Are you staying home as much as possible during the the coronavirus pandemic? We sure hope so! Unless you need food or medicine, you shouldn’t need to leave your home. That is, unless you’re an essential worker. In that case, stay safe out there. We’re super grateful for your hard work. The rest of this couldn’t get through this crisis without you.

For those of us who are living the at-home lifestyle, we realize that we’re still coming in contact with risk on a sometimes daily (and definitely weekly) basis. For example, do you check your mail? Do you ever get packages delivered to your door? What about pizza delivery?

Yeah, us too. Sure, we wash our hands after opening the mailbox, but what about the mail itself? Is it safe to touch, or could that contain the COVID-19 virus?

We’re not trying to freak you out or add anxiety to your life. Actually, our goal is to do the exact opposite. As soon as we learn about tips and tricks to minimize risk and keep you safe, we’re sharing them. For example, if you can’t find a face mask, learn how to easily make one (because you should be wearing a face mask when you go out in public, like to a grocery store).

Dr. Jeff VanWingen recently shared a video that we found very helpful when it comes to grocery shopping. This video focused on how to minimize risk once we bring food from a store into our home. For example, he recommends wiping down cardboard boxes and washing all fresh fruit and vegetables. These are simple steps we can take that could possibly make a huge difference in our health.

Now, Dr. VanWingen has tips to help us minimize risk when it comes to mail and boxes, including pizza boxes because sometimes we just need a pizza during a crisis. (Just us?)

First of all, it’s important to note that COVID-19 can live for 24 hours on cardboard. If possible, you can minimize the risk by simply waiting 24 hours before touching mail or any boxes that are delivered to your home. Or, you could bring the mail and boxes inside your home, wash your hands, and wait 24 hours before opening them.

Obviously you can’t always wait 24 hours before opening the mail, and you definitely can’t wait 24 hours before eating a pizza. What then? Watch the video below to see Dr. VanWingen’s tips to keep us safe.

One comment on this video reads, “The best thing I like about his videos is he doesn’t scare us that we are doing something wrong .. instead teaches us the best practices to follow to keep ourselves and our family safe .. I feel grateful and thankful that even in these not-so-ordinary times , he is trying his best to make this world a secure place to live by teaching us ..Thank you Jeff.”

We couldn’t have said it better. Don’t stress out about how you did things in the past. Simply adapt to this new ways of doing things, and take one day at a time.