From the classroom to the playground, help keep little ones protected with our top tips
With the sun setting on the summer holidays and the colder months fast approaching, it’s time to turn your attention to the inevitable return of cold and flu season.
With this comes runny noses, niggling coughs and high temperatures, and while there’s no guarantee that your child won’t catch a cold or flu, there are a few things you can do to help support their immune system. Here, we share our top tips so you can help give your child the best chance of protection before they head back into the classroom.
How does a child's immune system work?
The immune system is made up of cells, tissues and organs that all work together to help the body fight against illness and infection. When you do become ill, the immune system produces antibodies that attack the cause of the illness and destroy the disease-carrying organisms.
So what’s the difference between an adult’s immune system and a child’s? Well, they both have the same role and function, but a child’s immune system is simply a little weaker as it’s not been exposed to as much as an adult has. Typically, a child’s immune system should naturally get stronger the older they get, and the more they’re exposed to over time. This is because once the body has been exposed to a virus or infection, the immune system recognises it, and is therefore better equipped to fight it, should it return.
6 ways to help a child's immune system
When cold and flu season strikes, it’s best to be prepared. That’s why at Boots, we have a range of cough, cold and flu products to help get your child on the mend. But if you want to try and get in there early, take notes as we delve into our top tips for supporting their immune system. Remember, following the below advice won’t magically prevent any cold, flu or other illnesses from happening, but it’s a good step towards keeping your child happy and healthy.
1. Get them eating their fruits & veggies
Now, we know that children can be fussy eaters, but one of the best things you can do for their health is to fill their plate with colourful fruit and veg. Ensuring they’re eating a healthy, balanced diet, including their 5-a-day, can help them optimise their intake of different vitamins and minerals. Try to avoid giving them lots of processed and sugary foods, as well as saturated fats, too – that’s not to say ice cream and cookies are completely off the table, it’s just about balance and moderation.
The likes of vitamin A, C and D all contribute to the normal function of the immune system. These can either be introduced to your child’s diet through foods, or in some cases where they may be lacking certain vitamins, through supplements.
This can be the case with vitamin D. The body makes this vitamin through the skin's exposure to sunlight, which means it struggles to produce a sufficient amount between October and March when the sun is not as strong in the UK. The government guidance for adults and children from the age of four years is to consider taking a daily vitamin D supplement of 10 micrograms (mcg) during the autumn and winter months. For those that have little to no exposure to the sun during the summer months, it’s advised to consider taking a daily vitamin D supplement all year round.
When it comes to their diet, you can find vitamins A, C and D in the following foods:
- Vitamin A – eggs, cheese, oily fish, yoghurt and milk
- Vitamin C – citrus fruits like oranges, peppers, strawberries, broccoli and potatoes
- Vitamin D – red meats, oily fish and egg yolks
If this means chopping up carrots into tiny pieces, blending veggies into a pasta sauce or even cramming lots of fruits into a pudding just so they’ll eat the rainbow, then so be it!
2. Make sure they have plenty of Zzzs
There’s no denying that children are always full of energy, which is definitely needed for all of the playing outside, long days at school and trying all kinds of activities. So it’s more important that they get plenty of rest. Babies and toddlers need around 11 to 14 hours sleep, including naps. Between the ages of four and nine, children need around nine to 12 hours sleep, and older children and teenagers need between nine and 10 hours sleep.
Getting a sufficient amount of sleep allows the body time to repair, which helps strengthen the immune system. However, a lack of sleep may disrupt the immune system, making children more susceptible to infection and illness. Our advice? Try to maintain a healthy sleep schedule for your child and allow them at least half an hour to wind down – without staring at a screen if possible!
3. Keep them moving
While it doesn’t take younger children much convincing to go outside and play, we’d recommend joining them for some energetic physical activity, ideally for an hour a day. Then, as children get older, try to encourage them to get in their daily exercise. Think about their interests, maybe they like running, swimming, cycling or even playing tennis. Whatever it is, getting them moving is a great way to help support immune function which will help to seek out and destroy infections, as well as increasing the circulation of immune cells.
4. Help them manage any stress
It’s not just us adults who have to deal with everyday stress, children can get stressed too. From homework deadlines to pressures at school and their mental health, stress can make them more prone to infection. So it’s important to check in with your child and encourage them to talk to you about how they’re feeling.
Spending time together as a family and making sure your child has plenty of downtime to do something that makes them happy is a great way to help them manage any stress levels. But if you’re concerned about your child’s moods or emotional wellbeing, speak to a GP.
5. Practise good hygiene
One of the best things you can do to help protect your child against illness and infection is to get them practising good hygiene. To help keep germs at bay, make sure they:
- Wash their hands properly for 20 seconds with soap and warm water – they should get into the habit of doing this after going to the bathroom, after getting back from nursery, school or playgrounds and before eating
- Cover their coughs and sneezes with a tissue, or get them to use their elbow to completely cover the nose and mouth
- Don’t touch their eyes, nose and mouth without washing their hands first
- Keep their distance from anyone who is unwell, avoiding things like hugging, kissing and shaking hands
6. Stay up to date with vaccinations
Another good step to protect your child and help build up a healthy immune system is to make sure they’re up to date on their vaccinations. These are important as they teach the immune system how to create antibodies to help protect the body from certain diseases.
As part of the NHS childhood vaccinations programme since 2015, children are eligible for vaccinations between the ages of eight weeks and 15 years old to protect against diseases and illnesses such as meningitis, flu, measles, mumps and rubella. You can find out more information on the vaccination schedule.
Now you’re armed with our top tips, it’s time to put them into action and help support your child’s immune system.
