Promoting Healthy Kids During the School Year

School offers immeasurable benefits to children, but the one part of school that is not so beneficial is the exchange of germs among students. Unfortunately, putting so many children together results in your children being exposed to countless different illnesses. Unlike when you are home with your children, you are not there to remind them to wash their hands and cover their mouths. Children are often most contagious before they are symptomatic. This means that contagious children get sent unknowingly to school. Thankfully, by following a few simple natural health tips, you can help keep your kids from getting sick during the school year.

1. Provide Your Child with a Healthy Diet

Nutrition and the immune system are directly tied together. By providing your child with healthy foods to eat, you are giving him the tools needed to fight off germs before the germs have a chance to make him sick. Choose a diet full of antioxidant rich fruits and vegetables and healthy omega 3 fats. Good choices include spinach, apples, walnuts, and avocados. When your child is battling a bug, offer extra servings of immunity-boosting vitamin C foods from citrus foods like oranges.

2. Make Your Own Hand Sanitizer

Hand washing is very effective in stopping the spread of germs, but oftentimes children do not do a thorough job of washing their hands. Give your child a little extra insurance by sending her to school with some homemade hand sanitizer. It’s easy to make and even easier to use. Simply combine a two to one ratio of aloe vera and rubbing alcohol. You can also add a few drops of essential oils to give the hand sanitizer fragrance. Some oils, such as tea tree oil, add additional antibacterial properties to the hand sanitizer. As a bonus, making the hand sanitizer with your children can be a fun activity for you to do together.

3.Try Homeopathic Methods

Natural remedies can be very useful in preventing and curtailing sickness. One example that is especially helpful for young children is garlic infused oil. It can prevent or treat an ear infection because of its strong natural antibacterial properties. Congestion often leads to ear infections. If your child is battling congestion, it may be wise to give her a few drops of garlic infused oil a couple times of day in order to prevent an ear infection from occurring. Garlic infused oil can be purchased at any health food store.

4. Relieve Stress

Stress can take a toll on the immune system so be sure to help your child have opportunities for stress relief. Exercising, playing, and just talking can help your child fight stress and worries. Give your child opportunities to express what may be worrying him or her before it starts to take a toll on his or her physical well being.

5. Supplement to Fill in Nutritional Gaps

Even with a healthy diet, gaps can occur. Help fill in dietary deficiencies with a good, natural multivitamin that is specifically formatted for children. Vitamins and minerals can help the immune system ward off invaders. Have your child take half of the vitamin in the morning and half in the evening to aid in absorption.

6. Practice Makes Perfect

Encourage your child to do things to help stop the spread of germs. Teach your child to wash his hands for sufficient time by having him sing the “Happy Birthday” song to himself for the duration of the song. Show your child how to cough into her elbow rather than cover her mouth with her hand (or worse, not covering her mouth at all). This not only helps germs not to spread by air, but also helps keep germs from spreading on hands.

Let school be a place where your child exchanges ideas instead of illness. Simple and natural tips can help your children stay well and get the most from school!

Author Bio: Paisley Hansen is a freelance writer and expert in health and fitness. When she isn’t writing she can usually be found reading a good book or hitting the gym.