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Checklist for Cleaning Up the Wrath of a Stomach Flu

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Take a wild guess from the title of this post on what has been going on at my house this week. Did you say “stomach flu”? Bingo! It has not been a fun week for me dealing with the kids taking turns passing a stomach bug around. Luckily, my husband and I have been spared (so far).

I have a mental list of everything I need to do when I’m cleaning up after the stomach flu. I decided to put to it down on paper (or computer screen as the case may be) with the hope it could be helpful to others fighting the battle of the germs. Though some things on the list might seem obvious, others might be easy to overlook, and allow the virus germs to linger around your home. We don’t want that!

The Golden Rule: Wash your hands. Wash your hands. Wash your hands! Your hands may end up raw and chapped, but it is extremely important to wash your hands anytime you touch any linens, surfaces, eating utensils, toys, clothing, etc., that have been soiled by illness. Hand washing works wonders to help prevent the spread of illness.

*Wash linens (in hot water). I wash them if they get soiled, and even if they don’t get soiled. Anyone who is sick gets freshly washed sheets pretty much every day until they get better.

*Sanitize the house every day, especially the bathrooms. Don’t leave out any surfaces. This means door knobs, light switches, telephones, remote controls, and computer keyboards. Oh, and don’t forget to disinfect children’s items like toys and highchairs.

*Toss out toothbrushes. Anytime anyone gets sick at my house, I get rid of their toothbrush. Mouths are germy enough even when we aren’t sick.

*Repeat above steps as needed.

I have spent tons of quality time with my washing machine and cleaning supplies this week, but as we all know, a mom’s gotta do what a mom’s gotta do. And when it comes to stomach flu, we have got to pull out all the stops.

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Comments

  1. Peggy says

    hi! when you say sanitize and disinfect, what particular products or ingredients should be present for it to be effective? My family had stomach flu 2 weeks ago then now i’m having it again. Thanks!

    • Nicole says

      Hi Peggy, I’m sorry to hear your family is sick again. There was a terrible stomach flu (norovirus) going around in our area this past month. Everyone was told that the only way to kill this virus was cleaning with bleach and water. Household cleaning needs to be as thorough as possible (wipe every surface that gets touched by anyone, remember to disinfect lightswitches, keyboards, remote controls, etc.) Launder everything (sheets, clothing, blankets) The norovirus can live on surfaces for up to 2 weeks!

      Personally, I would read and follow the advice given by the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention at this link: https://www.cdc.gov/features/norovirus/

      I hope you all feel better soon. Good luck getting rid of the virus germs. –Nicole

      Just a disclaimer here: I am not a medically trained person or a scientist. All of my advice is my personal opinion only. I hope it is helpful, but please question it or do further research to form your own opinions as necessary.

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