Seriously now, two practical things everyone can do is stay home if you are sick and wash your hands often. This may sound like common sense but too many people try to be heroes going in to work sick: "See, even on death's door I made it into work!" Keep your germs to yourself and try and work remotely.

The US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) claim that fully 80% of infectious diseases are transmitted by touch, and that proper handwashing is the single most important way you can protect yourself. Wash your hands for at least 15 seconds with warm sudsy water as soon as you get home before touching anything, before you eat, and several times during the day. We can't avoid hand shaking in all situations, but wash your hands afterward as statistics say only 68% of people wash their hands after using the restroom. Giving a wipe down to your computer, cell phone and door handles is another good way to stop the spread of germs. We find these wipes from Clorox quite handy.

Out of curiosity, on average how often do you wash your hands in a day? Also, are you the type to stay home when sick or drag yourself to work to impress the boss?