Defending Your Home from Unwanted Intruders: Your Guide to Avoiding the Flu and COVID-19 This Holiday Season

Respiratory Health

Written by : iHealth Staff

December 5, 2024

iHealth - Defending Your Home from Unwanted Intruders: Your Guide to Avoiding the Flu and COVID-19 This Holiday Season

It’s that time of year again: twinkling lights, carolers in the distance and unfortunately, those possible unwelcome guests—the flu and COVID-19—sneaking into our homes like Harry and Marv from the holiday classic movie Home Alone. Remember how 8-year-old Kevin McCallister used clever planning and resourcefulness to turn everyday items into traps that outsmarted those bumbling burglars and brought them to justice? This holiday season, we can channel our inner Kevin by defending our homes against flu and COVID-19 with antigen tests and other smart strategies.

Step 1: Defend Your House

Before welcoming loved ones into your home, channel your inner Kevin by setting up your first line of defense: antigen tests. These quick and easy tests help detect influenza A & B and COVID-19, ensuring guests are in the clear. Encourage everyone to test before the party. Think of it as a new kind of preparation ritual—no one wants to play host to uninvited viral guests!

Step 2: Know When to Test

Let’s face it—sniffles can show up uninvited. The key is knowing when to test and when to encourage loved ones to rest. If someone is symptomatic, test right away. For peace of mind, especially in large gatherings - consider repeat testing: one before the flight and one after. Should anyone test positive, make a cozy quarantine setup with movies, pizza and soft blankets.

Step 3: Lay Down the Traps

While Kevin set burglar traps, you can set up healthy habits. Place hand sanitizers in high-traffic areas—at the entrance, near food stations and by the gift exchange. Handwashing is a powerful weapon, reducing respiratory illnesses like the flu by 20% when done properly.

Step 4: Be Merry, Masked and Mindful

Masks may not look cheerful during the holidays but for large gatherings or visits with vulnerable family members, they’re a smart choice. Wearing masks in crowded indoor settings is a considerate way to protect yourself and your loved ones.

Step 5: Level Up Your Immunity

Just like Kevin’s ingenious battle plan, a good strategy involves preparation. Vaccinations for flu and COVID-19 remain critical. Not only do they reduce the severity of illness, they also help protect vulnerable members of your family, like grandparents and babies. It’s like fortifying your house before the intruders strike.

Step 6: Stay Home… Alone

Feeling under the weather? Stay home. It’s the ultimate act of holiday kindness. Encourage guests to bow out gracefully from a visit if they have symptoms of illness or test positive for COVID-19. You can always reschedule or video call. Just ask Kevin—it’s not the worst thing to spend some time alone (as long as the pizza guy delivers.)

Endgame: Outwit, Outplay and Outsmart Those Germs!

The holidays should be about joy, connection and making memories—not about dodging the flu or COVID-19. Just like how Kevin McCallister outsmarted home invaders with creativity, you can outsmart potential viruses and keep your family safe by embracing modern healthcare tools like antigen tests.

So go ahead and enjoy that festive feast, knowing you’ve done everything possible to keep the sneaky germs at bay. As Kevin famously declared, “This is my house! I have to defend it!”

Have a happy and healthy holiday season!

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