How To Handle Groceries, Packaging And Hands After The Store

2024 Author: Bailey Albertson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 12:53

How I handle groceries, packaging and hands after I return from the store

Studying the WHO statements on the topic of coronavirus, I learned that the duration of the virus on surfaces ranges from several hours to a couple of days. On paper and plastic, the virus lasts 4-5 days, on wood and glass up to 4 hours. The infection spreads when the host sneezes and coughs and droplets filled with the virus enter the air. Now I am afraid of getting infected and every trip to the store looks like a real adventure to me.

Returning home, I leave the bags in the hallway and do not go to the kitchen. I unload my bags at the entrance. I leave some items on the veranda for 72 hours to air out or wipe them off immediately with bleach.

Before going to the store, as well as after, be sure to wash your hands with soap and water for 40 seconds. Then I use an antiseptic containing 80% alcohol or 2% chlorhexidine. I treat my hands with an antiseptic completely and for at least 30 seconds, do not forget to pay attention to my nails. In no case do I touch my eyes, nose and mouth with dirty hands. To keep your hands dry and not covered with cracks, you should use a soap with a lower pH (regular soap 9.5–11), wash your hands with non-hot water.

With my soap, all glass, plastic and iron containers. Packaging that is touched by hundreds of hands is the biggest threat. I wash plastic and glass containers over running water and wipe them with bleach. If the products are ordered home delivery, the risk of infection still remains. In this case, I leave a note on the door with a request to leave the packages under the door, call and go around to a safe distance.

Fruits and vegetables are advised to be washed with regular soap and running water. Virologist Timothy News provides excellent advice on how to properly process fruit. He recommends washing each fruit or vegetable for at least 20 seconds, not limited to a quick rinse. Viruses do not tolerate high temperatures, so cooking vegetables can reduce the risk of infection.

After unloading the food, I throw the bags into a separate garbage bag, which I tie tightly. The container which I will use is re-processed with a sanitizer. As for the containers in which the finished food was stored, I immediately transfer their contents to a plate, and throw the container into the trash and wash my hands.