Key tips to keep your home coronavirus free

As the deadly coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) spreading rapidly, people are doing everything to keep themselves safe but what about your own abode?


To make your home coronavirus free, health experts have shared some tips such as cleaning all kitchen surfaces every time you finish cooking and keeping separate pairs of footwear for outdoors and indoors to fight the virus.

According to Praveen Gupta, Director and Head Neurology, Fortis Memorial Research Institute in New Delhi, all surfaces should be cleaned routinely with soap and other disinfectants available to make your house coronavirus proof.

"Apart from cleaning the surfaces, other objects like light switches, desk, keyboards, doorknobs, toilet, closets should also be cleaned. Please make sure that you do not touch any object while cleaning with bare hands; gloves are necessary and make sure to dispose of these gloves after the cleaning is done," Gupta told IANS.

In case when you are buying vegetables and fruits from outside, please make sure that you clean the bag very carefully before entering the house.

If possible, it is advisable to keep the bags outside your home or in a corner for at least 24-48 hours.

"Considering coronavirus spreads through droplets, please make sure to wash your vegetables and fruits in potassium permanganate solution or you can also wash it with hot water as well for at least 5-10 minutes," the doctor emphasised.

Stay home as much as possible but there are times when we can't avoid visits to grocery store or pharmacy at some point.

"It is advisable to avoid unnecessary to and fro to any market area and stay in house. Disinfect everything you touch thoroughly and make sure that you wash your hands frequently. Also, supervise your pets in the backyard and keep them away from meeting or playing with other people," said Rajesh Chawla, Senior Consultant, Respiratory Medicine, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, New Delhi.

"Make use of hypochlorite to clean every corner of your house or make use of bleaching powder to clean your house," Chawla added.

If someone is sick at your home, please make sure that a distance is maintained from that person and his or her clothes should be washed separately.

"One needs to understand while performing all the above activities, wearing gloves is necessary and when you are giving your clothes for laundry, please use disposable gloves and it is preferred to wash your clothes at home only and avoid any outside contact," Chawla said.

Dr Sudhish Sehra, HOD, Internal Medicine, Sri Balaji Action Medical Institute in New Delhi said that in addition to frequently sanitizing your hands, keeping the house and your immediate surroundings clean is equally important.

"Start with basic dusting while covering your face with a mask/alternative clothing such as a handkerchief, and disinfect the furniture surfaces and the floor. Clean all kitchen surfaces every time you finish cooking. Keep separate pairs of footwear for outdoors and indoors," Sehra told IANS.

India has been under a 21-day lockdown in a bid to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

The tally of novel coronavirus cases in India reached 1966 on Thursday, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

Of these, 150 people have recovered and discharged from the hospitals, one person migrated while 50 deaths have been reported so far. IANS