Now that the flu season officially is upon us, hand sanitizer and disinfecting soap quickly have become our new best friends.

Second-grade pupils in the Indian Creek Local School District learned the importance of keeping their hands free of germs during the district's recent hand-washing experience.

As we all know by now, we have a double whammy this year when it comes the flu. We have our normal worries about seasonal flu plus we must deal with the H1N1 virus. So the importance of keeping our hands clean definitely has come to the forefront.

Clean hands are important, but we also must be sure we take additional precautions this flu season. Remember to cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Then, of course, please put your used tissue in the waste basket; don't leave it lying around. It also is very important that we practice proper cough etiquette. So if you have to cough, please remember to cough into your upper sleeve and not your hands.

Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Clean your hands often with soap and warm water for 20 seconds or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer. Try to avoid sick people; stay away from social gatherings and your workplace if you are feeling ill. And, of course, get those flu shots.

These precautions probably represent lessons we learned during our younger days. Somewhere along the line, we all learned the same things the second-graders were taught recently. However, sometimes we tend to forget about the little life lessons we've learned, and being forgetful can end up costing us in the long run.

Remember this flu season is very different from those in the past. We are battling two enemies, which means double the trouble. So make it a priority to follow the precautions and hopefully we can all stay safe and healthy.