Swine flu: Protecting yourself the natural skin care way
When swine flu first emerged in April this year, panic soon set in. The virus spread quickly from the country where it was originally discovered, Mexico, to hundreds of nations around the world, including the UK.
The World Health Organization (WHO) officially declared a swine flu pandemic in June, labelling the global alert and response at phase six. However, it has assessed the overall severity of the pandemic to be moderate, since most people recover from infection without the need for hospitalisation or medical care.
It said that the levels of severe illness from the H1N1 strain of flu appear to be similar to those seen during local seasonal flu periods, which means there is no reason to be overly concerned, although there have been some areas that have seen higher than normal levels of disease.
For the most part, hospitals and healthcare systems across the various countries affected have been able to cope with the numbers of people seeking care.
Nevertheless, as of October 17th, more than 414,000 laboratory-confirmed cases of swine flu and nearly 5000 deaths around the world have been reported to WHO.
So far, 122 people have died in the UK and in the past week, an estimated 53,000 cases of swine flu have emerged, compared to 27,000 the week before.
The small number of people who have suffered serious illness or died as a result of the flu have mostly been patients with existing health problems, such as cancer.
Other high risk groups include chronic lung, heart, kidney, liver and neurological disease, immunosuppression and diabetes mellitus.
Also at risk are pregnant women, people aged 65 and over and children under five, as well as patients who have had drug treatment for asthma in the past three years.
The advice from the government and health authorities on prevention is to take simple measures such as covering your mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing, using a tissue, then throwing the tissue away quickly and carefully.
They also advise washing hands regularly and cleaning hard surfaces frequently with a normal cleaning product.
When soap and water is not available, using a hand sanitiser is recommended as a good alternative.
For those who want to take extra care of their hands, a natural skin care product is preferable, as chemical-based sanitisers can cause irritation and dry skin.
Lisa Alward, European sales and marketing manager at The Purist Company, said: "The A'kin Hand Washes are paraben and sulfate free, offering a kinder and more luxurious alternative to soap as they are non-drying and care for even the most delicate and sensitive hands, enabling them to even be used by young children and babies to reduce the spread of germs."
"A'kin Australian Native Rainforest Botanics Lemon Myrtle Hand Wash features Australian-grown Lemon Myrtle Oil, for its anti-bacterial properties, in a synergistic blend of softening, skin-kind cleansers and stimulating aromatherapy oils," she added.
Meanwhile, A'kin's Australian Native Rainforest Botanics Eucalyptus and Tea Tree Hand Wash contains certified organic Australian eucalyptus and tea tree oils blended together with gentle, natural cleansers which gently and thoroughly clean and nurture hands.
Alternatively, there is the Bentley Organic Natural Hand Sanitiser which kills 99.9 per cent of germs but is made with organic aloe vera to moisturise hands.
Written by Jake Slazenger
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