People should cough and sneeze into their sleeve rather than covering the nose and mouth if a tissue is not available, to prevent the flu from spreading, experts say.
The practice of covering the nose and mouth with the hands when sneezing and coughing are more likely to help rather than prevent the spread of flu, said Professor Guy Eslick of the University of Sydney.
It is best to cough or sneeze directly into a tissue. The next best solution is to use your sleeve, he said.
According to Australia's federal health department guidelines, flu viruses can survive on unwashed hands for 30 minutes and on cloth, paper and tissues for up to 12 hours, News.Com.Au reported.
"This is why it is important to always wash your hands after coughing, sneezing or blowing your nose, and to dispose of used tissues in a bin straight away," Eslick said.
Eslick was prompted to write to the Medical Journal of Australia after he spotted New South Wales (NSW) Health posters that he said indicated coughing into the hands was an acceptable method to stop the spread of flu, AAP news agency reported.
"I was surprised to see posters on buses and trains showing coughing into hands as an acceptable method of transmission prevention," he said in the letter, published in the journal.
"NSW Health will soon release our 2013 influenza public health campaign which includes the updated advice of cover your coughs and sneezes with a tissue and dispose of it, or if unavailable, coughing into your elbow is better than coughing in to your hands," a spokesman from NSW Health said.
