How to Protect Your Child in the Face of an Epidemic?

Digg Digg

When the story of a Qatari man flown to the UK with a Sars like virus broke, I avoided discussing it with anyone non-medical.  Why?  Not enough information was initially given and sometimes a little knowledge is dangerous.  And sometimes talking about it without full information leads to worry followed by panic.

As the reports surfaced, it was a relief to find that this new Coronavirus, pronounced Corona like the beer, is not easily transmissible.  And in both cases, the patients had been in Saudi Arabia.

But what is a parent to do if this were easily transmissible? Keep their kids home from school? Fly back to their home countries?  NO.

This particular virus is spread through respiratory droplets (again remember it is not easily transmissible). The best thing to do to keep your child (and you!) from getting these viruses is, yes you guessed it:  PREVENTION.  There are two ways to prevent it.  The first is to prevent transmission and the second is to prevent the virus from going to a full-blown illness or prevent progression by maintaining your immunity.

You may know the rules for preventing transmission but here they are just in case:

• Cover your mouth when you cough

• Wash your hands before you eat, prepare food and upon entering your home after being out.

• Keep your hands away from your mouth and nose.

Even more important than these 3 rules above is to NOT send your child to school with a fever when they have an illness: viral or otherwise. A child should be fever free for 24 hours before returning to school.  I know, the moms who work might crucify me as it is an inconvenience to have to miss work but this is really important in preventing transmission. No, you may not pre-medicate with paracetamol or ibuprofen to lower your child’s fever and then send them to school.

You may ask but how do you ensure my children’s immune system is functioning at its finest?  You might be surprised to learn this but:

NUTRITION, NUTRITION, NUTRITION!

Unfortunately proper nutrition does not include: Mc Donald’s, sodas and chips. Too little emphasis is placed on the value of nutrition.  Several weeks ago while at a medical conference in Los Angeles, I was introduced to the term SAD: Standard American Diet.  Basically the standard “crappy” diet many kids eat: think processed foods, which are generally high in transaturated fatty acids.  While this term may not apply to expats, I think we could easily substitute: Children’s for American and get Standard Children’s Diet which would apply to a great majority of children across the globe aside from the 3^rd world.

“The focus should be on your child’s nutrition to prevent illness.”

As an aside the American food pyramid is wrong with grains so heavily weighted on the bottom.  The pyramid needs to be flipped upside down placing grains at the top i.e. allowing for lower intake of grains while emphasizing fruits, vegetables, healthy fats and protein.

That is right healthy fats.  One serving of nuts or seeds per day will do the trick.  A serving is a handful, no more. Fruits and vegetables are important because they contain phytonutrients, which not only form the pigments in produce but also perform as highly efficient antioxidants in the body.

Experiment with vegetables to find ones your child likes.  Remember, sometimes a new food needs to be introduced multiple times before a child will eat it.  Your child’s palette will change to include more foods as they age as well.  Another tip is to teach your child to eat in a rainbow: the more colors on their plate the better. If they are still not great vegetable eaters, puree the vegetables and use them in sauces but always be sure to include the whole vegetable at a meal even if they only have a little bit.

 “Teach your child to eat in a rainbow.”

It is easy to say: “Have your child eat healthy.” but in reality we know that most children won’t eat everything put in front of them.  So until they are old enough to make good choices or until they are eating a well balanced diet: Supplement! Remember nutrition first then supplement.

Here is what I like to supplement my children with.  My children are offered fruits and vegetables throughout the day, but I know they do not get enough of them.  We are working on it.  Remember this is the bare minimum I recommend and some children will need more than what is on this list depending on their personal medical history:

• Multivitamin

• Vitamin D3

• Omega-3 Fatty Acids

And in children who have been on antibiotics more than once in their life, are on an antacid or are continuing to get sick, I would consider putting that child on probiotics.

Why all of the above?  The multivitamin is to cover any vitamins and minerals your child may not be getting. Vitamin D because the majority of the world is insufficient or deficient and low levels can lead to recurrent viral illnesses.  An optimal Vitamin D level is 60 although most labs will report a normal level at 30.  You can also choose to allow for 20 minutes of sun exposure between the hours of 10 am and 2pm 3-4 times per week but this is difficult in the high temperatures of Doha.  You can test your child’s vitamin D levels.  However, this can be traumatic and it might be just as easy to supplement. Low omega 3 fatty acid levels have been associated with ADHD is a good for your child’s brain functioning and low levels have also been associated with ADHD.

There are other components to ensure your child’s wellbeing: adequate sleep, spiritual and emotional well being.  I will have to save these for another article.

So the next time, a story hits, don’t panic focus on prevention and nutrition first.

Many times I am asked: what vitamins would I recommend? I used to think that all vitamins are created equal.  However, they are not.  Sometimes the ingredients used in vitamins can do more damage then than the vitamin itself.  There are also excipients in many drugs, vitamins and supplements which can cause adverse reactions.  I am coordinating with several reputable professional grade vitamin and supplement companies so that you can have the option to purchase only quality products.  Here is a link to quality vitamins and supplements for your convenience.  Pure Encapsulations offers hypoallergenic supplements free of fillers, artificial flavors and excipients. They only ships within the USA. However as most expats have US forwarding addresses (with Aramex and the like), this should not pose a problem.

What came to mind for you when the story broke?  Do you have any tips for keeping your children healthy?

Photo credit: scragz