disinfectant soap, one of the Best

Allison Janse, co-author of The Germ Freak's Guide to Outwitting Colds and Flu, turns into "a Stepford wife" whenever one of her family members gets sick.

Her techniques include spraying disinfectants on phones, doorknobs, TV remotes, light switches, the refrigerator handle and everything in the bathroom. Then she dips toothbrushes in Listerine, washes all toys, and changes bedding daily.

Overdoing It

Even Janse admits this may be overdoing it. The effects of this kind of hygienic assault on diseases is unknown. No study has shown that a vigorous program of home disinfection leads to a reduction of illness in a family.

Hot, Soapy Water

Cheryl Mendelson, author of Home Comforts: The Art and Science of Keeping House, in contrast, prefers plain hot, soapy water. She believes that the heavy marketing of disinfecting cleaners has led many to mistakenly believe that simple soaps and detergents aren't good enough.

Marketing of anti-bacterial hand soaps, for example, led many to buy products that the FDA has said are unnecessary and possibly dangerous.

The best solution for preventing the spread of disease is, most likely, frequent hand-washing.

The problem with an all-out, antibacterial cleaning frenzy: Doing so will disrupt the balance of bacteria -- both good and bad -- in your home and needlessly expose you and your family to potential health-harming chemicals .

The last thing you need to expose yourself to is triclosan, the chemical that is typically used in soap to "kill germs"

This is a very common practice and one that should be avoided like the plague.

Avoid illness by building up your immune system with a healthy diet, lifestyle and emotional balancing, but it certainly makes sense to decrease your exposure to potentially harmful bacteria when you can, using more sensible methods.

To keep disease and all the bad bacteria at bay, nothing works better than washing your hands with common soap and water.

Another powerful approach is to spend regular time in the ocean. The salt water is very effective at removing pathogenic organisms from your body and improving your health.

Very few are able to make such a radical change so you might want to consider using high quality full spectrum light bulbs and a natural method such as The Clenzology™ Advanced Hygiene System to substitute for jumping in the ocean.

The simple five-step Clenzology process takes just minutes a day to perform and goes beyond basic hygiene. It focuses on cleaning the areas of your body that most dramatically affect the overall quality of your health -- your hands, face, ears, mouth, and nose -- and is designed to vastly improve your current regimen with the ultimate goal of helping you achieve greater, more vibrant health and well-being.