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Mom’s extra care: As soon as winter arrives, every parent’s ‘protective mode’ turns on. Be it the cold of the morning or the wind of the night, all our efforts are to ensure that the child does not get even an iota of cold. And in this love and concern we often ‘excess’.
We think we are keeping our children safe, but in reality some of our habits are making them sick. According to doctors and parenting experts, one of the major reasons for weakening of children’s immunity in winter is these 4 common mistakes of parents. Are you also doing this?
1. Overdressing: Do not make the child a ‘bundle’
It is often seen that due to fear of cold, parents make their child wear 4-5 sweaters and jackets, due to which he is not able to move.
- Loss: When you cover the baby too much, his body temperature increases excessively. He starts sweating internally. When sweat dries, it turns into cold, which increases the risk of pneumonia or chest congestion.
- What to do: Adopt the ‘layering rule’. Instead of a thick jacket, wear clothes in 2-3 thin layers. This maintains warmth and the child does not feel uncomfortable.
2. Running heater/blower all night in a closed room
To keep the room warm, we sleep by running the heater throughout the night. This mistake can be the most costly.
- Loss: The heater absorbs all the moisture from the air. This causes the child’s delicate nose and respiratory tract to dry up, which can lead to nose bleeding or difficulty in breathing. Apart from this, there is also a fear of low oxygen level in the room.
- What to do: Turn on the heater an hour before sleeping and turn it off as soon as the room gets warm. Keep a bowl filled with water in the room so that humidity remains.
3. ‘Not bathing every day’ or using ‘boiling water’ due to fear of cold
Some parents stop bathing their children due to cold, while others bathe them with very hot water. Both these methods are wrong.
- Loss: Too hot water strips away the natural oils from the baby’s soft skin. Due to this, the skin becomes dry and starts cracking and the problem of itching (Winter Itch/Eczema) occurs. At the same time, if you do not bathe for several days, germs can grow.
- What to do: Use lukewarm water. Immediately after bathing, apply moisturizer or coconut oil on wet body. It acts as a shield for the skin.
4. Distance from fresh air and sunlight (Indoors Only)
“Don’t go out, you will get windy!”-this dialogue is heard in every house. We confine children to our homes for weeks.
- Loss: Viruses and bacteria survive longer in a closed house. Due to lack of fresh air and sunlight (Vitamin D), the child’s immunity becomes weak and he falls ill frequently.
- What to do: When there is good sunlight (especially between 11 am and 3 pm), let the child play outside for at least 20-30 minutes. Sun rays are the best medicine to fight cold.
A little advice:
‘Balance’ is everything in raising children. Neither be careless nor pamper them so much that they lose their strength to fight the weather.
