Contributed by Nicholine Akou

Research has proven that majority of kids easily catch cold and flu because some have a weak immune system that cannot fight the number of viruses and germs circulating around them. In the course of being affected with the cold virus, they might have fever, runny nose, loss of appetite and weight within few days. Therefore, it is necessary to prevent kids from cold and flu to ensure their healthy growth. Below are few simple ways to prevent kids from cold and flu.

Proper hygiene:

Ensuring proper hygiene is the easiest way to avoid your kids from contacting germs and other viruses that can infect them with cold and flu. Wash your hands properly with water and soap before and after any activity before touching your kids. You have to advise those who have come of age to do same. It is also important to use a hand sanitizer in cases where soap and water are not available. Do not forget to clean surfaces such as doorknobs, dining tables, toys and more where kids can easily pick up germs. By doing all these, you have 90% assurance that your kids would be safe from cold and flu.

Restrict the sharing of some items:

Restricting kids from sharing some items like drinking cups, towels, toys and more can prevent them from catching cold and flu. This is because a child that is already affected can easily spread the virus to siblings and playmates. Nobody knows where germs will spread if the child coughs or sneezes. So, to be on the safe side, restrict the sharing of these items.

Manner of coughing and sneezing:

Teach them how to cough and sneeze. Advise them to place their heads into their elbows before coughing and sneezing instead of their hands if there is no tissue. But if there is a tissue, they should do that on the tissue and throw into the trash can afterward.

Kids should stay away from affected people:

Keep kids away from people that are already affected because the virus is easily transmitted. For the parents that are affected, do not carry or kiss the child often because you can easily pass on the cold and flu to the child.

Kids should eat and sleep well:

It is advisable to feed children with good food that has all the nutrients and make sure they equally get proper sleep. This is to help build the baby‘s immune system correctly which will help fight diseases. When the baby’s immune system is weak, it exposes it to all sort of diseases. So, it is better to prevent than to cure.

The five points mentioned above, are not the only ways to prevent kids from cold and flu but they are the simplest and essential ways.

                                                                                Edited by Emiliene Alemkeng