Wipe and swipe smartphones to avoid the flu this season

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, last year's flu season was one of the worst on record. How can it be avoided? Simple, everyday acts like washing hands throughout the day and making sure all surfaces are clean can help stave off the flu. In fact, viruses that cause influenza can survive on hard surfaces like phones and keyboards for up to 48 hours. When considering the average cellphone user touches their phone 2,617 times every day, smartphones can be a hotbed for germs.

"Experts tell us that the most common ways the flu is spread is through person-to-person contact, as well as from dirty hands that touch our face," said Matt Kasper, director of sales for U.S. Cellular in New England. "For this reason, we highly recommend washing hands after handling objects touched by others and not sharing your smartphone with others, especially during flu season."

U.S. Cellular provides the following tips to help stay healthy this season:

• Keep Surfaces Clean: According to an annual survey by U.S. Cellular, 41 percent of smartphone owners check their phone an average of once an hour, and 20 percent every few seconds or minutes. U.S. Cellular recommends cleaning devices frequently with a soft, slightly damp, lint-free cloth, using handsfree headsets, and avoiding using devices in restrooms. 

• Flu Outbreaks: Early detection and early response are key to preventing the spread of any disease, including the flu. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offers a free app, FluView, available in the App Store and on Google Play, to help users track flu outbreaks in their state throughout flu season. Flu Near You, flunearyou.org, is a website that relies

on voluntary participation from the public to help track the flu in

real-time. The website also provides a map of reported flu cases, a vaccine

finder and the latest flu news. The CDC's Twitter account, twitter.com/CDCFlu,

is also a resource to stay on top of the latest information about

this year's flu.

Apps to stay in the know and healthy:

• Sickweather, available for free in the App Store and on Google Play, is the largest illness crowdsourcing community of its kind, processing over 6 million reports of illness each month. The app provides real-time alerts whenever users enter a sick zone. Be alerted for flu, Norovirus, pink eye, whooping cough and 20 other illnesses. 

• Doctors on Demand, also available for free in the App Store and on Google Play, allows users to connect in minutes with board-certified physicians and doctoral-level therapists online over live video from a smartphone or tablet. Faster and less expensive than a walk-in clinic or ER, users can chat with a doctor virtually 24/7, including nights and weekends. Just like an in-person visit, a doctor will take a person's history and symptoms, perform an exam, and may recommend treatment, including prescriptions and lab work. 

• Home Remedies+, available in the App Store and on Google

Play, is an app that gives users access to the most common alternative

remedies or herbal treatments for illnesses like the flu, common cold and

high blood pressure.

U.S. Cellular encourages smartphone users to stop by a local store to speak

with the wireless company's knowledgeable associates. Getting advice on how

to keep devices clean this flu season could help families stay

healthy.

To learn more about U.S. Cellular, visit www.uscellular.com.