Stay Healthy through the Cold Winter Months
Follow these Quick Tips to Keep Your Kids Healthy
By Jessica Gordon

Pediatrician Dr. Todd Habel of Muddy Creek Pediatrics in Mason gives you the rundown on how to keep your kids from getting sick during the winter.

1. Have your children vaccinated against the flu. Although having your kids vaccinated against the flu doesn’t guarantee they won’t get sick, it does give you better odds at keeping them healthy. Each flu vaccine consists of three different strains of flu virus, explains Dr. Habel. Each year, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) determines which three viruses are most likely to spread during the upcoming flu season and includes them in the vaccine. Children who have no immunity to the most common flu viruses being passed around are likely to catch at least one type of flu—and possibly all three.
   
   
2. Stay away from enclosed crowds of people. “You don’t get a cold by going out in the cold,” explains Dr. Habel. “Now, I’m not saying go out in your swimsuits, definitely bundle up. But colds are caused by a virus passed from person to person.” During the winter, most of our daily activities move inside where everyone’s in close proximity to everyone else and it’s easy for germs to make the leap from one child’s coughed-on hand to another kid’s mouth. Staying away from particularly crowded, cramped places is a good way to keep your kids out of germs’ way. In particular, keep very small infants out of large crowds.
   
   
3. Tell your children to wash their hands. Dr. Habel suggests frequent, thorough handwashing as another preventive measure. After all, crowds can’t always be avoided. Just coach your kids to wash their hands often to get rid of any germs lingering there.
   
   
4. Keep your kids hydrated. “The better hydrated you are, the more secretions and mucus your body makes and the better able your body is to cleanse itself,” says Dr. Habel. Drinking lots of water is the best choice for keeping kids hydrated, but Dr. Habel says milk and low-sugar sports drinks are also good choices. However, “Juices aren’t great,” warns Dr. Habel. “They’re empty calories and bad for your teeth.”