Flu session

As mentioned in church Sunday, we need to take some precautions during this year’s flu season. At church there will be sanitizers at each entrance for your use, we will NOT hold hands at the end of the service as it could lead to the spreading of germs, and if you do come down with the swine flu, Pastor Arthur asks that you call him on his cell phone 734/272-6296. Unless you express the wish for others in our congregation to know of your condition to add to their prayers, the information will be kept confidential.

The following is some additional steps you can take to fight getting the flu. They came from an email which is currently being circulated.

The only portals of entry are the nostrils and mouth/throat. In a global epidemic of this nature, it's almost impossible to avoid coming into contact with H1N1 in spite of all precautions. Contact with H1N1 is not so much of a problem as proliferation is.

While you are still healthy and not showing any symptoms of H1N1 infection, in order to prevent proliferation, aggravation of symptoms and development of secondary infections, some very simple steps, can be practiced:

1. Frequent hand-washing.

2. "Hands-off-the-face" approach. Resist all temptations to touch any part of face.

3. *Gargle twice a day with warm salt water (use Listerine if you don't trust salt).
*H1N1 takes 2-3 days after initial infection in the throat/ nasal cavity to proliferate and show characteristic symptoms. Simple gargling prevents proliferation. In a way, gargling with salt water has the same effect on a healthy individual that Tamiflu has on an infected one. Don't underestimate this simple, inexpensive and powerful preventative method.

4. Similar to 3 above, *clean your nostrils at least once every day with warm salt water. *Blowing the nose hard once a day and swabbing both nostrils with cotton buds dipped in warm salt water is very effective in bringing down viral population.*

5. *Boost your natural immunity with foods that are rich in Vitamin C *If you have to supplement with Vitamin C tablets, make sure that it also has Zinc to boost absorption.

6. *Drink as much of warm liquids (tea, coffee, etc) as you can.
*Drinking warm liquids has the same effect as gargling, but in the reverse direction. They wash off proliferating viruses from the throat into the stomach where they cannot survive, proliferate or do any harm.

Let's hope First Presbyterian Church of Wyandotte's family does not succumb to this epidemic, but keep all who have in our prayers.