How to Prevent Staph Infection

Staph infection is a potentially life-threatening bacteria that lives on the skin around the mouth, nose and genital area. Most often, staph infections are harmless, and many people carry the bacteria, but never become sick. However, if the skin is broken due to injury, the bacteria can penetrate the wound and cause infection. Fortunately, there are ways to prevent minor staph infections and drug-resistant staph infections.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Wash your hands. Good hygiene is a key factor in preventing staph infections. Health care workers, daycare workers and anyone who comes in close contact with other people ought to wash their hands on a regular basis. Before each meal, or after shaking someone's hand, wash your hands with warm soapy water, or use antibacterial hand sanitizer.

2. Stay away from open wounds. Staph infections occur when the bacteria enters a wound. Touching another person's open wound puts you at risk.

3. Cover cuts. Persons with open cuts or injury should keep the wound cover with a bandage. Staph infection can easily transfer from person-to-person. Thus, someone with an open cut can transmit the bacteria to a variety of surfaces (door knobs, telephones, etc).

4. Use clean razors. Some people habitually share razors or combs. This is a no-no. Since a person can unknowingly carry the bacteria that causes staph infection, using another person's comb, brush, towel or razor can increase your risk of infection. Plus, razor cuts are common. It only takes a small nick or cut to transmit the bacteria.

5. Drink eight to ten glasses of water a day. The best way to flush or rid the body of disease-causing bacteria is to drink plenty of fluids. Ideally, each person should consume at least eight glasses of water daily. This will decrease your risk of developing staph infection and improve your overall health.

Tips & Warnings

• Staph infection warning signs include: swelling around a wound, boil, blistering and enlarged lymph nodes.
• Untreated staph infection can result in death.
• Staph infections are more common in newborns, drug users, breastfeeding mothers and persons with weak immune systems.

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