Sneeze into your SLEEVE??!! Are you KIDDING me?!

[speckledhen]

I rarely rant but this one takes the cake! I shake my head in disgust every time I hear it. Where did that nasty bit of advice start circulating the airwaves? I only recall hearing this for the past couple of years. I cannot believe they are suggesting folks sneeze into their sleeve! How disgustingly gross (and frankly, a bit low-class, in my opinion)!

How backwards can we get here? How about having a tissue on hand when you have a cold? Then, you throw it away and no one can get your nasty flu germs! They come in those handy small packs, too-no excuse not to have them if you have a cold/flu.

I am appalled that we are getting that tidbit of advice from whoever started circulating it (govt? CDC? Who can I blame for this?) but I just heard it on a Muppet commercial, again. Who wants snot on their sleeve? And what if someone pats you on the arm, or your sleeve brushes against equipment in the office and someone touches your germs, or someone hugs you? Are we back in the middle ages, for cripes sake? Even a nasty handkerchief is better than your arm/sleeve! That has to be the stupidest, most ignorant piece of advice I've come across in years. It will have exactly the opposite effect than stopping the spread of flu germs. Sorry, I just had to scream about this. Kleenex, people, KLEENEX!

 

[TerriLaChicks]

Well thank goodness! I thought it was just me who thought that was the stupidest, if not grossest, thing I've heard in years! Really, how tacky can you get?

At least I know I'm not alone in my thinking...

 

[key west chick]

I occasionaly sneeze into the bend in my elbow. But, its not when Im snotty with a cold. Its for the ones that sneak up on you when your standing in line at the buffet and dont want to sneeze into your hand when your about to grab the communal spoon...

 

[Katy]

That's what kids are taught now and I guess it makes some amount of sense to me. The thinking is that when especially kids sneeze into their hands they spread the germs more readily by the toys, books, whatever they touch after they've sneezed into their hands.

 

[PepsNick]

Oh. yuck! I haven't heard of ADULTS being taught that! ::holds in a barf:: But you know what? A chicken sneezing into your open mouth is A LOT grosser than that. Learned from experience

 

[Godsgrl]

not everyone carries tissue with them 24/7.

Sometimes a random sneeze just catches up to you. I mean, would you rather someone sneeze on you, in their hands and then touch the copier, or in their sleeve? My niece sneezes down her shirt, but that is a bit much for me.

 

[SparksNV]

I have to disagree with this just a bit. how many times have you sneezed unexpectantly and not have a kleenex handy? i also dont know too many kids who carry tissues around. I know this has happened to me. The sleeve is much preferred over sneezing directly into the air (droplets carry really far) or into your hand and then it is wiped on the pants and hands not washed. most people do not get close enough to bump against the crook of your arm.

i work in healthcare and deal with this daily. of course you could be the nurse to the adult patient who just sits there with half a finger lost in their nose and they wonder why you are wearing gloves...

 

[Godsgrl]

Quote:

That is really gross. One time my son was holding our ferret on his shoulder, and I went over to give her some sugar. We would always touch noses when ds held her. This time, she sneezed in my face as soon as I got close. Animals have no manners.

 

[rainplace]

I'm in a work environment where it's darn near impossible to get into a pocket (think heavy gloves outside in the cold). I always always sneeze or cough into my elbow. Keeps my gloves clean and hopefully more free of germs when I touch equipment that others touch. In the summer, I do the same thing since my hands are often covered in dirt, mud or some sort of grime.

In general when we touch people, we touch with our hands. I would much rather someone sneeze, cough, whatever, into their sleeve/elbow crook.

My son got into a gross habit of picking his nose and wiping it on his pants. Now that was gross. He hasn't done it since girls started catching his eye.

 

[Dunkopf]

Yes it's gross but it's better than sneezing into your hand. I have to meet a lot of people in my job. A handshake is just about routine. I hate it when someone sneezes or coughs in to their hand then sticks it out to shake my hand. It happens all the time. I would rather have them turn their head and cough in the air.

I was in a checkout lane with a bottle of soda for my kid. The cashier sneezes in her hand and then picks up my bottle to scan it. I went and got another bottle and left her with the snotty one.

Makes perfect sense if you don't have a kleenex. Those little packs have about 3 tissues in them. People don't use hankies anymore. That's ok though. My Dad used those and my mother could never get the goobers out. They were like rubber cement or something. Gross.

They started all that business back during the swine flu scare. Kids are real bad about not using kleenex even though the school makes you bring 2 boxes every semester for the kids. Of course schools are just a big germ pit anyway. If you remember the swine flu was a bit of a concern.