Should we stop shaking hands during Flu season in the winter? a yahoo news article discussed this issue. What do you guys think?

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/061023/health/health_healthmatters_handshakes

I think that shaking doesn´t contribute much to catching the flu. It´s more important to maintain a proper room climate (enough humidity and not too warm) to keep the muscous membranes intact. Ventilating the room frequently also helps to keep the flu at bay (took some work but it´s done in the office too). Frequent walks in the fresh winter air help a lot too.
I would avoid to shake hand with a person with an acute infection. That´s not because of the skin contact but because it allows to keep some distance.
I haven´t caught the flu or a cold for more than a decade even when my colleagues had to take sick leaves after coming to the office until the infection forced them to stay in bed.

Since I started working in an ER I haven't had a cold, flu and other ilk, because we keep the "ER" cold bacteria doesn't grow in cold climates, so basically we are "germ free"

Not quite true, many bacterial organisms have an “ideal” growth temperature range, but can grow slower at lower or higher temperature ranges. Keep in mind the flu and colds are caused by viruses not bacteria.

Trust me, keeping it cold does not create a germ free environment by any stretch of the imagination.

Pete

Keeping a room cold often keeps the humidity in a good range. Heating the air can cause a drop in relative humidity. This can open the entrance path for the bacteria and viruses. The effect is often misinterpreted. We measured the temperature and humidity in our office. We had about 26°C and 10% humidity. People kept catching colds several times in the winter time. As we could not do much about the temperature (high powered PCs provide all the heating we need) we got lots of plants the humidity went up to 30% - 40% and sick leaves dropped sharply.

It is not just hands; it is also anything someone touches.
Doorknob's, telephones, keyboards, baniters, railings, you get the idea.
Just wash your hands with plain soap and water as frequently as possible.
That and a good diet will give you good odds at not getting the flu.

You'd be amazed.

You are about to sneeze, you cover your hand with your mouth. Ten minutes later, you shake hands with someone. Ten minutes after that, they cough, and they've got most of the germs you put on your hand.

Although it isn't a problem for me- I mostly bow anyway. It's part of my public persona.

"Just wash your hands with plain soap and water as frequently as possible."

Better than soap and water are the hand sanitizing liquids, auch as Purell. They kill more germs, and keep more from growing over a perios of about an hour.

True.
I have seen pictures of culture plates, where they took a culture from nurse's hands after they washed with an antibacterial soap, and another one where they used a Purell type gel. After a few days, the plate where hands were washed with soap was teaming with bacteria, while alcohol gel one had barely any growth on it.

In my hospital they have now changed the phrasing of signs in the bathrooms. They say you can wash your hands with soap and water OR use the alcohol based gels

I've taken to doing 2 things...
The proper LONG hand wash (most folks don't wash LONG enough - it should take at LEAST 30 seconds - long enough to recite "twinkle twinkle" is a goot way to time it)

and

Use the hand gel when I get back to my desk

I figure between the 2 of them, I'm probably set