The monsoons have arrived in India. The rain pouring down finally ends the hot summer. But even as we heave a sigh of relief because it is cooler than before – we worry about the diseases that will now surround us. What are the precautions to be taken during rainy season that can keep you and your family healthy? A lot needs to be done actually to ensure that you and your child do not fall sick. In this article I enumerate 12 precautions that you must take during the rainy season to keep your child healthy this monsoon. These are simple health tips for the rainy season and will go a long way in keeping your child healthy.
Detailed article continues below the video
How to take care of your child’s health during the rainy season
During the rainy season – because of the moisture in the air and the water pouring down and accumulating everywhere – there are many infections that can easily attack your child. The most important thing to do here is to build immunity.
Also read Dengue symptoms : what parents should know
- Wash hands often – The easiest way to boost immunity and keep infections away is to wash hands frequently. When we wash our hands we wash away the infecting organisms that may have reached our hands and that ensures that the germs do not reach inside our bodies.
- Eat Vitamin C rich foods – The vitamin that seals the spaces between the cells in the body and prevents infections from getting into the body is Vitamin C. Make sure your child eats lots of fruits rich in Vitamin C.
- Avoid Juices – While filling the body with vitamins however, make sure the vitamins come from whole fruits and not juices. The juices and the ice used in juices are likely to have lots of germs and therefore have a great potential to cause infections
- Drink boiled cooled water – One of the most important health precautions to be taken during monsoons is to drink clean water. Contaminated water is the biggest source of infecting germs. Make sure the water your child drinks is clean and germ free. The best way to make water germ free is – to boil it for 5 minutes and then cool it and drink it.
- Avoid green leafy vegetables – During the monsoons avoid green leafy vegetables. With contaminated water flooding low-lying areas and fields – there is a very high chance of leafy vegetables getting overlaid with a layer of disease-causing germs. These may be very difficult to wash off even after rigorous washing and it is best to avoid eating them.
- Try and avoid eating raw food like salads – Cooking at high temperatures kills most of the germs. And therefore it is safer to eat cooked food rather than raw food.
- Avoid roadside food – Food cooked at roadside stalls is extremely tempting because of the aromas that emerge from it. However it is best to avoid such food because the vendors at these stalls are unlikely to have access to a safe source of water. The food they serve is likely to cause diarrhea vomiting and diseases like Typhoid and Hepatitis
- Dry yourself thoroughly after getting wet – It is impossible not to get wet when it rains because going to school or to various activities definitely takes you out of the house. However it is easy to minimize the possibility of getting infections due to getting wet in the rain by ensuring that children dry themselves thoroughly as soon as they get wet.
- Only wear dry shoes and socks – Children often ignore their wet feet and keep playing in wet socks and shoes unless they are told to change. Wet socks and shoes make children prone to infections because they are a constant source of cold.
- Avoid water-logged areas – In areas that are water-logged – there is a high chance that the accumulated water has sewage in it. It may also have the urine of various animals mixed in it. Children are likely to be tempted to wade through this accumulated water – but it is wise to avoid water-logged areas because they are hotbeds of infection.
- Wash feet with soap and water after stepping in a puddle – Make sure that your child removes his shoes and socks and washes his feet every time he/she comes in from playing in the puddles outside. It is especially important to wash the parts between the toes thoroughly with soap and water to prevent serious infections.
- Keep children at home if they are sick – Most of the infections that children get during the monsoons are viral infections – and these spread rapidly from one child to another. It is therefore our responsibility as parents to keep our children away from other children if they happen to be sick so that they do not spread the infection around because what goes around comes around.
Also read What to do when your child is cranky during the rainy season
The monsoons make the world green and it is time to celebrate the showers of blessings pouring down on us. But keep these rainy day precautions in mind so that the your celebrations are not spoiled by your children getting sick during the monsoon
Also read Nutrition tips for children during monsoon in India
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