Now more than ever, we’ve learnt the importance of teaching kids healthy habits to avoid the spread of illnesses. We’ve got some of the best tips on how to prevent your kids from getting a cold or flu. Plus, we’ve outlined how to boost your child’s immune system too!
Healthy habits are essential for little ones to learn. By preventing your kids from getting sick, you’re more likely to avoid those frustrating sniffles too!
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5 Healthy Habits for Your Kids
The common cold or flu are some of the most common reasons that kids miss school days (more days than we’d like). This is why you need to teach your kids some effective ways of preventing the spread of these types of illnesses, these are our top 5 tips.
1. Make handwashing a habit
According to the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, handwashing is one of the best ways to remove germs, avoid getting sick, and prevent the spread of germs to others. This is why it’s vital to teach kids to wash their hands often and wash them correctly.
Children spend so much time together in close quarters during the school day so it’s a good idea to make sure handwashing becomes something they do automatically. Make sure it becomes a habit and that they should do it when their hands could be considered dirty, so before they eat, after they use the bathroom after they’ve blown their nose or coughed into their hands for example.
2. Teach your little ones how to wash their hands properly
Make sure your child knows it’s not just about running water over their hands and that’s it. Teach your little one that they need to wash their hands for at least seconds (possibly come up with a handwashing song that lasts 30 seconds long to teach them precisely how long it should be). Make sure they know that they HAVE to use soap and water and that they scrub all over their hands (even their thumbs!).
3. Show them how to cough or sneeze correctly (and politely)
Colds and flu are spread easily when a sick person coughs or sneezes near or on someone else. Make sure your kids know to cover their nose and mouth when they sneeze or cough. They can use their elbow to shield their cough or sneeze, or they can cough or sneeze into a tissue.
Covering their nose and mouth with their hands might seem effective but can still spread illnesses. If they do happen to sneeze or cough into their hands, they need to ensure they wash them properly straight after.
4. Teach them to avoid touching their eyes and mouth
If your child touches something that someone with a cold has touched (and put their germs on) and then your kid touches their eyes or mouth, the virus can enter their body easily through these points.
Infections such as conjunctivitis (pink eye) can also be transmitted through touching eyes after touching an object that has been handled by someone with that infection. Teach your kids to avoid touching their eyes and mouth as much possible (this includes the importance of them not picking their nose!).
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5. Encourage your little ones not to share utensils or drinks
We know we always teach kids to share with their friends (this is an important lesson in child development) but there are some things that just cannot be shared. Kids might not want to share their most favourite toy, but they also shouldn’t share their eating utensils with friends, especially during cold and flu season.
It’s also a good idea for them to avoid sharing their juice or water because viruses and bacteria are easily transmitted through saliva, so this is one type of sharing that you should teach your child to avoid.
How to boost your child’s immune system
Colds and flu are sometimes a little difficult for your children to avoid no matter how hard they try so it’s important to keep their immune system as healthy as possible. We have listed some simple yet effective ways to do this.
Vitamins
Find some child-friendly vitamins that your little ones won’t mind taking. Ensure your kids take their vitamins every morning (no skipping days, not even weekends!). A daily vitamin is important for when your child might be lacking some vitamins and minerals from their diet.
As a parent, we know you try your best to give your child everything they need and ensure they are healthy, but vitamins are ideal for an extra boost!
Discover: The Top 5 Immune Boosting Vitamins to Add to Your Diet
A good night’s sleep
As your little one is growing, sleep is vital. Children should have no less than 8 hours of sleep a night. Make sure you have a bedtime ritual and that you’ve set a time for your kid to be in bed.
You should make sure you try to follow this routine on weekends too! Your child might not have to wake up early for school, but the routine is still important and getting enough sleep will keep their immune system strong.
Healthy diet
This is a more obvious hack. We all know that a healthy diet, filled with vitamins and minerals and a good mix of proteins, fats and carbs, is important for us to be healthy.
This is even more true for your kids. As your child grows, a healthy diet not only aids their development but also the strength of their immune system.
Physical activity
Children definitely don’t need to spend hours in a gym, but it is important that they don’t spend their days in front of the TV or merely playing video games. Make sure your kid gets involved in a sport they love or that they at least get 30 minutes of physical activity a day.
These are just some of our simple tips to keep your kids as healthy as possible!
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