Catching the flu is one of those common experiences to which everyone can relate. We take precautions such as hand and surface sanitization and even getting vaccinated to avoid getting the flu. But most don’t address the most common means of contracting the disease – the air.
More can be done to minimize the dramatic effects of flu season, especially in hubs for spreading the virus such as offices, schools, hotels and communal living facilities.
In a special report, AeraMax Professional highlights the tremendous toll influenza takes on our health and economy each year, as well as provides information on our targeted solution. The report rests on four important but little-known facts:
- Flu is costly and can be extremely detrimental
- Traditional prevention methods aren’t enough
- Airborne exposure is the most common way to catch flu
- Small virus particles can travel throughout rooms
While handwashing and cleaning surfaces are tried and true methods for minimizing the effects of the common cold and other germs, these routines do little from preventing the airborne transmission of influenza. Flu particles expelled by a sneeze or cough are easily inhaled, can travel long distances and can stay in the air for several hours.
Each year, influenza is attributed with an economic burden of $83.3 billion in the U.S. During flu season, about 20 percent of the country’s population is infected, strongly contributing to the 38 million missed school days and 17 million missed days of work annually caused by the virus.
Improving indoor air quality with filtration not only makes facilities cleaner, but also removes harmful infectious particles from common areas. AeraMax Professional air purifiers use true HEPA filters to effectively remove 99.9 percent of infectious influenza particles from the air in only 35 minutes.
Facility managers can download the entire flu season special report to learn more about how to mitigate the significant impact of influenza and improve indoor air quality in common gathering places.