Chiropractic Treatment St Paul MN | Health & Wellness This School Year
Geez… the end of August is already here. Can you believe it? It may be hard to believe, but another summer is almost history. That means things like vacations ending, the arrival of the Minnesota State Fair and its wrap-up on Labor Day weekend. It also means the kids are all getting ready to go back to school. It happens every year… Kids wondering who their classmates and teachers will be, and working parents buckle down to get organized to stock the pantry and fridge with healthy (hopefully) items that the kids will want to eat at school, sports events and after school at home.
While School is a great place to learn, play and make friends, unfortunately it’s also a great place for germs to get very well acquainted… with your family!
Keep Your Kids Healthy This School Year
10 top reasons for the common cold
It’s no coincidence that the school year and the common cold season start about the same time. Schools provide an ideal setting for spreading germs, with children indoors and in close contact for much of the day. As infected people sniffle, sneeze, and cough, cold viruses spread through the air and onto skin and surfaces like tables, doorknobs, and stair railings, where they can live for up to two hours.
Kids bear the brunt of seasonal illnesses, typically picking up six to 10 colds a year compared with the two to four colds adults get, according to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. The Centers for Disease Control chalks up 22 million school absences each year to colds alone. The good news is that kids can greatly reduce their risk of getting or spreading a cold with healthy habits and good hygiene. These include:
- Washing hands thoroughly
- Coughing and sneezing into a tissue or sleeve, not into hands
- Not sharing drinks or food utensils
- Not rubbing one’s nose and eyes
- Not biting fingernails or chewing on pencils
Prevention For The Common Cold
Wash your hands!
One of the main ways people catch colds is by rubbing their eyes or nose after touching a person or object with a cold virus. Hand-washing can help ward off the common cold and many other communicable illnesses; however, most people don’t wash their hands well enough or often enough.
The CDC recommends washing hands with soap and water for 15 to 20 seconds, or long enough to sing “Happy Birthday” twice. When you’re not near hand-washing facilities, alcohol-based hand sanitizers can do the trick. Younger kids may be tempted to taste the hand sanitizer, which can spread more germs and could make them sick. To prevent this, teach kids to rub their hands together until the sanitizer dries.
Although many of us were taught to cover our mouths or noses with our hands when we cough or sneeze, health experts now say that this can spread germs even faster. The CDC recommends coughing or sneezing into a tissue, or into your sleeve if a tissue is not available.
Happy Hand Washing Song
This song (sung to the tune of Happy Birthday) encourages kids to wash their hands with soap and water to keep germs away. The song is sung twice through, the recommended length of time to wash hands. Sing along!
Created: 2/25/2010 by National Center for Preparedness, Detection, and Control of Infectious Diseases (NCPDCID), Division of Global Migration and Quarantine (DGMQ). Date Released: 2/25/2010. Series Name: CDC Featured
More info on this topic from the CDC
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Get The School Off To A Great Start!
In addition to avoiding germs and washing hands, your family can stay healthier during cold season by maintaining a healthy lifestyle, including getting sufficient sleep and exercise, drinking plenty of water, and eating a nutritious diet.
Eat healthy: It’s no secret…a balanced diet is key for a healthy immune system. By focusing on a variety of fruits and vegetables, and avoiding processed foods and sugary snacks, your family will get the nutrition it needs to fight off germs during the school year. Some healthy snacks are carrots, celery and apples. They are easy to pack and extremely nutritious. The trick is to create variety, because kids tend to grow tired of the same things quickly. Snacking makes up to 30% of all calories taken in a day. It’s important to give healthy choices to our kids.
Sleep at least seven hours a night: Sleep is crucial to good health, both mentally and physically. A recent study showed that when you get less than seven hours sleep at night you’re three times more likely to come down with a cold or flu.
Get plenty of exercise: They also have to stay active, meaning no TV unless it’s the weekend or they are on vacation. There are plenty of other things to do than stare off at the TV and snack unconsciously.
Frequent, moderate exercise is important for good health and strong immunity. On a daily basis, encourage kids to play sports, run, bike ride or dance, all to keep their bodies fit, hearts pumping strong and minds happy. Better yet, join in on the fun yourself!
Make exercise a family affair. Kids learn by examples set by parents. Try to be active yourself – you will age better and feel better – and make sure kids find a sport they thrive in and can easily get to for participation. Kids active in team sport or individual sport help build character and help manage mental stress from academics.
Chiropractic
It’s also a great time for the entire family to get a chiropractic checkup. Along with regular chiropractic spinal adjustments, your St Paul MN Chiropractor can also advise you on vitamin supplements to take that will help you lead a healthier life, such as taking vitamin D, vitamin C and reducing your sugar intake.
Source: www.cdc.gov (Center for Disease Control and Prevention)