A Clean Toothbrush plus a Giveaway!
Today it’s another installment in the Arm & Hammer Switch & Save Challenge.
Since school started my family has been plagued with little niggling coughs and colds. What’s up with that?
Last year one of my kids received a perfect attendance award. We hardly were sick a single day in the whole school year.
This year is a different story. We have a good bedtime routine, so I can’t blame it on lack of sleep, but for whatever reason, we’ve just not been up to snuff.
Even I’ve had a bad cold and I’m guessing a sinus infection the last few days. Yuck.
Whenever my family has been sick and rundown, I like to wipe down door handles and light switches throughout the house to get rid of lurking germs.
I also try to remember to clean our toothbrushes. What better place for a germ to hide?
Here are a few good ways to clean your toothbrushes:
- Pour enough straight vinegar in a cup to cover the head of your toothbrush. Soak overnight.
- I often use hydrogen peroxide to clean our toothbrushes. Mix 1 teaspoon of hydrogen peroxide to 1 cup of water. Pour enough into a cup to soak the head of your toothbrush. Soak overnight. Rinse before using in the morning.
- When I was little and one of us kids had strep (or some other nasty bug) my mom used to put our toothbrushes into a mug and pour boiling water over them to get rid of germs.
With a little effort on my part, I’m hoping to nip this sick trend in the bud.
Now for a giveaway!
I’m a so happy to be able to offer another $25 Visa Gift Card courtesy of the Arm & Hammer Switch & Save Challenge.
To enter to win answer the question:
“What’s your favorite tip to keep you or your family healthy?”
The Rules:
- Contest closes on Thursday, September 29th, 2011 10:00 MDT
- Only one comment per person please.
- Random winner will be announced on Friday, September 30th
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This is a sponsored post for Church & Dwight Co., Inc, the maker of ARM & HAMMER branded products, who is compensating me to try different products. Get a $4.00 coupon for ARM & HAMMER Spinbrush then head over to The Switch & Save Challenge where you can enter to win $25,000.
I wipe down light switches, handles and door knobs with a disinfectant wipe.
Washing hands often and wiping surfaces down with disinfectant wipes as well.
I get them outside as much as possible. Exercise, a healthy diet, an uncluttered schedule (for less stress) and no disinfectants. Just wash the germs away, they don’t need to be dead on their way down the drain. Plus our immune systems need a little workout, and you don’t want to be breeding multiple-drug-resistant bacteria in your home.
Changing to a new toothbrush after someone has been sick with a cold is also necessary. I use the Hydrogen Peroxide to soak the toothbrush and then replace it with a new one. Also at the first sign of a cold, I start my children on Oregano Oil drops. It really seems to nip the cold and they are on the mend quickly.
I feed my kids lots of plain, whole milk yogurt. I sweeten it with a little pureed fruit — blueberries, peaches, pears. They really like it and I think it helps their tummies stay healthy.
I make sure there are tissue boxes all over the house so the kids have easy access to tissues. I also make sure there is a lot of hand washing.
We use a lot of hand sanitizer and take vitamins!
We teach our kids from the time they are teeny-tiny to cough and sneeze into their bent arm instead of their hands. Not a huge deal I suppose, but it makes me feel like at least some of the germs are staying off of the toys they all pass around!
We spend a lot of time outside in the fresh air! And when my kids are sick we do as you do, wipe down everything that has been touched. (more thorough than we do on the regular basis!)
I replace my family’s toothbrushes frequently. I never even thought about cleaning them. Thank you for the tips!
I believe in washing your hands with soap and water for at least 2 minutes, and often during the day. Also I use a good disifectant through the house including my kitchen table. And I believe Good nutrition and moderate exercise are the basis for strong inmune system.
Fresh air, hand washing, and a healthy “whole food” diet.
I don’t worry so much about germs. Eat healthy, clean regularly, wash hands before eating, and the body does the rest!
My favorite tip is to have clorox/lysol wipes on hand to clean and sanitize messes quickly and easily!
I’m not sure this is scientifically proven, but I use a humidifier at night. I would assume the natural defenses in your nose and throat work better if they’re not totally dried out from forced-air heat in the winter!
We do a lot of hand washing – basically every time we come home from an outing my girls know to head to the sink and wash their hands.
We always use hand sanitizer.
During the winter months we use the Emergen-C packets. They give you a 1000mg of vitamin C and they give you energy.
I clean surfaces with antibacterial wipes, keep plenty of tissues all over the house. Make sure everyone washes their hands often.
Probiotics sure reduces the amt. of coughs and cold we catch. We like the chewable cherry and orange ones by natures way. My kids are 5 and 6. We use the shaklee ones.
I start wiping down from the outside doorknob, all the way through the house, making sure to clean all hard services.
we wash our hands alot and use lysol around the house.
My daughter loves her Probiotics- she asks for her “sprinkles” on a daily basis! They keep her GI system in line…. Shes always been a pretty healthy kid- lots of handwashing and NOT a lot of sanitizers…. I think that we over use the sanitizers and that’s part of the reason we have so many drug-resistant bugs! She’s been vaccinated and also been exposed to stuff (like all of us are!) and she gets sick only very occasionally! I think we are too quick to try to hide our kids from life and that leads to them getting sicker in the long run! They can’t build any natural immunity if they are never exposed!
I don’t mean to cause any controversy with this- please don’t jump down my throat! It’s just my opinion! :)
You’re absolutely right – people think they are protecting their kids by wrapping them in bubble wrap. One day, however, they will have to go out into the world and, with no natural immunity, they’ll be knocked over by every bug in town. The sad thing is that they will be much sicker than they would have been if they had some immunity to the various illnesses.
We have replace carpet throughout most of the house with tile – easy to clean and nothing can hide (like mites in carpet). It seems to have helped reduce allergy symptoms which can mimic a cold. When someone is sick, I don’t think anything can help like a good night’s sleep so a cup of hot/warm herbal tea (sleepytime is a favorite) before bed and a couple of drops of camphor oil on a tissue inside their pillowcase to help with congestion.
My favorite way to keep my family healthy is to remind everyone to wash their hands frequently!
To keep my family healthy I make sure they have balanced meals to get the nutrition they need
We make sure to drink our green smoothies! I clean toothbrushes in a cup of mouthwash; those are some great alternatives!
Good nutrition and vit D! Good nutrition for us means avoid processed foods and loading up on veggies and fruits. I have also found that eating smaller amounts more frequently seems to help us stay healthier.
I put the kitchensponge once a week in the dishwasher
sleep. lots of it :)
Wash, wash, wash your hands!
Washing hands. It takes 20 seconds…not just getting them wet!
Vitamin C crystals mixed in a little bit of OJ. Great, tasty way to fight off that niggling cold!
Lots of hot soup, early bed times and handwashing!
Lots of natural, whole foods!!
We wash our hands frequently. And when the kids are coming down with something they get a soak in the tub and early to bed – usually this helps. Thanks for the toothbrush cleaning tips! :)
I’ve noticed that we do fine until holidays come, and then our bodies just collapse! So I try and make sure that we up our intake of fresh fruit and veg, and get plenty of sleep before going away. It’s simple, but it works! Thanks for the chance to win.
When out and about for grocery shopping or running errands, your hands will come in to contact with many germs that your body probably doesn’t have a built up immunity to, so, the first thing that I do when I get home is to wash my hands thoroughly – even before I put away my purchases and before I touch any surfaces at home!
Our weather is so dry, our noses dry out real fast. I put a little Vaseline or Mentholatum in my nose with a Q-tip. Keeps the germs from migrating. Also, Airborn cold tablets seems to really help me.
Dana
Hand washing is always my number one. Less obvious though is frequently washing pillowcases, dish towels, hand towels and disinfecting the kitchen sponge.
I make them stay away from the other kids!
There is something about grocery carts that makes me airway, so that is the one thing/place that I wipe down like crazy! Other than that, I think hand washing frequently is the key. Good sleep, healthy eating, and exercise certainly help!
We eat a fruit or vegetable at every meal. My mom did the same for me when I was growing up.
Washing hands, washing hands and oh yeah… washing hands. I also make sure there is lotion around since washing hands can dry them out.
washing hands, washing hands and some more washign hands. Lotion after the washing helps keep the hands healthy.
We’re big hand-washers and hanitizers here.
I’m always sending my 16 year old and his friends into the bathroom to wash their hands.
Washing hands and brushing teeth. Dirty mouths and hands are a breeding ground for all kinds of nasties!
Wash hands every time you come home.
Wash hands and cough/sneeze into the bend of your arm!
Lots of hand washing – seems to work.
Eat healthy and play in the sunshine.
@Andrea (11:02am): no throat-jumping here – I totally agree with you!
Lots of exercise outside in the fresh air, balanced healthy meals, extra Vitamin C in the winter months, hand-washing and, when you’re out of sorts, chicken soup!
The most important part is lots of TLC and family time. Nourishing a child’s spirit and giving them a solid base in a connected family where they know they are loved are as important as physical things to create and maintain a healthy child.
P.S. by “connected family”, I do NOT mean connected to some electronic device!!!
We wash hands a lot!
Big Ditto on a lot of the above. My friend recently told me that she heads off sinuses with some fresh roasted garlic (a whole clove I think) over some egg noodles with butter. Says it works every time!!! (The demented part of me can’t wait to get a sinus sniffle and try it out.)
good diet and don’t go overboard with cleaning and disinfecting so that our immune systems stay strong
Orange juice, vitamins and lots of hand washing!
Good handwashing, cleaning commonly used surfaces (including the tv remote!), and regular sleep…so important for all of us! Thanks for the giveaway!
Washing hands often!
Wash your hands frequently!
I wipe down door handles, light switches, phones, remotes, etc with diluted bleach (but only when there is a sickness lurking) and of course remind everyone to wash their hands (all the time)!
Don’t let your house get too dusty–it leads to tons of respiratory problems!
Like everyone else, wash our hands, more if someone is sick. Clean doorknobs, lightswitches, toilet handles, sink faucet handles, the phone, the remote…. basically anything the sick one touches…. with clorox wipes. Fresh veggies and fruits everyday. And try not to have too many processed treats. I normally throw out toothbrushes after someone is sick… its normally time for a new one anyways, but if it was new I will try some of these cleaning tips, thanks.
At my house we don’t share toothpaste. Everyone has their own tube and that way no germ is passed from person to person. That alone has cut down on colds and sore throats.