The fall and winter seasons not only mark the beginning of the holidays, but they also mark cold and flu season. Get the best tips from our Loveland doctor to keep your family well.
The cold and flu season can hit kids hard, and if you are a working parent or caregiver, it’s important to help your kids stay healthy this season so they can be in school learning and you can be at work!
There are many tactics to battle germs that lead to the cold and flu and our family physicians at Huneycutt Family Medicine have practical ways to keep everyone healthy! Join us in today’s blog and get the best and most practical tips on tackling the cold and flu season.
Protect Your Little Ones This Cold and Flu Season
There are many approaches when it comes to immune health such as taking zinc and echinacea, and boosting your diet with antioxidants and eating less junk, and there are also very practical things to keep your little ones healthy.
- Model healthy behavior – Modeling healthy habits are crucial for youngsters to see because it teaches them what to do — when they see you do it, they are more likely to mimic these healthy and habits too.
- Wash your hands – This is a great thing to do to keep healthy, but sometimes it’s often missed. Model and talk to your child about washing hands during this season — it goes beyond just the bathroom and before you eat. Ramp it up and wash your hands after you go out in public to run errands, especially when you touch things such as grocery carts and check out surfaces.
- Cough and sneeze properly – Kids are notorious for coughing and sneezing out and into the open, so please, teach them to cough and sneeze into their elbows or inside their shirts. Coughing and sneezing into the air is a sure way to spread germs.
- Blow noses properly – This is a big lesson for little ones. Typically they have the urge to stick their fingers in their noses and then touch things all around them. Instead, teach them to blow their noses into a tissue and wash or sanitize their hands afterward.
- Stay hydrated – This can be tough to instill in kids, but try having a conversation with them about drinking enough water. Send them to school with a water bottle they can sip throughout the day and challenge them to drink the whole thing! Water assists the body by keeping mucous thin, so it is easier for kids to blow their nose or cough it up.
- Avoid people who are sick – While this may be another difficult thing to teach your child, talk to them about the importance of avoiding those who coughing and sneezing a lot — whether it be at school or out in public. The better they can avoid it, the less likely they’ll catch it!
Wellness is imperative in this season, so having the skills and wherewithal to combat germs and illness will help everyone! Teach your kids these basics and have a healthy cold and flu season!
Our office and the primary care physicians in Loveland who house it are here to support you this season! Schedule a wellness exam today!