Has all the H1N1 flu talk got you buying Purell by the gallon and wishing you could live in a bubble for the next few months? Well, relax. You can&rsquo;t avoid all germs even if you want to, and for most of us most of the time, our bodies do a great job fending off microscopic evildoers.</p><p> Still fretting? Here we rank germ-avoiding behaviors from sensible to over-the-top (stop flushing public toilets with your foot!), with comments from two local experts: Rex Archer, director of the Kansas City Health Department, and Nina Shik, director of nursing practice and clinical excellence at the University of Kansas Hospital. </p><p><hr class="infobox-hr-separator" /> <div class="infobox"> Go to <a href="http://www.mom2momkc.com">mom2momkc.com</a> to share your germophobe stories. Click on &ldquo;Hot Topic.&rdquo;</p><p></div> <hr class="infobox-hr-separator" /> <div class="infobox"> <strong>You re-spray and wipe down gym equipment, even if the person before you should have already done it.</strong> &ldquo;You can&rsquo;t assume that person has done it or done it thoroughly,&rdquo; Archer says.</p><p><strong>You bring your own mat to yoga class.</strong> Makes sense, Shik says.</p><p><strong>You refuse to shake hands. </strong>&ldquo;If you&rsquo;re ill, then absolutely,&rdquo; Archer says. Otherwise? Consider another greeting, such as the elbow bump. For someone you know well, there&rsquo;s the &ldquo;heinie bump.&rdquo;</p><p><strong>You</strong><strong> use knuckles to touch elevator buttons, ATMs, water fountains etc.</strong> But if you touch your eyes or nose with your knuckles, you haven&rsquo;t helped yourself any. Try using your elbow.</p><p><strong> You have flu-suffering kids at home wear face masks.</strong> The CDC recommends it. But putting a mask on a child who may be having trouble breathing? &ldquo;That&rsquo;s probably pushing it a little bit,&rdquo; Archer says. Try separating sick kids from healthy kids.</p><p><strong>You wipe down the handles of grocery carts.</strong> Most stores provide wipes. Plus, Archer points out, a kid with a soiled diaper might have been just about where your hands are.</p><p><strong>You reapply hand sanitizer once an hour.</strong> Depends on what you&rsquo;re doing. In a work setting with common areas, frequent hand washing or use of sanitizer is a good idea.</p><p><strong>You</strong><strong>wear disposable sleeves to sneeze or cough into.</strong> But you have to touch them when you take them off, Shik points out.</p><p><strong>You use paper towels to touch public restroom doors.</strong> &ldquo;I do that myself sometimes,&rdquo; Shik says. But toilets tend to be cleaner than workplace telephones and keyboards. When was the last time you wiped down your phone?</p><p><strong>You refuse to enter the home of someone who&rsquo;s recently had H1N1.</strong> If the person is still coughing or has a fever, avoiding them is a good idea, Archer says. Still, &ldquo;you could have the same risk at the grocery store or sitting at the movies or in church,&rdquo; Shik says.</p><p><strong>You use napkins to touch things at a restaurant, like salad bar tongs and cheese shakers.</strong> If the restaurant&rsquo;s so grimy it makes you uncomfortable, eat elsewhere, Shik says. Wherever you are, using alcohol hand rub before you eat is a good idea.</p><p><strong>You use your own pen to sign credit card bills at a store or restaurant, not the one they offer you.</strong> You can&rsquo;t avoid touching contaminated surfaces. Just wash hands frequently and try not to touch your eyes, nose and mouth.</p><p><strong> You refuse to use public restrooms.</strong> &ldquo;You can use the restroom. You just need to wash your hands when you&rsquo;re done,&rdquo; Shik says. And remember: Wash for at least 15 seconds, get some friction going, and dry thoroughly.</p><p><strong>You use your foot to flush a public toilet.</strong> Yeah, and &ldquo;then you go home and put your feet on the sofa,&rdquo; Shik says. One more time: Wash up after you do your business.</p><p><strong>You keep healthy kids out of school or day care because of flu worries.</strong> No reason unless your child has a serious medical condition, Shik says. If you&rsquo;re concerned, talk with the school nurse to find out how well the school enforces the rule that sick kids go home/stay home.</p><p><strong>You refuse to let your children play in indoor play areas.</strong> Kids are little germ factories, but what are you gonna do? Make sure they wash their hands when they&rsquo;ve finished playing.</p><p></div>