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It never fails: Just as the holiday season gets underway, so does the flu season.
Dr. Tim Casper, a pediatrician at St. Louis Children’s Hospital, acknowledges that winters can be especially hard, because it’s like a “big mixing pot of viruses.” He adds, “It may seem like younger kids are sick continuously during the winter, but it usually means that they’ve been having a series of viral infections.”
Although there are “no magic answers,” Casper provides the following advice.
Wash your hands. It is important to keep hands clean because kids often touch their faces, and this is how germs get in. Casper recognizes that this can be difficult when kids are young and don’t always do a good job of washing their hands. But since kids are in contact with so many germs at school, hygiene becomes the first line of defense.
Get a flu shot. Casper recommends it for everyone over the age of 6 months, but says it’s especially important for little ones, kids with asthma, and anyone who is in poor health. He warns that you can still sometimes get the flu after having had the flu shot. “The true effectiveness does vary from year to year, because they have to figure out what strands are going to spread," he says. "There’s a whole lot of science and a little guesswork."
Get a good night’s sleep. Making sure kids get adequate sleep is important so that they are not run down.
For treating kids who are sick:
Trust your gut. Chances are if you have a healthy child, and it looks like a nasty cold, then that’s what’s going on.
Work with your pediatrician. Be involved with your pediatrician rather than visiting different urgent cares who don’t have a relationship with your child and are more likely to prescribe antibiotics.
Stay hydrated. Kids should be encouraged to drink water, Pedialyte, sports drinks, or juice. If they are still willing, milk is also fine.
Fever management. For babies who are under 6 months and have a fever that is making them uncomfortable, it's recommended that you call your pediatrician. For older kids, Tylenol or ibuprofen can be used to help manage discomfort. Stay away from cold baths or alcohol baths. The fever is coming from the brain, so a cold bath won’t do anything.
Recommended care varies by age. If an infant has a fever, it's considered an emergency, and they need to be evaluated right away. “If a 2-year-old or a 5-year-old has a couple days of fever, I’m probably not going to find anything serious,” he says.
Additional things to keep in mind:
Dr. Casper says, “The care for a cold is pretty basic because kids are perfectly capable of getting over the infection in almost every circumstance.”
Contrary to what you might think, the number on the thermostat doesn’t matter. “Beyond that very young infant age, I don’t care much about the number. I care about what is happening with the patient.” Casper adds, “I routinely see 102, 103, 104, 105. I see 106, and every once in awhile 107.”
“And all of those are safe because they are set with the brain’s thermostat,” he says. “It’s part of being a person.”
