Thank you H1N1, we are now conscious about hygiene

Will the swine flu scare help improve the sanitation practices followed by people in the city? DNA gets views from experts as well as Mumbaikars on the issue.

Expert view

Allow sunlight in your home to kill germs
Indians are not at all hygienic. Look at the dirt on the streets; if we were hygienic our city would not be so filthy. Spitting on the road should be stopped, as that spreads germs and infections, but we still notice people spitting.

Due to the H1N1 virus scare people have become more hygienic and have become conscious of their surroundings. Especially parents are very concerned about the hygiene of their children. We recommend them to avoid crowded palaces particularly if the child has an infection. One needs to isolate them completely.

The scare of H1N1 is such that people with the regular viral infection think that they have got swine flu. Parents must ensure that their child eat lots of fresh fruits and drink plenty of water. A child should not be dehydrated. By keeping one’s surrounding clean, I mean that the home must be well ventilated and well lit up by natural sources. A closed room with air-conditioner is not recommended as the germs will remain inside the house. Doors and window must be kept open so that there is cross ventilation.  It is because of swine flu that people have become more alert and are now making an effort to be more hygienic.
—Samir Dalwai,  pediatrician, New Horizons Child Development Centre

Stop spitting as it spreads the virus easily
Swine flu has scared everyone world over. It is obvious when a great number of people are in its captivity. People have started taking all measure they know to protect themselves. They have started wearing mask and avoiding overcrowded place. But only these things will not help them completely until we understand the basic hygiene practice. Firstly, for maintaining hygiene level one should wash their hands frequently. Put eucalyptus oil in your handkerchief which protects from the viral infection and also carry a clean hanky everyday. Do not spit anywhere as it is dangerous and spreads the infection.  If you are using a tissue paper throw it in a dustbin and avoid littering.

Secondly, have a proper diet which will help in developing the immune system. Indians have one advantage, that they have a better immune system than other nationals. As much as possible eat home made Indian food and avoid eating junk food.  Also avoid eating the same monotonous meal as body requires all kinds of vitamin and other nutrients. This is possible only if you take all kind of fruits and vegetables with your normal cereals diet. Moreover, keep your ambience clean. In this way we can fight any contagious diseases and overcame the epidemic.
 —Prakash Kondekar, naturopath

We are not  paranoid about cleanliness
H ygiene levels in India continue to remain average. Indians are not as paranoid as the western countries about cleanliness. The swine flu may temporarily make people overly concerned about hygiene practices, but the trend will not last for a long time. This is because we don’t believe in living in a totally sterile society where everything comes from sealed packs. For instance, we haven’t stopped eating road-side food which we all know is unhygienic.

But the flu has made people conscious and hopefully, now people will be more careful about covering their faces while coughing and sneezing. I am just following the normal hygiene precautions that I would take even otherwise; but I have now started carrying an alcohol-based hand sanitiser for times when water is not available.

The only thing I’ve seen about people’s increased hygiene consciousness is that they’ve started wearing masks which I don’t think is being hygienic, but generally safeguarding themselves from bacteria in the air. More importantly, one can still see people spitting on the road which leads not only to swine flu, but TB and a host of other diseases.
—Smruti Desai, lead instructional designer

Basic sanitation still needs to improve
I think that instead of having a preventative response, unfortunately, we have shown a panicky and haphazard response to the swine flu outbreak in the city. I wish that people at large become more conversant after any such epidemic, and take informed
decisions and not get alarmed. We see a lot of concerned citizens putting on masks, but I am unsure if merely putting on a mask will suffice. This is because I still find people spitting, the garbage is still scattered on the road, and the dust bins continue to brim with waste, waiting to be picked up. These are some basic sanitation norms that we need to follow and not just protect ourselves by wearing the masks.
—Harshal Shah, via mail

We are used to living in unhygienic conditions
Majority of Indians live in dirty surroundings; people throw garbage outside their own house, spit on roads and even urinate and defecate on roads. We as a society are not at all concerned about hygiene. As the scare of swine flu is spreading, people are becoming conscious and taking precaution. For example, now we can see hundreds of people wearing mask while travelling. And people are not even taking the slightest cold and cough symptoms heedlessly. Keeping the surrounding clean and breathing fresh air is important not only to avoid swine flu but majority of other diseases also. My father has asked me to wear mask when I am travelling.
—Rohini Dugar, management student

Poverty and  diseases go hand-in-hand
The hygiene level of Indians is below the minimum desired level for any healthy society. There are several reasons for such situation prevailing in our society. However, the major ones are gruesome poverty and over population. I feel the swine flu scare would improve the hygiene standard to some extent because of the nature of the transmission of the disease which spreads through air and touch. Hence, people have become more hygiene conscious. People have now become conscious of personal hygiene like washing hands regularly, wearing masks and are making conscious efforts to keep their surrounding clean and hygienic. Hopefully, it will continue.
—Parag Mukherjee, business consultant

Health norms still ignored by people
The hygiene level of Indians is very poor as we only care about cleanliness inside our homes and not of the society as a whole. How many times have we seen people throwing garbage right outside their homes? Most of us don’t hesitate about spitting and throwing waste anywhere. How can anyone be safe when our surroundings only are not clean? We become conscious about cleanliness and sanitation when we are in trouble but once things improve we get back to our old habits. Even now, when swine flu is on a rise hardly anyone is following the norms that would keep a check in the spreading the virus. We also lack complete awareness about dealing with any crisis.
—Akshat Jain, PR professional