‘Tis the season for snowflakes and sniffles. As the weather becomes cooler, we tend to spend more time indoors where it’s warmer… and easier to spread germs. Help keep your family healthy by putting up your best defense against icky flu and cold bugs.
Get Your Flu Vaccines
Influenza (the flu) is an infection of the nose, throat, and lungs caused by influenza viruses.
The best way to avoid the flu is to get a yearly vaccination. There are many different influenza viruses that are constantly changing, which is why it’s important to get a flu vaccine every year.
A flu vaccination is recommended for everyone in your family over the age of 6 months and is available as a shot or as a nasal spray. It’s recommended that pregnant women get a flu shot. Getting a flu vaccine is a simple, effective, and many times free way to help protect yourself and your family from getting sick with the flu.
Be Good to Yourself
Help keep your immune system strong and able to fight off germs that can make you sick. Eating healthy foods, getting plenty of sleep, managing your stress, and staying physically active can all help keep you feeling your best.
Keep Your Germs to Yourself
Sure, we want our children to share, but germs are an exception to the rule. In addition to getting a flu vaccine, practicing good hygiene habits can also help stop the spread of germs and prevent illness.
Wash, Dry, & Repeat Often
Frequently washing your hands helps prevent the spread of germs. Show your family how to use soap and water to wash your hands — for at least 20 seconds (about the time it takes to sing the “A, B, and Cs”) — then dry hands with a clean towel.
No Touching!
Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth as much as possible. Viruses are often spread when a person touches something contaminated with germs and then touches the eyes, nose, or mouth.
Keep it Clean
Clean and disinfect surfaces that are touched everyday (like kitchen counters, toilet handles, and the TV remote), especially when someone is sick.
Snowflakes & Sniffles
Ick, Feeling Sick?
Sometimes, despite your best efforts, you still come down with the sniffles.
Is it the FLU or a COLD?
In general, the flu is worse than the common cold. People who have a cold are more likely to just have a runny or stuffy nose.
Symptoms of the flu can include:
- Fever
- Cough
- Sore throat
- Runny or stuffy nose
- Headache or body aches
- Chills
- Fatigue (feeling very tired)
- Vomiting and diarrhea
When to Call Your Doctor
Children under five and pregnant women are at higher risk for having complications from the flu so it’s best to give your doctor a call to make sure you take the best course of action. Prescription antiviral medicine is available but works best when given early.
If your child has a high fever (over 103°F) or is acting in any way that’s not normal for your child (like refusing to eat, seeming unusually drowsy, crying a lot, holding ears or stomach, or wheezing) get help right away.
Always see a doctor if you or your child have any of the following:
- A cough that disrupts sleep
- A fever that won’t go down
- Increased shortness of breath
- Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
- Severe or persistent vomiting
- Sudden dizziness or confusion
- A change in the color or amount of your mucus
- Worsening of symptoms after feeling better for a short time
- A chronic disease like heart disease, lung disease, or diabetes
- A condition, or take medications for a condition that suppress your immune system
Keep Your Distance
When you’re sick, try to keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick too. When you need to cough or sneeze, cover your mouth and nose with a tissue then throw it away immediately and wash your hands.
Practice good hygiene and stay home for at least 24 hours after your fever is gone without the help of medicine. This will keep others from getting sick.
Get Some Rest & Relief
The flu and the common cold can have similar symptoms, and both will usually go away on their own, without medical treatment.
You can treat flu and cold symptoms without medication by:
- Getting plenty of rest
- Drinking clear fluids like water to prevent becoming dehydrated
- Placing a cool, damp washcloth on your forehead, arms, and legs to reduce discomfort of a fever
- Putting a humidifier in your room to make breathing easier
- Gargling with salt water to soothe a sore throat
- Covering up with a warm blanket to calm chills
Many over-the-counter medicines can help relieve cold and flu symptoms. Always check with your doctor before giving your children any medicine.
Soaking Up the Sunshine Vitamin
Vitamin D is important for strong teeth and bones. It can also help boost your immune system and help you fight off the “ick” that can make you sick. Our bodies make vitamin D naturally when our skin is exposed to the sun, which is why it’s often called the “sunshine vitamin”. The thing is, getting too much sun can increase the risk of skin cancer, and the limited sunshine during the winter months can make it hard to get enough vitamin D.
Very few foods have vitamin D naturally: tuna, salmon, egg yolks, and mushrooms. Vitamin D is usually added to milk, some yogurt, and many breakfast cereals.
Shining Some Light on Supplements
It can be hard to get enough vitamin D so a supplement may be needed. People with darker skin or who don’t spend much time in the sun are more likely to need a supplement. It’s important to talk with your doctor before taking any supplements, but the following are common recommendations:
Breastfed Infants
Breastfeeding is the best source of nutrition for babies, but human milk doesn’t offer enough vitamin D. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that breastfed infants receive a supplement of 400 IU of vitamin D each day starting at birth.
Children
Kids need 600 IU of vitamin D each day. A daily children’s multivitamin with at least 600 IU can help provide them with the vitamin D they need.
Formula-fed Infants
Vitamin D is added to formula, but babies who drink less than 32 ounces of formula per day may need a daily supplement to meet their need of 400 IU of vitamin D.
Adults
Vitamin D is vital for a healthy pregnancy and also helps baby’s bone growth. Parents, including pregnant and breastfeeding women, should consider a daily multivitamin to help meet their need of 600 IU of vitamin D each day.