5 Tips to Keep Your Child Healthy During Cold & Flu Season

1. 5 Tips to Keep Your Child Healthy During Cold & Flu Season ‘Tis the season of Autumn with its crisp air and beautiful fall foliage. Unfortunately, it’s also the onset of seasonal cold and flu with children being the most vulnerable targets . Parents are all too familiar with combating coughing, sneezing and runny noses, and children on an all-time low. And it all doesn’t stop there. Once junior has caught the bug, it spreads like fire to every other member of the family. Thus, going all out to ensure your little one stays healthy in the season will save you loads of physical and emotional stress thereafter. Here are some handy tips to get you going Get the flu shot The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) , a federal agency that conducts and supports health promotion, prevention and preparedness activities in the United States, with the intention of improving overall public health, is recommending that everyone six months of age and beyond get a ​flu shot​​ every year. The best way forward is to discuss the flu shots with your expert ​pediatric consultant​​​​who knows your baby inside out.

2. Blowing the Nose helps You won’t imagine how important it is for children to learn to blow their nose once they come of age. This prevents an unnecessary build-up of chest cold allowing them to nip the cold in the bud and saving you heaps of trouble. They mustn’t forget to junk the tissue in the bin once it is used. Handwashing will count Have you noticed how your little star washes his hands in a slipshod manner? All because he wants to get back to his game. But like it or not children need to know that handwashing is part and parcel of their must-do activity. Being exposed to bacteria and viruses daily at daycare, school and at home whether through a favorite shared preschool toy, a bathroom faucet or a doorknob, children are most susceptible to the virus. If they only learn to wash their hands properly (CDC recommends at least 10 to 15 seconds of hands scrubbing during each hand wash) after playing outdoors, before medals, post loo visits, after petting animals, they can escape the viral. Right Food counts We all know that children take to junk food like bees to a honeypot. But you must encourage them to consume a lot of fruits and vegetables which are power packed with nutrients and vitamins to boost the immune system. If fussy don’t be too adventurous at the start. Go with those fruits and vegetables they like, and then slowly introduce new ones. It’s a challenge, but one worth going after! Disinfect your home Germs thrive in this season. So a spic and span home will help even though it may entail bending backward to do so. Scrubbed countertops and toilets, disinfected toys and household surfaces in kitchens and bathrooms will fight the germs and reduce their numbers. Though it’s easier said than done, these tips if put into practice will allow you and your children to enjoy the season like it should be,beautifully and free. (read, of viruses!)