Your Children's Health Articles

Tips to Keep Your Children Healthy When They Head Back to School

It's already that time of year again when your children will be heading back to school. While it may be a time of relief for parents, it can also be a time of stress when you are dealing with all of the illnesses and germs that children are susceptible to at school.

So, how can you help keep your child healthy throughout the school year? Follow these tips to keep your child in school and out of the doctor's office:

Remind your child of the importance of washing their hands, not only before lunch and after using the rest room, but also when they get home from school.

Remind your child to keep their fingers and hands out of their mouth. So many germs are spread this way and infections could ensue.

Give your child a daily vitamin. This will help them to build their immune systems and fight infections better.

Remind your child not to drink from other children's cups or use their utensils.

Make sure your child gets a physical before the school year starts. This will help to target any health problems prior to the start of the school year.

Make sure that your child gets 8 to 10 hours of sleep each night. Getting the right amount of sleep is important to keeping your child healthy.

Make sure to feed your child a nutritious and balanced diet each day. Getting the appropriate vitamins and minerals in their diet will also aid in building their immune systems and will lead to an overall healthier child.

Giving Your Child the Essential Vitamins They Need

When given the chance to choose their own meals, many children would opt for foods such as mac & cheese and chicken nuggets, food that don't necessarily make a complete meal with all of the vitamins and nutrients that they need. That's why as parents we need to make sure that they are getting all of these important vitamins when choosing their daily meals.

According to KeepKidsHealthy.com, it's important to check with your pediatrician to see if they recommend your child take an age appropriate multivitamin. An estimated 25 to 50% of children in the United States take a multivitamin, although this is generally not necessary for most children with an average diet. It is usually better to try and reach daily requirements by providing a well-balanced diet. Consuming a diet with the minimum number of servings suggested by the Food Guide Pyramid will provide most children with the recommended daily allowances of most vitamins and minerals. You can check out the Food Guide Pyramid for Kids at Mypyramid.gov.

Also try to keep these tips in mind when label reading to make sure that they are getting all that they need from their food:

Calcium: Getting enough calcium is important to everyone, especially children. That's why children require at least 800 mg of calcium for children ages 4 to 8, and at least 1,300 mg of calcium for children 9 and older.

Iron: Many multivitamins do not contain iron, so be sure to supplement your child's meals with iron-rich foods to be sure they get the recommended 10 mg of iron a day.

Folic Acid: Important for so many reasons, including the production of red blood cells and healthy skin, hair and gums. A typical child's dose of folic acid is 75 to 150 mcg daily.

Vitamin C: Especially during cold and flu season, be sure to increase your child's daily intake of Vitamin C to at least 1 gram per day.

Vitamin D: Children's growing bones require plenty of Vitamin D; so many pediatricians recommend that children take a supplement with 800 to 1,000 IU of Vitamin D daily.

Vitamin A: Vitamin A is also important for a growing child's body, but too much Vitamin A can also be toxic, therefore many pediatricians suggest increasing your child's beta carotene intake, which is converted into Vitamin A in the body.

While these are just some of the main vitamins that your school-aged child needs on a daily basis, be sure to check with your own pediatrician to see what vitamins and minerals they suggest specifically for your child.

Make sure that your child is eating balanced meals with the proper doses of vitamins and minerals and your child will be well on their way to a healthy lifestyle.

Back to School: Planning Healthy Lunches for Your Child

Your child's healthy lunch doesn't begin at noon when they join their friends at the cafeteria and sit down to enjoy their meal. Instead, a healthy lunch begins with the trip to the grocery store to purchase the best foods to create a nutritious and well-balanced lunch.

Supermarkets are filled with nutritious choices nowadays and by enlisting the help of your child when shopping for their lunch foods, he or she can learn how to make the best choices as they grow up and create meals of their own. Be sure to check out the following areas of your supermarket and your child's lunch will not only be filled with great tasting foods, but it will also create a healthy lunch.

The Produce Section: The produce section is always a good place to start when it comes to a healthy lunch. Choosing fruits and vegetables that your child enjoys and even some they may have never tried is a great idea and is always a good place to find those important vitamins and minerals that every child needs.

The Drink Aisle: While many children would love to enjoy a sugary soft drink with their lunch, a better option is a 100 percent fruit or vegetable juice, low-fat milk, water or lightly sweetened tea instead. Be a label reader and avoid juices with high-fructose corn syrup, artificial colors and artificial flavors.

The Bakery Section: According to Nutrition.about.com, sandwiches are a popular choice for school lunches but instead of white bread try whole grain bread, wraps or pitas. If your child resists whole grain breads, use bread that is made with whole grain but still has the flavor and texture of white bread.

The Dairy Section: The dairy section is also an area where you can find some great foods. Try low-fat dairy options, like cottage cheese, string cheese and yogurt.

The Snack Food Aisle: Many parents would avoid this aisle completely, but there are still some great lunch items that can be found in the snack food aisle. Be on the lookout for baked and not fried snacks, avoid Tran's fats, choose whole-wheat over non-whole grain snacks, and grab some all natural granola bars that offer whole grains, nuts and pieces of fruit all in one snack.

Here are some other ideas for healthy snacks that you can easily send your child to school with:

Send a salad in a small plastic container. Keep the dressing on the side in a separate smaller container. Cheese sticks go well with sandwiches and are a good source of calcium. Whole grain snack crackers add a nice crunch and lots of healthy fiber. Make a fruit salad with grapes, melons chunks, and blueberries. Dried fruit, like raisins, dried cranberries or banana chips Nuts like almonds, cashews, or walnuts Pack a cold pasta salad, cole slaw, or potato salad. Baby carrots with a small container of vegetable dip Crunchy raw green beans with a small container of ranch or French onion dip Prepackaged, flavored low-fat yogurt

Just by paying some attention to the labels and what is going into your child's lunch each day; your child will have the nutrition and energy necessary to get through his or her day, the healthy way.

Back to School and Back to Sleep: How to Get Your Child Back on a School Sleeping Schedule

As parents and their children enjoy their last few weeks of summer, school is looming right around the corner. Now is the time to get back into a school sleeping schedule, after having such a lax sleeping schedule over the summer months. According to the Federal Citizen Information Center, adequate sleep will boost your child's energy and enthusiasm and can also help your child learn more easily and may reduce behavioral problems. Children between the ages of 6 and 9 require at least 10 hours of sleep per night and older children require at least 9 hours.

Here are a few ways to get your child in the school sleeping schedule:

Create a regular bed time and make sure you and your child stick to it. Make sure your child avoids eating a heavy meal before their bed time. Make sure your child avoids caffeine at least 6 hours before their bed time. Allow for play and relaxation time before their bed time. However, make sure this a calm and relaxing time, meaning no TV or video games Set up a bedtime routine possibly including a bath, a snack, or a bedtime story. According to healthcentral.com, laying out the next day's wardrobe could also be a part of the routine.

It's also helpful to realize that each child's approach to sleep is different. Some take extra time to fall asleep, while others may wake more during the night. After a little trial and error you should be able to successfully find the sleep routine that best suits your child and family.

All of these pieces of advice will help to make the transition to a school sleeping schedule a smooth one for you and your child.

Back to School 101: Ten Back to School Health Tips

It's already that time of year again when your children will be heading back to school. While it may be a time of relief for parents, it can also be a time of stress when you are dealing with all of the illnesses and germs that children are susceptible to at school.

So, how can you help keep your child healthy throughout the school year? Follow these tips to keep your child in school and out of the doctor's office:

1. Remind your child of the importance of washing their hands, not only before lunch and after using the rest room, but also when they get home from school.

2. Remind your child to keep their fingers and hands out of their mouth. So many germs are spread this way and infections could ensue.

3. According to an article found at AssociatedContent.com, make sure you child is up to date on all shots. Review your child's shot records as there are several immunizations that are elective that a parent should look into getting for their child. One such elective is the Hepatitis A vaccination.

4. Make sure your child gets a physical before the school year starts. This will help to target any health problems prior to the start of the school year.

5. Give your child a daily vitamin. This will help them to build their immune systems and fight infections better.

6. Remind your child not to drink from other children's cups or use their utensils.

7. Instruct your child not to use other people's combs/brushes. While sharing is a great concept to be taught, children should not use their friends' combs or brushes as this can cause the spread of head lice.

8. Do not send your child to school with a fever. Even if your child is feeling fine, a fever is an indicator that their immune system is trying to fight something off and they are at their most contagious when running a fever. This puts all children and adults around your child at risk.

9. Make sure that your child gets 8 to 10 hours of sleep each night. Getting the right amount of sleep is important to keeping your child healthy.

10. Make sure to feed your child a nutritious and balanced diet each day. Getting the appropriate vitamins and minerals in their diet will also aid in building their immune systems and will lead to an overall healthier child.