Keeping Your Kids Healthy: Top Tips

Keeping your family safe and happy is second nature to any parent. And as spring gets into full swing and our kids are spending more time out and about, it’s important to keep their immune systems boosted so they can have fun without you worrying too much!

No matter what age, here are some helpful tips to keeping kids healthy at home, in school, and outside on the playground:

Make sure they get their nutrients

It goes without saying that one of the best ways to keep your kids healthy is by making sure they’re eating a balanced diet and getting all the nutrients they need.

Vitamins and supplements

A great way to supplement your kids’ diet is by giving them vitamins to give their bodies the nutrients that they can’t always find in foods.

Getting your kids to take their supplements is one of the biggest challenges for parents. But luckily, there are a variety of kids vitamins out there to choose from that come in child-friendly formats, such as gummies and soluble formulas that taste great too!

Another way to boost your kids’ immune system is to give them a daily probiotic to keep their gut healthy and digestion system clear.

Diet

Although it can be tough to get your kids to eat healthy foods, when they eat a balanced and varied diet, their immune systems are at their strongest. We get nutrients from all kinds of foods, and a good diet consists of a balance between:

• Proteins
• Carbohydrates
• Fibre
• Fats
• Minerals and vitamins

Whilst all foods fall into these categories, we know that not all foods are healthy. We should try to avoid giving our children foods high in saturated fats, sugar and salt, and foods that are processed.

Groups that are particularly good for our children are nuts (providing they don’t have allergies), starchy foods such as potatoes, rice and pasta, lean meats and vegetables.

When it comes to vegetables, they aren’t wrong when they say “Eat the rainbow” because different colored vegetables and fruits contain different nutrients and vitamins that are crucial to the immune system’s natural function.

But how do we get them to eat them?

Knowing what’s good for them is one thing, but convincing children to eat anything that hasn’t been deep fried is a challenge in itself. But, there are a lot of ways to jazz up healthy foods that kids don’t typically like such as vegetables by flavoring them with seasoning, blending them into a healthy smoothie at home and even hiding them in dishes with a sauce or breadcrumb!

Remember, everything in moderation

While we all want our kids to eat healthy for both physical and intellectual development, we have to understand that they will want to eat other not-so-good foods from time to time. The trick is how we frame those foods. If you ban your children from eating junk food, it’ll only make them want it more, so take the excitement out of it by allowing them to have some from time to time.  Also, introduce them healthy foods from other cultures to keep their meals interesting.

Encourage them to stay active

Leading an active lifestyle is important for everyone, and developing this habit starts in childhood. We all know about the numerous benefits of exercise for our mental and physical health, and it’s no different for children.

In fact, kids tend to have a lot of energy, so getting them to be active shouldn’t be too hard. The key is finding an activity that they enjoy. Each child has different interests and skills, so try to expose your child to an array of activities so that when they find something they like, keeping them active won’t be a chore for either of you.

You can encourage your children to stay active in a few different ways. One is incorporating exercise into everyday life, such as walking to school or playing a team sport as a family on the weekend. Then there are classes, clubs and groups that your kids can participate in regularly. Here are a few examples:

• Dance
• Team sports such as football, baseball or soccer
• Track
• Gymnastics
• Skating
• Trampolining
• Martial arts such as karate or taekwondo

Get them into a good sleeping schedule

Sleep is one of the most important parts of our routines, as our bodies and brains get a chance to regenerate and rest, and this is even more important for children. As they are growing so fast, they need more time to rest – on average a child needs 9 – 11 hours of sleep per night whilst adults only need 6 – 8.

So keeping your kids healthy means making sure they sleep well. And we all sleep better when we have a regular routine. Get your kids to bed in the evening and up in the morning at similar times to get their bodies into a good routine. And the better sleep they have, the more healthy they are.

Keep their hygiene routines in check

There’s no secret that personal hygiene can make all the difference in protecting ourselves and those around us from infection and disease. And children are no exception. As they are more in contact with the public from going to school, it’s even more crucial to teach them healthy hygiene routines to keep them and your family safe from illness. This includes regular hand washing routines, especially whilst at school, before eating and after going to the bathroom. Teaching them to wash their hands properly can slow down the spread of germs and hopefully keep them and you safe this spring.

Overall, there are many ways that we as parents can keep our children healthy, including healthy oral care. By arming them with the right tools to fight off bacteria and germs that they are inevitably going to come into contact with, whether that’s at school or in the playground, we can increase their protection against illness.

Hopefully these tips will help you keep them in the best routines for their health.

Additional Health Resources:

Recognizing the signs of health concerns.
Are your kids mandated to have health insurance?