so they're loaded with organisms to begin with - and they usually end up on the floor and people are tracking stuff out of the restrooms, down the aisles and into their seat. So whatever's in the restroom is probably going to be on that blanket and pillow.

And have you ever wondered why it is that the flu seems to show up about the same time every year?

The flu virus starts out in China and it travels across China into Russia and then it comes across the Bering Strait into Alaska and we start seeing our first cases in June in Alaska. And then what it is that happens is it starts traveling through Canada to the West Coast and from West to East. So you'll see these organisms more in the wintertime than you do in the summertime.

You can link to Dr. Bob's website from ours: somethingyoushouldknow.net - I'm Mike Carruthers and that's Something You Should Know.