What’s Going Around Town: The Flu – Plus Natural Prevention & Treatment for Children

PREVENTION 

I know I sound like a broken record, but the most important thing to do is maximize your child’s health with the basics. Here are a few things you can do to keep your kids healthy during the winter.

Hand washing for more than 20 seconds with soap and water.  This has been proven to prevent influenza and many other infections.  I recommend doing this before every meal and more often for children who still put their hands in their mouths.  Also, encourage children to wash their hands upon returning home from school, errands, and other activities.

Hand sanitizer – needs to have more than 60% alcohol to be effective.  This is sometimes even more effective than hand washing (do your kids actually wash their hands well?!) and often the only good option when out of the house.

Clean surfaces – many viruses can hang out and wait for you for 2 or more weeks!  This is often overlooked.  Some recommendations would be Seventh Generation Disinfecting Multi-Surface Cleaner, Cavicide, Clorox Wipes, Rubbing Alcohol, etc.

Minimize travel and high risk activities.  These include visiting the children’s museum, indoor play areas or dropping your kids off at the gym, church, or synagogue child care. Trust me, the investment in babysitting will pay off in the end.

Ask your play dates and guests if they are or have been sick recently.  Again, viruses can hang out for far longer on surfaces.

Keep your kids home if they are sick – that also means you should stay home if you are ill.  This is a major reason why we have epidemics.  In addition to infecting others, your child is more likely to get something else while their system is challenged/recovering.

Nutrition – a good whole foods diet is crucial. Eat a well-rounded, nutrient-dense diet. Decrease sugar and processed foods.  If you feel you need help with this, book a session with Debbie, my amazing wife and our nutritionist. She can help you get your family on track.

Keep your family well rested – it’s amazing how powerful this is!  I can often overt illness if I get the proper rest my body is asking for when I’m first feeling run down.

SUPPLEMENTS

We know that you have a lot of options for purchasing supplements, and we greatly appreciate your support of our online store! Your support helps us to continue to share helpful information and resources with our community.

At a minimum, I recommend the following supplements…

There are studies that show that these basics can significantly decrease the frequency of illness in both children and adults.

Vitamin D: 400-1000 iu per day for most children. The large majority of children I have tested have insufficient levels of vitamin D and may actually need more than these basic recommendations. Call the office for an appointment if you want to discuss testing your child.

Probiotics: These good bacteria are crucial for good health. Besides benefiting digestion, they are supportive with respiratory and immune challenges as well.

Omega 3 fats: Fish or cod liver oil are essential for your immune system to work properly.

Multivitamin: A good “insurance policy” that your basic nutrients are covered. Especially helpful for children who are “picky eaters”.

Specific Supplements to Prevent & Treat Viral Illness…

Vitamin C

Zinc

Berry Well Immune Support

Immunoberry Liquid

Immunotix
(We carry this at Mindful Pediatrics. To order directly, you will need to enter a referral code when you place your first Xymogen order. Simply email our front office at frontdesk@mindfulpediatrics.com for the code.)

Additional support if you get sick…

The first thing to do is to increase the doses that you are taking of the above supplements. Then you can consider adding some of the following…

Clear and Release Chinese herbal formula – this is a great first defense against viruses. (Available at Mindful Pediatrics)

Viragraphis – an effective anti-viral for parents and older children who can swallow capsules. (We carry this at Mindful Pediatrics. To order directly, you will need to enter a referral code when you place your first Xymogen order. Simply email our front office at frontdesk@mindfulpediatrics.com for the code.)

Oscillococcinum – effective homeopathic for reducing cold & flu symptoms.

There are many other options as well but hopefully this gives you a good start. It is always best to formulate a specific plan for your child and family, and I do this with my patients during appointments.

If you are interested in the specific products mentioned, you can click on each of them above and add them to your cart. Additionally, we have added a “Cold and Flu” tab to our Fullscript Online Store.

If you haven’t shopped through our online store yet, here’s how you do it:

Once you register, you can search the store by clicking the link “product catalog” on the top. Then the “shop by” tab on the top left will say “all dispensary categories” and if you click on that tab you can choose a specific category from the drop-down menu (such as “Cold and Flu”).

We know that you have a lot of options for purchasing supplements, and we greatly appreciate your support of our online store! Your support helps us to continue to share helpful information and resources with our community.

You may also want to read our blog post about the dangers of buying fake supplements and how you can make safe purchases.