How To Keep Your Child Healthy During Covid-19?

The coronavirus pandemic is one such calamity that has shaken the very foundations of human civilization. In such a situation one can agree that being healthy is the greatest luxury and privilege that we can effort for ourselves and our family.

When we talk of family our primary focus should be on the vulnerable members that are children. So, we will discuss how we can keep your child healthy, both mentally and physically, during the second surge of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Taking Care Of A Child’s Physical Health

Children are susceptible to various forms of ailment causing microorganisms and deserve special care during the pandemic. Here we will discuss certain aspects of children’s physical health care. Children need to be taught everyday preventive actions and the importance of proper hygiene. Its the parent’s responsibility to induce these health practices within their children in such a way so that they follow them diligently. Let’s discuss the basic precautions to be taken.

Routine health checkups: It is important to invest time and money in regular health checkups. Health conditions like asthma, diabetes, cholesterol, health diseases, etc can affect the immune system and thereby increasing the chance of infections.

Wearing a mask: Make sure everyone in your household wears a mask (if 2 years of age or older), when in public and when around people who don’t live in your household. Ensure your child wears their masks correctly and safely.

Ensure physical distancing: Make sure your child and everyone else in your household keeps at least six feet away from other people who don’t live with them and people who are sick (such as coughing and sneezing). 

Staying hydrated: Drinking water is crucial in keeping your child’s body healthy. Dehydration can cause several problems like indigestion, headache, physical performance, etc.

Building Up A Child’s Immunity: Being a child of good health and immunity is an additional insurance, that reduces the chances for a kid to catch a disease or even if they get afflicted by a disease a good immunity promotes faster recovery from the disease. Here we will discuss some ways that can boost a child’s immunity.

Promoting physical activity or exercise among children: if the child is engaged in some physical activity it stimulates their physical health and immunity. Following are some of the benefits if the children are involved in productive physical activities like breathing exercises or yoga:

1. Healthy growth and development.
2. Stronger bones, muscles and joints
3. Better posture and balance
4. A stronger heart and lungs
5. A healthier weight range

Introducing healthy food habits among children: Food provides the nutrients to the children’s body that are essential for the body’s proper growth and immunity. Hence promoting healthy food practice is essential to ensure a child’s physical well being. A child’s body requires an adequate amount of proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins and minerals. The required proportion of all these elements in a child’s body varies with age. Their deficiency in the diet can cause malnutrition or deficiency diseases

Special care for infants and children with ailments:   Infants require special care and medical aids. Infants also need to get vaccinated from time to time. Hence parents should take their infants to paediatricians for required medical checkups and vaccinations by ensuring all necessary precautions. Children who have special ailments also need time to time medical supervision and parents must ensure that they receive it with proper safety

Mental Health Of Children  

Mental health is one of the most important aspects of a child’s health that deserves special attention from parents. Several studies conducted at the community level reported the prevalence of child and adolescent mental disorders varying from 1.06% to 5.84% in rural areas, 0.8% to 29.4% in urban areas, and 12.5% to 16.5% in studies that were conducted in both rural and urban population. The mental health of children has been influenced by several ways, as this unprecedented situation of the Covid-19 pandemic has changed the way they typically grow, learn, play, behave, interact, and manage emotions. Children with pre-existing psychiatric disorders such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), anxiety, depression, mood disorders, and behaviour disorders could be adversely impacted during this stressful situation. Here are some of the ways by which parents can promote healthy mental health for their children :

1. Socializing: Kid’s should not feel left out and isolated in their homes. Parents should take the initiative to engage in friendly conversation with their child. This will make the child feel comfortable and also help him to express himself freely in front of his parents. The parents on the other hand will get a better inside into their child’s mind. Parents can also arrange video conference where the child can interact with his friends. As we all know humans are social animals,  social distancing should not prevent them from socialising as it will harm their mental health.
2. Engaging kids in different activities of interest: As it is said “Empty mind is a devil’s workshop”. If the kids have nothing to do then they will experience boredom and their “empty” minds can be perturbed with various negative thoughts. Hence parents must engage kids in certain activities of interest. The kids can develop productive hobbies that interest them. It can be cooking, gardening or anything else. Search productive hobbies will enrich the mind of these kids
3. Practising what is preached: Parents instead of teaching their children what to do must themselves follow their own advice. The kids will automatically learn by seeing and imitating their parents. For example, if the parents want the kids to maintain a disciplined life they themselves must maintain one. The personality of the parents, the way they interact with each other in-home in front of the kids, affect the kid’s mindset. As it is said, ” happy parents make happen, children”.
4. Seeking the help of a professional if required: If the parents feel that the children are suffering from some serious mental ailment or psychological disorder which they cannot diagnose then they must seek the help of a professional that is a child psychologist or psychiatrist. Parents must not let societal norms or taboos related to mental health affect their rational minds to hesitate to consult a professional for mental health for their child’s well being.

To conclude we can say health is wealth and it’s the duty of every parent to protect this wealth of their child. We are living in a hard time in this pandemic, however, love, understanding and a scientific temperament will help us get through.

References

https://www.news18.com/news/india/as-the-country-stares-at-second-peak-of-covid-19-here-are-the-dos-and-donts-3559139.html

https://www.india.com/health/coronavirus-second-wave-tips-to-boost-your-immune-system-4570082/

Written By Rangit