It is summertime and if you are a parent of a school-age child that means weeks and months of summer vacation. As usual, keeping them healthy is your top priority. Fun in the sun and summer heat are memories we have of our own youthful school breaks. Here are some things to keep in mind to make sure it is a safe and healthy season. Teach your child to behave safely in the world. Common sense goes a long way. Make sure they know about stranger danger, looking both ways before crossing the street, and never eating or drinking anything offered by anybody they don't know. It is never a bad idea to repeat safety instructions over and over. Repetition is remembering.
Home is where the heart is. It can also be where the danger is. Many accidents occur at home because people tend to feel the safest there. Do not be paranoid but teach your kids to be aware everywhere, even in the place they feel the safest. It is fine to relax but never let your guard down when it comes to safety, and make sure the children learn this too.
Talk to your kids and make sure they know they can talk to you about anything. They need to feel comfortable letting you know what is on their mind. They may experience an embarrassing health issue that could worsen before they let you know about it if they do not feel like they can open up to you. Making them feel like there is open communication between you will keep unnecessary stress to a minimum.
Keep up the check-ups. School may be out but keeping tabs on your kids' health is always in. Take them to see a physician for regular checkups and get recommended immunizations. The more you know the healthier they can be. Do not let a break from school relax the usual fitness and health routine. Sickness never takes a vacation.
Watch out for the cuts and bruises that always come with the territory when kids scamper and play indoors and out.
Properly clean and bandage cuts and scrapes when they occur to prevent infection. Do not let germs get a foothold or a hold anywhere else, for that matter. Band-aids, rubbing alcohol and peroxide can be your best friends for the next few weeks.
Make sure you do not suffer from son burn. Or daughter burn either. That bright sunshine can do a lot more than make the flowers grow. Half an hour before heading outdoors, apply a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of 50. Be sure to reapply every time your kid comes out of the water and every few hours. Keep your kid in the shade when possible, and dress him or her in clothing with UPF protection. If your kid does get a sunburn, aloe, Vaseline, or Aquaphor can help to ease that uncomfortable heat on their skin.
The kids are itching to get outside and play. Keep them from itching even worse by teaching them to recognize and stay away from Poison ivy, poison oak, and sumac. If your kid comes into contact with any of these plants the next days and weeks will not be good old summertime fun. Their skin does not even have to touch these leafy culprits. Their clothing can brush against these plants and by process their skin can absorb the potent oil urushiol. This oil can cause a rash of linear streaks or blisters that is extremely itchy. Scratching the rash can help transfer it to another part of the body. Applying calamine lotion or hydrocortisone cream is usually the best way to treat the rash. Make sure to wash your child’s clothing several times in hot water, because the oil can live on clothing for months.
At Ocala Family Medical Center we're your partner in health...and we're here for all your medical needs .
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