Back-to-School Germ Defense Tips

As your child goes back to school, there is a lot that you’re going to need to worry about. From making sure your child has all the supplies they need, is registered properly for school or individual classes, and has new clothes for the school year there is just too much to consider. That’s why many parents forget to prepare their children to fight off germs. This, of course, then can lead to several issues, like missing time from class to be sick at home.

That’s why it’s important to take germ defense seriously, and give your child the best chance to fight off any virus or bacteria that may be lurking at school. The question then becomes, how do you properly prepare your child for this? Well, here are just a few ways to prevent germs during back-to-school.

Make Sure Your Child Knows the Importance of Washing Hands

It may sound simple, but the best way to prevent the spread of germs is by washing your hands. After all, it’s with your hands, when you touch doorknobs, faucets, and all other common surfaces that we’re most susceptible to germs. By properly washing our hands, we can prevent those germs from spreading.

The issue is that many children don’t take hand washing seriously. They often pretend to have washed their hands or skip it entirely. When they do go to wash their hands, they’re usually just getting their hands wet, instead of properly washing them. So, as a parent, you need to teach them both proper hand washing technique, as well as emphasize its importance before things like meals and after using the bathroom.

Have Your Child’s Shots Updated

For your child’s health, one of the most important things that you can do is to make sure that they have had all of their immunizations. Many school districts already require some vaccinations for students, like polio. That’s because vaccinations work best when the majority of people are vaccinated, preventing the spread from one person to another and protecting children who aren’t able to be vaccinated due to some kind of illness.

One vaccine that you should consider annually for your child is the flu shot. This will help to prevent them from catching a bad illness during flu season, which could potentially take them out of school for a week at a time.

Make Sure Your Child Gets Enough Sleep

One of the best things that you can do for your child’s health is make sure that they get enough sleep every night. Depending on your child’s age, they will need to get eight to ten hours of sleep a night to make sure that they are developing properly. Sleep will also help your child fight off infections, illness, and can even alleviate stress.

Teach Your Child to Sneeze Properly

Unfortunately, many children have to go to school when they’re sick with common issues like a cold. Parents and guardians often struggle to find the time to take off from work or can’t find someone to watch their child for them. So, they need to go to school if the illness isn’t severe.  To prevent disease being spread from child to child, though, they need to be taught to sneeze properly. This means that they don’t sneeze into their hand, but always cover their mouth and nose with their elbow. This way germs aren’t as easily spread from student to student, and the class as a whole stays healthier.

Getting sick and missing time from school can be incredibly disruptive to your child’s school year. That’s why it’s important to make sure that they avoid germs and stay as healthy as possible, to get the most out of their education as possible.