Content

• Steps
• Method 1 of 2: Preventing Infectious Diseases
• Method 2 of 2: Treating Infectious Diseases
• Tips
• Warnings

Infectious diseases are diseases that are somehow caused by bacteria, viruses and other organisms. Since these diseases are often transmitted from person to person, it is very often possible to observe their outbreaks in a certain segment of the population. To protect yourself from an infectious disease, it is important to follow certain preventive measures. With a few healthy habits and tips in this article, you can protect yourself from germs and disease.

Steps

Method 1 of 2: Preventing Infectious Diseases

1. 1 Wash your hands. Hand hygiene is extremely important when it comes to preventing the spread of infectious diseases. Pathogens (such as viruses, bacteria and fungi) are easily transmitted through various surfaces and remain on the skin, from where they can easily enter the body through the eyes, nose or mouth. This is why hand washing is the first choice to prevent transmission of infections.
   • Wash your hands every time you use the toilet, change your diaper, blow your nose or sneeze, and whenever you come into contact with body fluids.
   • Wash your hands before you start preparing food and after you have finished working with food.
   • Use soap when washing your hands. Soak your hands in warm water, lather them well, and rub for at least 20 seconds.
   • If you can't wash your hands with soap and water, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer - apply and rub from fingertips to wrists to kill all pathogens.
2. 2 Try not to touch your face, eyes and nose. People touch their face repeatedly throughout the day. It is at these moments that infectious agents are on the hands and can enter the body. While the skin prevents pathogens from entering the body, the eyes and mucous membranes in the nose and mouth do not protect the body from it.
   • In addition to maintaining hand hygiene, try not to touch your face, even with clean hands.
   • Try to avoid touching your palms or hands with your face even when you are coughing or when you need to blow your nose. Use a handkerchief for this.
   • If you don't have a handkerchief, cover your mouth or nose with your elbow. Use tissue paper whenever possible. Throw them away immediately after use and wash your hands with soap and water.
3. 3 Get all vaccinations on time. Vaccines are disease prevention. They help prevent or reduce illness caused by an infectious agent. Vaccines stimulate the immune system's response to specific pathogens, and if you are exposed to this pathogen, your immune system will fight it more effectively.
   • Make sure everyone, both children and adults, has all the necessary vaccinations - keep a logbook and write down the dates of all vaccinations in it.
   • Because vaccines are designed to activate the immune system to recognize specific pathogens, some vaccines can cause mild symptoms such as fever, fatigue, muscle aches, and these symptoms can last for one to two days.
   • Some vaccinations may require booster vaccinations at regular intervals (for example, tetanus and polio shots).
4. 4 Stay home. If you get sick, it is imperative that you minimize contact with other people to limit the spread of the infection. Some infectious diseases are not easily spread from person to person by contact, but other infections can spread very quickly, so staying at home is advised anyway if you have any symptoms of an infectious disease.
   • In public places, cover your mouth and nose with your elbow if you cough. Do not use your hands for this to avoid spreading pathogens through the air and various surfaces that you touch.
   • If you get sick, wash your hands and common surfaces often to minimize germ transmission.
5. 5 Prepare and store food properly. Some pathogens can enter the body through food - diseases caused by these pathogens are called foodborne or intestinal infections. After an infected product enters the body, the pathogen begins to multiply and causes illness. This is why it is extremely important to prepare and store all foods in a safe manner.
   • Prepare food responsibly to avoid cross-contamination. Raw food should never be cooked on the same surface as ready-to-eat food.
   • Wash your work surfaces regularly and keep them clean and dry. Pathogens thrive and multiply in humid environments.
   • Wash your hands before handling food and immediately after you finish preparing food.Also wash your hands whenever you finish working with one product and are going to work with another (for example, you have finished working with raw meat and starting working with vegetables).
   • Food must be stored at safe temperatures (refrigerated if necessary). If you doubt the quality of the product, then it is better to throw it away. If the product has changed color or texture, or has a strange smell, then it is most likely deteriorated.
   • Hot food should be eaten after cooking, and if you need to store it, leave it on the table until it has cooled down, and then put it in the refrigerator to prevent the growth of pathogens.
6. 6 Practice safe sex and don't share personal hygiene items. Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are transmitted from person to person through contact of physiological fluids with the genitals, oral mucosa and eyes. Have safer sex to limit your risk of STDs.
   • Always use a condom or rubber dam for any sex, especially if you are not in a monogamous relationship.
   • Do not have sex if you or your partner has herpes or genital warts, as this can spread the incurable herpes virus.
   • Check yourself for STDs before and after having sex with each new partner.
7. 7 Travel wisely. Be aware of the risks of various infections when planning your trip. Certain infections may be common in some places that are not found in the places where you live.
   • Ask your doctor what vaccinations you need to get before you travel. This will prepare your immunity for the pathogens in the area where you are going to travel.
   • Wash your hands as often as possible when traveling to avoid getting germs through your hands into your body.
   • Protect yourself from mosquito-borne infections. Use mosquito nets for windows and when sleeping, use special insecticides and wear long sleeves.

Method 2 of 2: Treating Infectious Diseases

1. 1 Various types of infectious diseases. Remember that different diseases can be caused by different agents. This will help you know and avoid risk factors.
   • The most common infectious agents are bacteria. They usually enter the body through fluids and food. Bacteria are single-celled organisms that use the human body as a home and breeding ground.
   • Viruses are pathogens that cannot live outside the host's body. When the virus enters the body, it takes over the cells of the body and multiplies, spreading to neighboring cells.
   • Fungi are the simplest plant organisms that can live in the human body.
   • Parasites are living organisms that take over the host's body and use its resources to grow.
2. 2 Treat bacterial infections with antibiotics. Antibiotics are medicines that help fight bacterial infections. They deactivate or kill bacterial cells and thus help the immune system fight bacteria.
   • Apply antibiotic cream or ointment to small wounds that have been infected. Signs of wound infection may include redness, swelling, warmth, or pain. Do not use antibiotic products on bleeding wounds, especially if they are deep. If the bleeding from the wound persists, see your doctor.
   • For systemic bacterial infections, see your doctor and ask if you should take oral antibiotics or not.
   • It is important to remember that antibiotics are powerless against viral infections such as influenza or SARS. A doctor can determine if an infectious disease is viral or bacterial and can prescribe appropriate treatment.
   • Take antibiotics exactly as directed.Taking antibiotics when they are not needed (such as with a viral infection) only increases the bacteria's resistance to antibiotics.
3. 3 Treatment of viral infections. Viral infections are not treated with antibiotics; there are special antiviral drugs against them that are used only against certain viruses. Some viral infections are treated with home remedies such as rest, sleep, and drinking plenty of fluids.
   • Some drugs, known as antivirals or antiretrovirals, effectively fight certain types of viruses by preventing them from replicating their DNA in the cells of the body.
   • Some viral infections, such as ARVI, require only symptomatic treatment in order to alleviate the patient's condition. The virus will be fought by the body's immune system, unless, of course, you have an immune deficiency and you are getting enough rest and enough nutrients.
   • Many viral diseases can be prevented by vaccination. That is why it is important to get all the necessary vaccinations on time.
4. 4 Treating fungal infections. Some fungal infections can be treated with antifungal medications. However, there are many pathogenic fungi that can cause infections, and only a doctor can correctly diagnose such a disease and prescribe appropriate treatment.
   • Some fungal infections can be treated with antifungal ointments if they affect a specific area on the skin (such as a foot fungus).
   • More serious and dangerous fungal infections are treated with oral medications and injections.
   • Examples of pathogenic fungi are histoplasmosis, blastomycosis, coccidioidomycosis and paracoccidomycosis - in some cases they can be deadly.
5. 5 Treatment of parasitic infections. Parasites are organisms that enter the body and live in it, using the resources of this organism for their own growth and reproduction. Parasites can be a wide variety of pathogenic agents, from worms to microscopic cells.
   • Many parasites enter the human body through contaminated food and water (for example, hookworms), while others enter through small wounds in the skin (for example, malaria through a mosquito bite).
   • Never drink unfiltered or untreated water from natural sources, as this water may contain parasites.
   • Some parasitic infections can be treated with oral or injection medications.
   • A doctor can diagnose a parasitic infection based on symptoms and specific tests, and then prescribe appropriate treatment.

Tips

• Follow the rules of personal hygiene - make these rules a part of your daily life: wash your hands, do not touch your face, and get all the necessary vaccinations on time.

Warnings

• If you think you have an infectious disease, call your doctor right away. Infectious diseases can be caused by pathogenic agents - only a doctor can diagnose them and prescribe appropriate treatment.