Don’t Get Sick: How to Avoid Germ Swapping While Drinking

Collegiettes, are you sick of being sick? While lack of sleep and stress can definitely contribute to constant coughing and sneezing, so can germs. And how do we catch said germs? Well, we can place a large blame on drinking and DFMOs (dance floor make outs).

I get it. Nobody wants to bring his or her own shot glass, chaser, or plastic cup across campus to a friend’s pregame. Additionally, no two people are chatting about their current “health” status before a DFMO (especially when they can’t even hear each other’s name).  But when your health is at risk, you’ve got to take germ prevention seriously, so here are several easy and fun ways that collegiettes can avoid catching (or spreading) something nasty:

1. Buy yourself plastic or paper mouthwash cups. These are extremely useful at pregames because everyone can have their own disposable shot glass so no one is spreading germs! Also a plus, you do not have to worry about cleaning afterwards because you can just throw them away!
    
2. One of the main reasons that people share drinks is because there never seems to be enough chaser. If you want to avoid people asking you for your drink, buy the two liter bottles of Coke, Sprite, etc. This way, your friends can pour their own drinks instead of asking for a sip of yours. And, in the long run, you are actually saving money! 
3. As for DFMOs…essentially, there isn’t much you can do ahead of time. Don’t make out with every guy at the party. But if you want to build your immune system, you might want to take Vegetable and/or Fruit Juice Plus Pills, which have nutrients from 17 different fruits, vegetables, and grains. 
4. Drinking Emergen-C before you go out is also a great way to avoid a stuffy nose and cough. Emergen-C contains vitamin C, vitamin B and electrolytes to keep you energized, hydrated, and healthy! It comes in all sorts of flavors including pink lemonade, lemon-lime, tropical, and dragon fruit.