How Cleaning Professionals Can Help Keep Building Occupants Healthy and Safe

Contributed by Keith Schneringer, LEED AP O+M, Senior Director of Marketing JanSan + Sustainability, BradyPlus

It is that time of year again – the “Cold and Flu Season”.

Although we can all potentially get sick at any point in time throughout the year, the reality is that viruses like the flu (Influenza), RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus), and now COVID-19 all peak during the winter months between December and February.

Throw in a little norovirus outbreak for this winter of 2025 and it may seem like just about everyone we know is “coming down with something” these days.

Why does there always seem to be a surge in illness during the winter?

What can we all do to help protect ourselves each winter (including this one)?

And what can we in the cleaning industry do to help protect people when they visit the away-from-home spaces for which we are responsible?

Read on for some thoughts on these timely questions…

Why Is There a Cold and Flu Season?

When I was in high school it seemed like I always caught a cold during the winter. I usually chalked it up to the fact that it was right in the middle of basketball season, and I was regularly going in and out of hot, sweaty gyms into the cold night air coupled with the stress of balancing my time between the basketball season and my studies. Final exams right before the holidays and during holiday basketball tournaments always seemed to be peak opportunities for catching a cold.

Cold Weather: As it turns out, cold weather does play a role in making people more susceptible to getting sick. When it comes to respiratory viruses like the flu, our noses are a primary point of entry. As a result, our body typically attacks foreign invaders like flu pathogens by producing billions of tiny little helpers called extracellular vesicles (EVs) and sending them out to do battle with these germs in our nasal mucous (also known as snot) where they can attack the virus before it has the chance to enter our body and get us sick. During the winter months, the cold air dramatically reduces the nose’s production of these EVs, thereby reducing our body’s immunity defenses. In addition, the cilia in our bodies (the small hairlike projections in our upper respiratory tract designed to keep foreign objects out of our lungs) don’t function as well in cooler temperatures and lower humidity, and that also makes us more susceptible to getting sick.

More Time Indoors: Since most people spend more time indoors during the winter to protect themselves from the cold outdoor air, it stands to reason that the odds of catching a virus increase. Our indoor spaces provide less ventilation and more opportunity to be exposed to pathogens as we spend less time in the well-ventilated outdoors and more time in close proximity to others who are all breathing in the potentially contaminated and less well-ventilated indoor air and touching the potentially contaminated indoor surfaces. Our exposure to more “indoor air” during the winter makes us more susceptible to getting sick.

Drier Air: Finally, less humidity in the air during the colder winter months allows for smaller droplets that contain pathogens to be suspended in the air longer and to travel farther. During warmer, more humid months, droplets leaving our mouths when we talk, cough, or sneeze combine with the moisture in the air to create larger droplets that fall to the floor faster. The smaller droplets produced in the drier winter air make us more susceptible to getting sick.

How To Protect Yourself During Cold and Flu Season?

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), you can best protect yourself from getting sick each winter by taking the following approach:

·      Get vaccinated – If it fits into your plans, getting vaccinated for flu and COVID can help to prevent infection or at least minimize symptoms. While there is not a vaccine for norovirus, and the vaccine for RSV is approved for use to protect older adults or pregnant people, getting vaccinated is a proven means to protect yourself from getting sick.

·      Wash hands frequently – It is always a good idea to wash your hands well and frequently. Especially before and after handling food, after contact with someone who is sick, and after using the restroom, washing your hands is another proven means to protect yourself from getting sick.

·      Wear a mask – If you think you are getting sick or will be around people who are sick, a well-fitted mask can help to offer protection from exposure for you and others.

·      Avoid large gatherings – If you think you are getting sick, avoiding large gatherings can help to prevent the spread of illness between you and others.

What Can The Cleaning Industry Do During Cold and Flu Season?

All of us in the cleaning industry can also help to contribute to overall public health as people leave their homes during the “Cold and Flu Season” and go to work, learn, heal, or have fun in the “away-from-home” spaces for which we are responsible.

No matter whether we oversee cleaning an office building, a school, a healthcare facility, a hotel, a movie theater, or a sports arena, we have a responsibility to deliver a clean, healthy, and safe space for regular building occupants and one-time visitors alike.

The reality is that people get sick when they are exposed to infectious pathogens, and that exposure is typically either through direct contact with an infected person, through touching an infected surface, through eating an infected food source, or through breathing infected air.

While we can’t help prevent every possible mode of transmission, we in the cleaning industry can definitely play a role to provide some assistance with clean hands, clean surfaces, and clean air.

During the winter months at the height of this recent outbreak of flu, RSV, COVID, and norovirus, here is a checklist of what is needed for the cleaning industry:

Enhanced Hand Hygiene Solutions

·      Why:

o   Infectious diseases are spread by touch – and clean hands help to prevent the spread of pathogens and create a healthier building environment.

·      What You Will Need:

o   Hand Soaps

o   Paper Towels

o   Hand Sanitizers

o   No-Touch Dispensing Systems and Fixtures

Comprehensive Surface Cleaning Solutions

·      Why:

o   Dirty surfaces create ideal conditions for pathogenic microbes to survive and thrive – and clean surfaces decrease pathogenic microbes and create a healthier building environment.

·      What You Will Need:

o   Cleaning Chemicals for Restrooms and General Surfaces

o   Cleaning Tools like Microfiber, Wipes, Brushes, Scrubbing Pads

o   Cleaning Chemical Dilution Control Systems

High-Touch Surface Disinfecting Solutions

·      Why:

o   High-touch surfaces are a potential source for pathogen transfer to building occupants – and targeted disinfection of high-touch surfaces will inactivate and suppress the growth of harmful pathogens, and create a healthier building environment

·      What You Will Need:

o   Disinfectant Chemicals

o   Disinfectant Wipes

o   Disinfectant Applicators like Sprayers, Buckets, and Electrostatic Sprayers

Integrated Floor Care Solutions

·      Why:

o   Floors are one of the largest reservoirs in a building where dirt can collect, infectious agents can thrive, and germs and particulates can then be kicked up and transmitted thru the air – and clean floors help to eliminate the possible transmission of pathogens and allergens to building occupants and create a healthier building environment

·      What You Will Need:

o   Hard Floor Cleaning Chemicals

o   Carpet Cleaning Chemicals

o   Cleaning Tools like Microfiber, Mops, and Floor Pads

o   Cleaning Equipment like Autoscrubbers, Vacuum Cleaners, and Extractors

Focused Indoor Air Quality Solutions

·      Why:

o   Infectious respiratory diseases are spread from person to person through the air – and cleaning strategies focused on clean indoor air quality help to mitigate the transmission of pathogens and allergens and create a healthier building environment.

·      What You Will Need:

o   Entryway Matting Systems

o   High Filtration Vacuum Cleaners

o   Low VOC Cleaning Chemicals

o   Microfiber Cloths and Mops

o   Drain Trap Seals

o   Waste Management Strategies To Minimize Exposure and Avoid Cross Contamination

o   Air Purifiers

Cleaning Industry Expertise and Training Solutions

·      Why:

o   Misapplication and misuse of cleaning and disinfecting solutions can lead to ineffective results and even potential injury – and partnering with a trusted industry advisor can help to optimize results and create a healthier building environment

·      What You Will Need:

o   Cleaning and Disinfecting Standard Operating Procedures

o   Ongoing Training Support – On-Site, In-Class, Online

o   Building Occupant Signage and Communication

o   A Trusted Advisor With Cleaning Industry Expertise

Putting It All Together

Cold and Flu Season comes around every year – and every year, we in the cleaning industry have an opportunity to contribute to the common good and to overall public health. We can offer effective solutions to contribute to cleaner hands, cleaner surfaces, and cleaner air – and hopefully we can continue to make a difference in protecting public health.