Best Swine Flu prevention technique: Spit into your hand.

WASHINGTON — The acting head of the Centers for Disease Control said Monday that people can best protect themselves against the swine flu threat by taking precautions they were taught as kids, like frequently washing their hands.

Asked what individual steps should be taken, Richard Besser replied: "The things that we learned when we were little, covering a cough ... staying home when you have a fever, frequent hand-washing. If people do these things, it will decrease the spread in our communities."

I'm not sure, because I'm not too bright - but I think covering your mouth when you cough or sneeze is a lot like spitting into your hand, and I wouldn't want to think we were being advised to do that in order to prevent the spread of a disease.

Are we?