Small Things You Can Do To Reduce Spread of Disease

There are some simple steps you can do to help protect yourself (and others) whenever you might be sick with an illness that uses an aerosol spread (like COVID-19 but also many others that spread regularly even if we are able to get COVID-19 under control).

1. One quick thing to do is wearing a mask.
1. This is more important when you are indoors than when outdoors
2. This is more important when there are more people around than fewer
3. This is more important when you are in close quarters with people than when you can keep your distance.
4. This is more important when the indoor location has poor ventilation or when air is circulated across multiple people (think of air flowing slowly across a 10 foot wide and 30 foot long corridor with people every 6 feet, the people the air starts with are at little risk to themselves but if they happen to be infectious every other person in the corridor is at risk... second group of people are less at risk because only the first group being infectious would cause them to be at risk, but if they themselves are infectious, then the 3 later groups are all at risk...)
2. Grocery shopping.  Shopping is essential and a regular activity that must be undertaken.... so what can you do aside from just wearing a mask while indoors?
1. Use hand sanitizer.  If you're embarrassed, it's easy enough to use a hand sanitizer shortly before entering and after leaving.  This also helps ensure that less that you have comes in with you and less that is within leaves with you.  It doesn't help as much with aerosols in the wind but we all touch things while in the store and this can help with touch-spread, which is still a thing even if smaller than the rest of the concerns... and this is pretty simple to do so why not?
2. Use a wipe.  When you open refrigerator doors, consider using a wipe to touch the surface.  Again, this is small and less important than other precautions but any little bit is helpful, and this is also a pretty simple one.
3. Reduce your time indoors.  If you can, plan your trips so that you go every week or, even better, every other week instead of every couple of days or every day.  By doing so, you make spend more time inside on a given trip but you'll reduce the time spent on average as the time waiting in line across the multiple trips will reduce.  Also, you'll also reduce the networks because you'll only cross networks with the people in the store on the reduced number of occasions you go.  Reducing networks is crucial when fighting illnesses that spread easily.
4. No seriously, reduce your time indoors.  Plan your trip.  Know what you're getting and where it is in the store.  If you can, map out your path to make it the most efficient you can.  Travel from the entrance in a circle around the store if the store is mapped out with most of your items around the edges (like at BJs) or from one side to another if many things are in aisles that span the store (like most grocery stores).  Doing this can both help cut your time inside significantly as well as limit impulse purchases (if that's something you're concerned with).
5. Did I mention reducing your time indoors?  See if you get curb-side / touchless pickup.  Some stores allow you to order through their website and call them and have someone bring out your stuff and place in your car, some without additional fees.  What you lose in flexibility in what you purchase (because you're not there to pick the items in the event something is out of stock) you gain in never ever going inside (or going inside for a limited time to let the customer service desk know you're there).  
3. Social gatherings 
1. Stay outdoors.  Did I mention to reduce your time indoors?
2. Stay distanced.  Try to stay apart from each other even when outside.  The closer you are the less chance for the wind to disperse the particles.
3. Stay masked.  Even when outdoors and distanced.  Is there a particular reason you want people to have less of a barrier between your breath and theirs?
4. Reduce time.  The longer you spend with a group, the higher the chance that an infectious member of that group will spread the infection to others in the group.
5. Reduce networks.  This has two parts.  Keep the gathering small, but also keep those in the gatherings to small pods so that you aren't overlapping with as many other networks.  If possible, keep the pod wholly contained.  Playdates where the 5 families don't interact with any other friends/families means that those playdates have less risk of further spread.  Playdates, by the way, are not just for the kids.  Adults can have playdates and it's just as critical to keep those within contained pods.  And remember, networks are all interactions... that includes shopping, it includes indoor workplaces, it includes schools, it includes dining out, it includes everything you do where you come close to others.
4. Self-isolate - If you can / where you can, self isolate when spread is a concern.  
1. The office has the flu going around?  Consider working from home for a bit to protect yourself and to remove yourself from being a potential vector for the spread.  
2. You heard that a friend you just spent the day with just got sick?  Do others a favor and bow out of other social gatherings.
5. Vaccinate - COVID-19 isn't the only illness that we can reduce the spread of when we get vaccinated.  Please also get the flu vaccine when it becomes available each year.

Stay safe. Stay sane. Stay informed.