How To Keep Your Child Healthy During COVID-19
As parents, we know just how hard you work to make sure your children are happy, healthy, and safe. In these uncertain times, we know that you are working even harder towards those same goals. Here are some ways to keep your child healthy during the COVID-19 outbreak.
1 – Disinfect Surfaces Often
It’s important to disinfect surfaces that are often touched in your home, but even more so during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a disinfectant of your choice, clean the commonly used areas and touched surfaces of your home such as light switches, doorknobs, tables, and counter tops. If you are looking for a specific disinfectant that can kill the COVID-19 virus, the EPA has a handy guide that can be found here.
2 – Wash Their Toys
Our children’s toys typically don’t stayed quarantined at home. They’re carted around as a comfort during necessary trips to the doctor or to the grocery store. Don’t forget to clean these pieces of comfort by giving them the proper disinfecting treatment. If they are soft toys, they may be able to take a spin in the washing machine (be sure to check the manufacturer’s label for care instructions first). Try to wash items on the highest temperature setting possible to help kill any virus particles that may be present. Let them dry completely before you let your kiddo play with them again.
3 – Teach Your Children How To Properly Wash Their Hands
Healthy routines start at home, and washing hands is no different. Start setting the routine of washing your hands as a family, explaining to your children that washing their hands will help keep them and others from getting sick. Start setting the expectation that everyone in the family will wash their hands before eating, going to the bathroom, being on playground equipment or in shared spaces, and before entering the house. If you set the example and hold the children to it, it will naturally become a routine you all follow.
Teaching the proper hand washing technique to your kids is important, too. Show kids how to get their hands wet and soapy, making sure to get your entire hand, including your fingernails, covered in soap and water. A great rule of thumb is to teach children how to sing “Happy Birthday” in their heads (or out loud!) twice while they scrub and before they rinse.
4 – Avoid Contact With Others When Possible
One of the best ways that we can keep our kids safe during this time is to practice social distancing and staying home whenever possible. The virus likes to spread through water droplets in the air. These are shared through our breath, sneezes, or even when we talk. When we keep a physical distance from each other, the less likely we are to contract the virus. Keep your children home whenever possible, too. This will decrease their risk of coming into contact with someone who has contracted the virus.
5 – Wear A Cloth Mask When Appropriate
Sometimes it’s necessary to go out and be in public with our children. When that’s necessary, children over the age of 2 should wear a cloth mask or other similar face covering. Masks help others avoid contracting the virus, so insist that those who do need to be in close contact with your child wear a mask to help protect them. It’s important to remember that some people who are positive for COVID-19 haven’t yet developed symptoms, and they may never develop any. That doesn’t mean they cannot pass the virus on to others or that those who contract the virus from them will also be asymptomatic. For more information on appropriate face coverings, check out this website from the CDC.
6 – Avoid People Who Are Sick
If you know that someone has been sick, even if it appears to just be the common cold, you should avoid them and keep your children away from them, too. It’s not always easy to tell who has the virus and who just has a cold based on their symptoms. Until you know for sure that someone has tested negative for COVID-19, it’s best to keep your distance.