What to Buy If You Are Worried About the Coronavirus
You’ve seen pictures of destroyed grocery stores and heard horror stories from local warehouse clubs. Everyone seems to be stocking up on, well, everyone, as they await quarantine in the US.
And maybe you know it’s best not to pay triple the price for a bottle of hand sanitizer online or a box of masks that you don’t even need. But what is worth stocking up on while we wait for the full effect of the outbreak?
Don’t build an emergency bunker
Prepare like a blizzard or hurricane , not a full-fledged apocalypse. While you may see advertisements for court-ready (high-priced) kits, you don’t have to go that far to protect yourself.
Whether you’re looking to do a deep cleaning at home, or preparing to cancel work or school for a few days , it doesn’t take you long to be well prepared.
The most important item you need
When I asked Roslyn Stone what we should buy right now, she laughed, “Soap and water!” She is the COO of medical firms Zero Hour Health and Zedic and is quickly used to correcting rumors about the coronavirus .
“There is no reason to stock up on hand sanitizer,” she said, as we usually have access to soap and water for the frequent handwashing we have to do. You should only use hand sanitizer when you don’t have soap or water on hand, Stone says.
“Soap and water are our best friends,” agreed Dr. Snehal Doshi, neonatologist and CEO of Millennium Neonatology . “Wipes or disinfectant sprays for cleaning hard surfaces will also help. For example, take napkins with you and wipe the handles of the shopping trolley. “
Masks are another prohibition that we mentioned earlier, but it probably needs to be said again. At this point, unless you are sick or a healthcare professional, you should let your face breathe. (Just don’t touch it .)
Buy items that you usually use
For household items, prepare yourself for a few extra days of homemade food – not running out of water or electricity. Stone went to Costco over the weekend and saw someone buying a pallet of bottled water among their supplies. “There is no reason to believe we need bottled water,” she said.
“Consider what you and your family might need to stay at home for a week or more around the clock,” she said.
“Buy non-perishable or shelf-stable items that you need within two weeks,” said Dr. Doshi. “Also, buy the items you normally use so that after the crisis is over, you don’t spend a lot of money on the items you throw away.”
If you don’t cook a lot of food at home, remember to consider the foods you tend to outsource. If your kids eat breakfast and lunch at school, and you usually eat take-out during the day, you need to have meal options at home for this time of day. Choosing easy-to-prepare foods will make life easier when you run out of all the fresh food in your refrigerator.
“Find a variety of foods and condiments that will give you multiple options for one or two weeks of isolation,” Doshi said. “And don’t forget your toiletries.”