12 Tips You Must Follow to Avoid Falling Sick During Rainy Season

surely, you’d love to enjoy monsoon without falling sick.

You would be enjoying excellent health and living a very healthy lifestyle. Yet, the rainy season in India does pose a lot of health risks for everyone, young and old alike.

If you’d love to avoid falling sick during the rainy season, some of my tips would definitely prove helpful.

Tips to Avoid Sickness During Rainy Season

It’s not that health risks actually increase during rainy season or monsoons. However, damp conditions and excessive water can pose some risks if you are very careless.

So here are some tips you would find useful. Beginning from head to toe- literally.

Avoid First Showers

Now how does one enjoy monsoons without getting wet, you might ask. I’m not saying you don’t venture out and enjoy rains.

Avoid getting wet during the first few showers, especially if you’re living in a highly polluted area.

Smoke from factories and vehicles mingles with water vapour that becomes rain clouds. And it comes down in the form of something known as ‘acid rain’.

Acid rain can actually harm your body. The first casualty would be your eyes, skin and hair. The first few showers contain potent doses of toxins.

Hence, you might develop skin rashes or suffer from irritation of eyes. Sometimes, you might lose hair- albeit in small numbers- due to acid rain coming in contact with the scalp.

Also Read: Top 10 Best Umbrella Brands in India

Keep Short Hair

This might not be possible for women. For men, I suggest keeping your hair short. A wet scalp is an ideal breeding ground for fungal infections.

You might not notice it at first. As the fungal infection spreads, you’ll experience symptoms like itchy scalp and sometimes, hair fall.

Left untreated, this fungus can actually spread throughout your crown and affect eyebrows too.

Women can prevent fungal infections of the scalp by wearing protective waterproof headgear.

It reduces the amount of moisture that settles on your scalp. Also, dry your hair as soon as you get indoors. When possible, use a good medicinal shampoo to wash your hair.

Beards

Men with beards are at major risk of fungal infections of the facial region. Nowadays, sporting a beard is in fashion.

However, not caring for a beard properly can affect your looks severely.

Because fungal infections on cheeks and chin tends to cause discoloration of skin and leaves patches that will damage your good looks.

Unless you are very particular about sporting a beard, it’s better to get a clean shave.

And if you are genuinely inclined to keep a beard, read some excellent articles on how to care for it during monsoons.

Using the best quality beard oil and washing regularly with beard-wash creams can help immensely.

Eyes

Rain water can actually harm your eyes. Especially if raindrops hit your eyes at high velocity while walking or riding a vehicle.

Our eyes close as a reflex action when any foreign object comes nearby.

But during rains, we tend to override this reflex action in favour of vision- or to see what lies ahead. This can severely damage your eyes.

If you are riding a bike especially, use clear glasses or eye protectors. This will prevent water from hitting your eyes.

Eye protectors are fairly inexpensive and it makes sense to use one to prevent long term damage to these very precious organs.

Ears

Another area that people neglect during monsoons is their ears. Water in-ears also causes infections- both fungal and bacterial.

These can prove very painful and also affect your hearing abilities.

Therefore, use cotton buds to dry your ears whenever you come indoors. And if possible, use a rain cap to protect your ears against water.

Since the actual hearing organs are deeper inside the ear, you would have to be very careful while using an ear bud.

Food

It goes without saying that you should avoid roadside food and eating at restaurants with dubious hygiene standards. More so during monsoons.

Because dampness allows amoeba and bacteria to breed freely and rapidly. Amoeba forms cysts during summers.

These cysts give rise to billions of new amoeba. These microbes can cause severe disease like gastroenteritis, amoebic dysentery, giardiasis and others.

Also, make sure you wash fruits and vegetable at home with salt water. This lowers chances of food borne disease affecting your family.

Leafy vegetables or greens are more prone to bacterial growth during monsoons. And accidentally ingesting them can cause a lot of food borne disease.

Water

Strange isn’t it? Monsoons are all about water but it’s this element we need to be most careful about.

During rainy seasons, the number of water borne infections also rises. Therefore, avoid drinking water directly from the tap or at seedy restaurants and eateries. Boiled water is the best option.

I suggest you buy a good water filter or water purifier to ensure the safety of your family.

There’s an excellent selection of water filters available to suit every need and budget. You can buy any of these.

Feet

Usually, feet are most prone to hazards of monsoons. Because feet get wet in puddles and accumulated water.

Left unattended, you can develop fungal infection between toes. Also, people suffer from cracked heels during monsoons, if they expose their feet to water for long periods.

Cracks in heels are an ideal breeding ground for all sorts of disease causing bacteria.

Care for your feet too. Wipe them dry whenever you get indoors. Also, remember to wash them carefully using a good soap or even anti-microbial hand-wash.

Never wear wet socks. Also, avoid leather footwear since it develops germs during monsoons and can directly cause infections.

Groin

The groin region is most neglected for some reasons. The area between your thighs and private parts retains moisture due to structure of the human body.

Unless you take extra care and wipe this region dry, you would most likely suffer from fungal and bacterial infections. This can prove very embarrassing.

You’ll develop itching. And trying to get relief from itches at public places is definitely something you would wish to avoid.

Another culprit for groin infections are wet undergarments. Never wear undergarments that aren’t completely dry.

Wearing wet undergarments can cause hydrocele among men, fungal and bacterial infections among both, women and men.

Take off any wet undergarments and never reuse without a proper wash.

In fact, it is better to soak undergarments in a solution of antiseptic and water before washing to reduce chances of infections.

Nails

Clip nails at least once a week during monsoons. Even the slightest growth of nails provides excellent areas for harmful germs to breed and proliferate.

If you’re eating by hands, these germs will find their way into your body and make you sick.

Other than infections, nails can also leave scratches on your own body when the skin is wet. These scratches can get infected during monsoons.

If you notice any scratches that aren’t healing, seek medical advice immediately. They can develop into painful wounds with pus formation.

Pests & Rodents

Take enough care to ensure that pests like rats, mosquitos and other insects do not breed in and around your home.

Rat urine contains bacteria that cause a dreaded disease called Leptospirosis. During monsoons, there are high risks of Leptospirosis.

Also, parasites that breed on rats can cause plague and other dreadful diseases.

It goes without saying that mosquitos are responsible for spreading lots of disease including the all common Malaria and Elephant’s Foot.

Don’t allow water to accumulate near your house in discarded bins, tyres and other stuff. Spray insecticide powder generously in these areas.

Refrigerator

Your refrigerator can sometimes contain more harmful microbes than the toilet seat.

Therefore, remember to switch it off and clean thoroughly at least once a week during monsoons.

Discard any leftovers that have been left in the fridge for long: they could already be contaminated.

Also, never store unwashed fruits and vegetables without proper washing in your refrigerator. By doing so, you are actually sending germs to your fridge.

Wrap Up

These few precautions would help you maintain good health during monsoons. These are simple steps but can go a long way to ensure you don’t fall sick.

Any sickness comes with its own consequences such as high medical bills.

The best way to avoid these undesirable effects is by taking the above precautions. We hope you enjoy the best health during this rainy season.

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