A sniffle, a cough, a sore throat. Cold and flu season is here and unfortunately, children in school/group care settings get exposed to a number of illnesses. People who are exposed to cold and flu germs every day - doctors, flight attendants, teachers - know a thing or two about how to stay healthy when everyone around them is sick. These suggestions can help you, too.
As an Early Learning Center, we make every effort to minimize the number of germs and illnesses at Tiny Hearts Academy by implementing rigorous cleaning and hand washing procedures. Though we ramp up our health precautions during this season to help prevent colds and flu at the Center, we need parents help to ensure we reduce illness exposure whenever possible. The state Health Department and Centers for Disease Control (CDC) agree that the best way to combat the flu is through preventative measures. Check out the suggestions below to stay healthy this cold and flu season.
#1: Get a flu shot. It’s your best defense and the no. 1 thing you can do to prevent the flu.
#2: Wash your hands – A LOT. No matter what line of work you’re in, if you come in contact with people, even shake hands with someone, you have to wash your hands often. It sounds so simple, but soap and water are the constant companions of doctors and nurses. To completely get rid of viruses from your skin, you need to scrub hard for 20 seconds or more especially after coughing, sneezing, and before you eat.
#3: Keep your surroundings clean and stay home if you feel sick. Sanitize doorknobs and light switches. It might sound like overkill, but it’s not. Think about your environment and what could be contaminated, then clean it!
#4: Use alcohol-based hand sanitizer. If you can’t get to soap and water, sanitizer can kill cold and flu germs.
#5: Keep a healthy lifestyle. Do all the things we should be doing on a daily basis – get adequate rest, good nutrition, don’t smoke, stay active, and keep your allergies and stress-levels controlled to avoid “run-down”.
For more information on how to keep your parent game strong 💪, see Parent Pointers, a series of helpful articles, tips, and ideas.
Raising a child takes a village and we’re proud to be part of the tribe!