The pandemic has forced people to rethink the way they keep up with normal hygienic and sanitation practices. Pandemics are caused by unhygienic practices that people tend to overlook. The simple act of rubbing one’s face after touching another object or person is just one of the ways people transmit colds, flu, and other viral and bacterial diseases. Such practices gave way to the pandemic we have currently. COVID-19 is hypothesized to have originated from an animal, according to the World Health Organization.
While the means of transmission isn’t exactly clear, what we know is it took only a few months for it to spread worldwide. Nothing like this has ever been encountered in modern history. No one believed the scientists when they predicted something like this would happen in our lifetimes. In 2005, a scientist and infectious disease expert Michael Osterholm predicted the happening of a pandemic that will seriously halt the way we live our lives.
Germs are part of Earthly life. While there are good bacteria inside our bodies that help us thrive, there are also bad bacteria that cause our bodies to shut down. Germs made us into what we are now. With the help of bacteria, our species thrives. However, we are also in the constant battle against them. Throughout time, the evolution of bacteria and viruses has gone hand in hand with our evolution.
Every generation, there are mutations of these microbial organisms that are engineered to eliminate us. While we try to fight them harder, it seems like they have evolved to survive even our simplest cleansing methods. We’ve been resorting to vaccines to accelerate our bodies adaptations
The pandemic is displaying the vulnerabilities of the human species. To date, around 160 million people have been infected by COVID-19. More than 3 million deaths can be attributed to it. The world holds its breath as the vaccine rollout is now underway for a lot of countries. The scientists are claiming that the world post-pandemic will never be the same. The world of the New Normal awaits us when the dust settles. How will we deal with hygiene and sanitation amid the New Normal?
UV Sterilizing
Sterilizing via ultraviolet lights will become a normal event in the post-pandemic or new normal world. Ultraviolet light has been proven to be effective against most bacteria and viruses that stay on surfaces. Nowadays, it is used to clean household objects that cannot be cleaned by liquid cleaners. In offices, departments have been installing a document receiving area where the documents are subjected to ultraviolet light in an effort to kill any trace of the COVID-19 virus. Through sterilization of inanimate objects via ultraviolet light, we are kept safe from contracting the virus through unmindful touching of objects that may have been touched by the already infected.
Termination of Pests
Pests, mainly mosquitoes, are the cause of multiple diseases. Throughout the history of mankind, mosquitoes have been the cause of multiple epidemics. Mosquito-borne diseases such as Dengue, Zika virus, West Nile virus, Chikungunya virus, and malaria are spread by these pesky insects. Cockroaches are famous bringers of microbes that cause poliomyelitis, typhoid fever, leprosy, diarrhea, dysentery, and cholera. These pests have always followed humankind and humanity’s settlements.
Increasing our efforts for pest control should be one of our top priorities if we do not want another pandemic to happen again. As part of sanitation efforts, we should be pushing for the elimination of these pests in our communities. Mosquito control services are easy to get in most cities and suburban areas. Pest control services to help reduce the amount of vermin and cockroaches will certainly lower the chances of a pandemic happening again.
Enforced Hygiene Checks
In the new normal, there must be hygiene checks every step of the way when going about one’s daily routines. For example, in the office, one must subject his or herself to a footbath and a quick spray of alcohol before entering the building. If we want to curb the spread of diseases, we must reduce the chances of spreading them through physical touches.
Wearing the proper protective equipment for the office like a mask for those who already feel sick will lessen the chances of the illness spreading through airborne means. Enforcing the habit of washing one’s hands every now and then will also help against the spread of infections. Having clean hands will prevent you from acquiring bacteria or viruses when you inadvertently touch your face.
The virus will be here to stay, according to the world’s top doctors. We have to learn to live with it. To curb its spread, we must enforce high standards with regard to hygiene and sanitation. May we learn from our mistakes and may we look forward to a new beginning post-pandemic.
