How I Keep My Kids Healthy for Back to School Season
Back to school season often means that kids begin to get sick more frequently. Today I am going to share how I keep my kids healthy when my son goes back to preschool.
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Last year, my son started preschool for the first time. He was only going two mornings a week, so I wasn’t too worried about colds and other illness. However, after only one week (2 mornings!) he was very sick. Not only that, but he quickly gave it to my 1-year-old daughter and eventually my husband and I. It was the worst any of us had been sick in years. My son even developed croup. It was a horrible 3 week period.
Although I stayed on top of washing my kids’ hands and cleaned our home often, I decided I needed to get even more serious about a routine that would help us avoid frequent colds all fall and winter long. Here are 5 things I do to keep my kids healthy.
1. I feed them lots of fruits and vegetables. I make sure that they have fruit and/or vegetables with every meal. I know it’s not always easy to get kids to eat healthy, but I highly recommend trying to find a least a couple of fruits and vegetables they will eat. Applesauce pouches with other fruits and vegetables added is even an option for picky eaters. Smoothies are also a great way to sneak in veggies and fruits that your child doesn’t particularly like.
2. I give them a daily multivitamin. I even give my son a vitamin with added immune support. It is part of our morning routine and I’ve noticed that he gets sick far less since starting one. My husband and I also got more serious about taking our vitamins daily. Disclaimer: This is not medical advice. Make sure you get doctor approval before starting vitamins.
3. Make sure to wash hands frequently. We always wash hands before eating and many other times throughout the day. I carry antibacterial hands wipes in my diaper bag and we all wash our hands before eating meals out as well. We also use the wipes while out shopping and whenever we go to places where there are lots of people or items that are touched frequently. When we go to the children’s museum I wash my kids’ hands very often and encourage them to keep their hands out of their mouth, nose and eyes.
4. Change clothes immediately upon coming home from school. As soon as we get home from preschool pick-up I remove my son’s shoes at the door and change him into clean clothes. Then we head straight to the sink to wash his hands and arms. I also keep his backpack hanging on a hook by the door so that germs from that aren’t spread everywhere.
5. Clean with Clorox Disinfecting Wipes. I have been using these for years and absolutely love them. They kill 99.9% of viruses and bacteria, so they are a must for my daily cleaning routine. They clean and disinfect at the same time so I’m not just pushing germs around and possibly spreading them like I could be with a sponge or paper towels.
I clean my kitchen counters and sink with them every day. I also use them to disinfect door knobs, faucet handles, appliance handles and light switches frequently. They are perfect for cleaning the bathroom too. I love that I can just pull out a couple wipes and disinfect all of the high traffic areas of our home. I even keep a travel size pack of Clorox Disinfecting Wipes in my diaper bag so that I can wipe down questionable surfaces while we are out and about.
I have tried many other brands of disinfecting wipes and they have all been inferior to Clorox Disinfecting Wipes. They are usually too dry, so you have to use tons of wipes to clean each area, and they are much less durable. They are a must-have item in my house and I’ve been known to make a quick trip to Target to pick some up when I run out unexpectedly.
All of these things were super helpful last school year and we avoided many other colds and illnesses that were going around. We are definitely keeping up with them this year! How is your family staying germ free during back to school season? For even more tips and advice click here.
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