As schools open and classrooms fill with students, we’ve compiled a few tips to keep your kids healthy and safe this school year. By supporting your kid’s mental and physical health you will increase their readiness to learn and decrease their stress.
To help reduce your children’s sick days and strengthen their immune systems, follow our three tips for staying healthy this year.
Get sufficient sleep: Rachel Dawkins, M.D., with Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, recommends children ages six to twelve receive nine to twelve hours of sleep every night. And children aged thirteen to eighteen get eight to ten hours of sleep. Sleep quality directly correlates with behavior, eating habits, and ability to fight infections. Lack of sleep can create mood swings, temper tantrums, and an increased risk of disease.
Form healthy eating habits:
Nurture your child’s health with a nutritious breakfast, lunch, and dinner, keeping them going throughout the day. And always remember water for hydration. A healthy breakfast will start your child’s day off right and improve their ability to focus and concentrate. Include a nutritious lunch and finish off the day with a family dinner. Dinnertimes spent with family encourage better health and well-being, such as mood, and aid in digestion.
Wash hands frequently:
Washing your hands is the best way to stop the spread of germs. A unique tip to have your child wash their hands for the recommended time of 20 seconds is to sing “Happy Birthday”. Along with washing hands, teach them to keep their hands away from their face and to cough or sneeze into their arm or shoulder.
These three tips are great for avoiding the common cold or flu! Hand washing is incredibly important to protecting your child from a pinworm infection. Pinworms are an intestinal parasite that starts with the ingestion of pinworm eggs. The eggs can be on contaminated hands, under fingernails, and on surfaces people touch often. Be stress-free this school year and use our three tips to keep your child healthy.