Are you aware of your family’s health? This collaborative post might give you some food for thought and ideas on how to deal with health issues you may be facing
When you live in a full house with children underfoot, life gets busy! There is always noise, laughter, and life, but in big families, there are always health issues. If your children are in different school years, then you’ll know what it’s like during cold season. Everyone plays pass the snotty parcel with bugs and the requirement for tissues and nasal sprays are more than what you may find in smaller families. Children are a hotbed of germs and managing the spread of that is your priority as a parent.
Keeping your family as germ-free as you can is always a fight, especially when school is a factor in your lives. You also have to be very aware of your own habits at home so you don’t cause any issues yourself. As a parent, you give up a lot of yourself in raising your children and this includes things like smoking or drinking on a regular basis. When you’re living with children, their health has to come first in the home before your own so stopping smoking is the first step. Your habits will directly affect your children and not just because they copy you, but because they will assume it’s normal. Smoking can lead to many health issues, both long term and life-threatening so quitting is the best thing you can do for both you and your children. It can be challenging but there are tools and treatments you can use to help you. Talk to your GP or health practitioner to find what would be the best option for you.
While you can’t possibly eradicate every single germ from the home, you can do your best to clean thoroughly with antibacterial sprays to ensure less germs than are necessary. There needs to be a level of germs in the home as children need to build an effective immune system, but there are some things that you need to teach them to ensure that they are healthy.
- Having good hygiene is key in a household busy with children. Washing hands after going to the toilet and before meals is a given, but teaching the kids the importance of this is one of the first big lessons they need to learn.
- Always keep boxes of tissues handy through every room in the house. Children pick up colds and flu very easily from school, where they are in close contact. Teaching them to grab a tissue just before or just after a sneeze will mean they automatically reach for them. You need to also make sure there’s a bin handy in each room, as kids have a habit of chucking rubbish directly on the floor. Nice!
- Sharing is a lovely thing for children to learn, but when it comes to sharing hairbrushes and drinks, teach them not to. Hairbrushes being shared is common among little girls, but so is head lice! Help your children to understand when sharing is a good thing and when not to.
Your family’s health and your outlook on cleanliness are going to directly impact your family so you need to be fully aware of what you’re doing. Changing your habits to suit your family’s health is the best reason for making those changes. Education all round on good personal hygiene will mean your home is one that is free of extra germs that you really don’t need to deal with.