How to keep your child from getting the flu

Tips for Treating the Flu (for Parents)

Reviewed by: Elana Pearl Ben-Joseph, MD

en español Consejos para tratar la gripe

What Is the Flu?

The flu (influenza) is a very contagious viral infection of the respiratory tract (nose, throat, and lungs). The flu can make someone feel pretty sick for up to a week.

How Is the Flu Treated?

The flu usually doesn't need medical treatment. Sometimes, doctors might prescribe an antiviral medicine for some people who have the flu. This medicine works best if given within the first 2 days of the illness. It can make flu symptoms milder and shorten the illness by a couple of days. But it has some side effects, so discuss the pros and cons of taking it with your doctor.

Doctors don't prescribe antibiotics for the flu. Antibiotics only work against bacteria, not viruses.

How Can I Help My Child?

If your child gets the flu:

Offer plenty of liquids. Fever and appetite loss are common with the flu, and can lead to dehydration.
Encourage your child to rest in bed or on the couch with a supply of magazines, books, quiet music, and perhaps a favorite movie.
Dress your child in layers that are easy to add and remove during bouts of chills or fever.
Give acetaminophen or ibuprofen for fever and aches. (Do not give aspirin unless your doctor tells you to. It has been linked to a rare but serious illness called Reye syndrome.)
You can give over-the-counter cough or cold medicines to children over 6 years old if your doctor says it's OK. Follow the package instructions carefully so you give the right amount. Do not give these medicines to children under 6 years old because they can cause bad reactions.
Running a cool-mist humidifier can help relieve coughs and runny or stuffy noses. Clean it after each use or at least once a day.
Honey can help loosen a stubborn cough in children older than 12 months of age. Give 1–2 teaspoons of honey at night. Do not give honey to children under 12 months old.
For a stuffy nose:
- For babies: Put a few drops of saline (saltwater) into the nose, then gently suction the mucus out with a bulb syringe. Do this no more than 2–3 times a day so that the inside of your baby's nose does not get swollen or sore.
- For older kids: Give 2 sprays of saline nose spray 3 times a day.

Take care of yourself and the other people in your family. If you haven't already, speak to your doctor about getting the flu vaccine for you and other family members. It's recommended yearly for everyone older than 6 months of age. Also, wash your hands well and often, especially after picking up used tissues.

If your doctor prescribes medicine to ease symptoms, call the pharmacist before you go to pick it up. In a severe flu season, some pharmacies might have trouble keeping the medicines in stock.

Kids who are sick should stay home from school and childcare until they:

feel better
have been fever-free for at least 24 hours without the use of a fever-reducing medicine

Reviewed by: Elana Pearl Ben-Joseph, MD

Date reviewed: November 2022

5 Ways to Protect Your Child During Flu Season

Allergies, Cold and Flu,Parenting,Nutrition,Most Recent

November 15, 2019

If your family already has received their flu shots in preparation for what’s predicted to be another severe flu season, well done: You’re off to a great start. You’ve done your part to keep the virus from unnecessarily spreading. This is so important, as last year’s flu season was the longest we have seen in a decade and 136 children died, many of whom were not vaccinated.

While a flu shot doesn’t account for 100 percent protection, it can reduce risk by 50 percent while also decreasing overall admissions to intensive care units (ICUs) by 75 percent. If your child has received their flu shot but still does get sick, you will notice their symptoms are likely to be less severe.

Want to protect your children even more? Here are five ways to do exactly that.

1: Eat your veggies.

It’s important to exercise prevention against disease and illness all year long, not just at certain times of the year. However, if you want to bolster your family’s immune systems, start by ensuring they have a healthy diet. This means including plenty of vegetables — eating the rainbow, as I like to say — along with a wide variety of fruits. Fill their meals with complex carbohydrates and protein. Do so all year long and their immune systems will be ready when the flu does come.

2: Have another glass of water.

We hear this one a lot, but it doesn’t lessen its importance: Be certain your family drinks plenty of water. By ensuring they stay well-hydrated and get plenty of rest, you’re helping protect your children from all manner of sickness.

3: Don’t skimp on the herbs.

Keep your medicine cabinet well stocked. Less common but still effective ways of staving off illness include plant-based supplements and herbal remedies. Some of the ones I encourage include echinacea, black elderberry, vitamin C, garlic and zinc.

4: Don’t pout — flush it out.

This time of year, we see everything from respiratory infections to stomach viruses and ear infections. If your child is experiencing recurrent illness (like a persistent cough or sore throat), try using saline flushes as a way of flushing pathogens and allergens right out.

5: Always wash up.

Encourage them to wash their hands often (and not just before meals). Children will often cough and sneeze without covering their mouths and noses. They’ll touch their faces or mouths with dirty hands. The more they wash their hands with soap and water, the less likely viruses will have a chance to spread.

Some last recommendations to keep in mind: If your child is sick, be sure to keep them home from school. And, by all means, teach them to cover their mouths and noses when they cough and sneeze. These are excellent ways to help protect your sons and daughters from spreading germs and allowing them to enjoy these next several months.

Are You Interested in Learning More?

How to protect a child from seasonal colds? Rules for the Prevention of Acute Respiratory Diseases

Acute respiratory diseases are most common among children. It is not surprising that parents are trying to find the answer to the question: how to protect the child from colds and SARS. We offer to get acquainted with the main preventive measures that contribute to maintaining good health.

With the advent of the cool season, the risk of contracting SARS increases significantly. The children's body is much weaker than an adult, so babies often catch colds and become more susceptible to infectious agents.

What are the main causes of colds? In the first place are respiratory infections that are caused by viruses. Viruses are transmitted through sneezing, coughing, individual things. The second reason is a weakened immune system.

Do you know that a high risk of contracting SARS is manifested when:

the mucous membrane of the mouth and nose dries up;
the child overheats while playing on the street or in the apartment;
there are problems with the intestines;
parents forbid children to walk outside in bad weather;
everyone forgets about hardening;
children spend a lot of time on gadgets, instead of chasing the ball in the street.

If you want to protect your child from seasonal colds, you need to take a number of preventive measures to strengthen immunity. Of course, one should not think that such measures are a magic pill, a panacea for diseases. No, a noticeable effect from the work done will appear after a while. That is, ideally, the strengthening of immunity should be dealt with continuously. But the results of such work will please any parent, because children will stop getting sick often, become healthier and stronger.

Particular attention should be paid to:

Food . Microelements and vitamins are important for the formation of healthy immunity. Therefore, the children's menu should be varied and balanced. In the daily diet of the child should be fresh vegetables and fruits, meat, cereals, dairy products. It is important to choose foods that are rich in vitamin C: citrus fruits, kiwi, black currants, rose hips, sweet peppers, sea buckthorn, cabbage, strawberries, viburnum, mountain ash. The use of semi-finished products is bad for the health of children. If we are talking about a baby, the task of the mother is to breastfeed him as long as possible (at least up to a year and two months). Mother's milk is a storehouse of a huge amount of antibodies, which are the basis of strong children's immunity.
Taking vitamins . Currently, there is a rich selection of multivitamin complexes. They strengthen children's immunity well, and when infected with ARVI, they help speed up the healing process. It is important for parents to remember that all multivitamins are medicines. That is, before buying a consultation with a specialist is required.
Outdoor walks . Pediatricians advise walking with children every day several times. Frequent walks in the fresh air reduce the risk of getting respiratory diseases. The main thing is to choose comfortable clothes for a walk. Hypothermia, overheating are very dangerous for children. Preference should be given to multi-layered clothing.
Sport . Physical activity is also important for building good immunity. Therefore, do not forget about exercise, sports, active games. Swimming, running, riding a scooter, cycling, rollerblading are the best friends of immunity.
Good sleep. He is the guarantee of good health. The task of parents: to establish a regimen for children. Babies need to go to bed no later than 21:00.
Serenity . The absence of stress is another important point that should be considered in the formation of good immunity. You should not sort things out in the presence of a child.
Hygiene regulations . Their observance helps to minimize the risk of getting sick. Every child should know that before eating, after using the toilet, walking, it is important to wash their hands. As you know, viruses settle on public transport handrails, door handles, banknotes, coins and other surfaces. Therefore, when you return home, be sure to wash your hands. Children should be weaned from touching their eyes, mouth, nose with dirty hands.
Hardening . This is the secret to strong immunity. Experts advise starting to harden children in the warm season. The main thing in this case is systematic and gradual. You should start with the simplest contrast shower.
Home conditions . It is important to avoid dry air in the room. For a comfortable life, humidified and non-hot air is required. Ideally, the room should be less than 25 degrees. It is advisable to have a humidifier at home. And be sure to ventilate the room. Just 10-15 minutes is enough for the apartment to fill with fresh air. And he, as you know, is an excellent remedy for microbes.

All these simple rules of prevention contribute to the formation of good immunity in children.

Another equally important recommendation is to ask your child to breathe through their nose. When breathing is carried out through the mouth, there are practically no barriers to microbes. Alternatively, you can suggest rinsing the nose in the morning, afternoon and evening with a saline solution. But not all children happily agree to such a procedure.

Wearing a mask is also a good way to protect yourself from contracting a respiratory infection. It can be used when visiting public places during epidemics, as well as at home if a family member is sick. Indoors, the mask protects against the pathogen. It's useless on the street.

From folk remedies, garlic and onions can be recommended. Their natural phytoncides perfectly kill pathogens of colds. All grandmothers know about it. They chop garlic cloves or onions and put the miracle cure on a saucer near the children's bed. Some parents put the garlic mixture in Kinder Surprise containers, tie a string, and put this "decoration" on the child.

It is believed that the best way to protect children from influenza is vaccination. Parents should remember: it is better to vaccinate a child a month before the predicted start of a seasonal influenza epidemic, since protective immunity is formed within two weeks. When the vaccine is administered, the body must be completely healthy.

Conclusion

Is it possible to 100% protect children from respiratory diseases? Definitely not. But this does not mean that you need to abandon preventive measures. If you do not want SARS and influenza to visit your family often, follow the simple rules described above.

So, a healthy lifestyle really helps to increase the body's resistance to infections. Therefore, it is extremely important to temper, eat right, maintain personal hygiene, play sports and avoid crowds. Choose safe preventive measures against flu and colds, engage in constant strengthening of immunity - and then no viruses and microbes will harm you. Our health is only in our hands.

How to protect your child from SARS and seasonal diseases in winter

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How to protect your child from SARS and seasonal diseases in winter

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Article published on January 07, 2021 at 09:00.
Updated January 08, 2021 at 09:17.

The task of an adult is to tell and teach a child how to behave correctly and observe all safety precautions. Anna Babayan, a pediatrician at the National Medical Research Center for Children's Health, of the Russian Ministry of Health, talks about how to protect a child from SARS and other diseases in the winter.

Children tend to copy the behavior of adults, so it is very important to be the right example for them.

Clean hands are a guarantee of health for both adults and children. Hands should be washed every day, several times (on average 5-6). The World Health Organization (WHO) prioritizes handwashing as the first line of defense against infection. Teach your child to wash their hands often and properly. This must be done with soap and at least 20-30 seconds. There are many educational videos on the Internet that will help you convey the main points to your child in a playful way. You can replace the cloth towel with a disposable paper towel and throw it away after use. If soap and water are not available, the child should be able to use hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alcohol (up to 80%).

Teach your child to coat all hand surfaces with disinfectant and rub hands together until they are dry. For children under 5 years of age, the use of antiseptic solutions is not desirable, since alcohol-containing solutions dry the skin and can cause irritation.

Children under 14 years of age should use hand sanitizers under adult supervision.

If allergic skin reactions are detected, use should be discontinued immediately.

Parents often ask if it is possible to use antiseptics without alcohol? They contain chlorhexidine, and it does not kill viruses, only some bacteria.

Rule number two - teach your child to blow his nose and cough properly. Teach your children the importance of being able to sneeze and cough correctly. In no case should this be done “into the air”, it is necessary to cover your nose and mouth with a tissue every time you sneeze and cough. Let the bag always contain a pack of disposable handkerchiefs, which after use must be thrown into the trash can.

Rule number three is social distancing.

Of course, maintaining social distance in children's groups is practically impossible. Despite this, repeated repetition of the importance of this rule can be beneficial.

After the departure of children from distance learning to kindergartens and schools, employees developed schemes to minimize the risk of infection: this is a strict separation of children in rooms, avoiding crossing children in common areas, reducing teaching hours.

There are also a number of actions that are important to take at home:

- it is necessary to limit the time of playing with other children;

- exclusion of joint shopping trips without unnecessary need.