Fight the Flu This Season

5 For Fighting: Tips For Preventing The Flu This Season:

With our children back in school many parents are concerned about germs and how to fight the flu this season. Along with good hygiene practices these five not-so-common tips can help you protect your loved ones this flu season.

1. Remove shoes as soon as you enter your home to reduce the amount of dirt and germs that you track throughout the house. Leave a basket by the front door or in the front hall closet to encourage shoe removal.

2. Change children’s clothes when you return home from a park, public area or play date. Although this will increase your laundry slightly each week, it prevents foreign germs from entering your home and settling in. Also, if you were at a park and you come home and change your child’s clothing before his nap, he will sleep in a clean bed, germ-free.

3. Wash stuffed animals, snuggies and blankets. If your child has a favorite cuddle blanket or stuffed animal that he sleeps with, do not forget to wash these items as much as possible. Germs lurk in the fur and corners of blankets, which kids often put in their mouths and near their eyes. 

4. Clip nails. Make sure you are diligent about clipping your child’s nails on a regular basis. Longer nails provide a place for dirt to hide, which can be a nice home for germs. Short nails are more sanitary so it is best to cut them short and straight across. If you cannot clip nails easily, try using a brush to get under them when your child is in the bathtub or when he washes his hands before meals.

5. Wash feet. If your child is still enjoying the lingering warmth of summer by wearing sandals, crocs or other open-toed shoes, get in the habit of washing his feet as well as his hands when you return home and come back inside. I sit my son on the side of the kitchen sink and wash both his feet and his hands thoroughly before he has lunch. Feet are extremely porous and a warm place for germs to attack. This will keep him clean before his nap and prevent the spread of germs within your home.