Back to School Immune Power Keeping the Classroom “Bugs” at Bay

The end of summer marks the beginning of the annual Back-to-School madness. New clothes; New Shoes; New Pencils and haircuts… Everything must be just so for the kids to start the new year out on the right foot. But while you’re picking out the perfect backpack and making sure your kids have the hottest new binder, consider what you’ve done to prepare your child for the immunologic challenge that lies ahead of them.

As the sun sets on summer break, many children who’ve enjoyed relatively illness-free summers are about to be thrust back into the classroom – a virtual incubator of infectious disease. Will this be another year of countless trips to the pediatrician and recurring rounds of antibiotics? Will there be more of the usual sick days and jockeying your schedule to stay home with a sick child yet again?

Instead of just hoping for a healthier school year, why not do something about it? By arming yourself with a little ‘Natural Health Know-how”, you can make this the healthiest year yet for your little scholars.

The first thing to understand about keeping your child healthy while he or she is spending hours in a closed-in room with dozens of runny-nose, hacking, sneezing, wiping-their-nose-then-sharing-your-kids-Gameboy classmates, is that prevention is always the best cure. And the best way to prevent getting sick is by having an immune system that’s strong and robust.

Step 1 to powering up your child’s immune system is to make sure they have a high quality multi-vitamin everyday. Even major medical journals are reporting that adults who take a mult-vitamin significantly reduce their number of sick days – shouldn’t it be the same for kids? So, how do you know if your child’s multi is good or not? Well, it’s sad to say, but when it comes to supplements, quality usually follows price. So if your buying your vitamins from the same place you buy your economy size laundry detergent and super-jumbo pack of toilet paper, odds are your not getting a state-of-the-art vitamin. Another way to see if your multi is up to par is by checking to see wether the manufacturer is using natural vitamin E or synthetic vitamin E. And while having natural vitamin E is no guarantee of quality, any formula using the synthetic version is sure to be pretty third rate. Check the label and if the vitamin E is listed as D-alpha tocopherol, it’s natural, but if it says Dl-alpha tocopherol, it’s synthetic. It’s a subtle difference, and very easy to miss, but it can help you weed out an inferior formula. If it says “Mixed Tocopherols” or some other form of tocopherols, run it by your Naturopathic Physician to see if it’s up to par.

Step 2 in your child’s immune system makeover, is feed them immune strengthening foods. Hippocrates, the father of medicine and whose oath your family physician and pediatrician swore to uphold, was famous for saying “Let your food be your medicine and let your medicine be your food.” And no, I’m not suggesting your force-feed your youngster sprouts and wheatgrass. But by following a simple Naturopathic principle you can easily nourish your child’s developing immune system. Put simply, the more alive a food is, the better it is for your child. What do I mean by “more alive”? Simply stated, the closer a food is to the form in which it appears in nature the more alive it is. So a piece of fruit is more alive then a fruit roll-up. Whole grain bread is more alive then wonder. Some natural fruit juice with seltzer is more alive then a can of soda. And yes, it may take some bribery and arm wrestling to get these foods into your child’s diet but if your creative and keep it fun, it’s very doable. One-tip: Don’t make it all or nothing, it’s better to have your child snack on carrots and cucumbers and then have a ton of candy then to have them just eat a ton of candy. Small victories will go along way.

Another way to build your child’s immune system by using hydrotherapy – the healing power of water. Try playing a game with your kid by having them take a shower and quickly turning the water from hot to cold, back and forth for about four cycles. (Take caution that no one burns themselves.) The drastic change in temperature is like an exercise class for the immune system and stimulates lymphatic flow throughout the body. One important note, is to always end the shower on cold and dry them off really fast and furious as soon as they get out! It’s important to avoid a chill which can ruin the effect of the treatment, and the vigorous rubbing further stimulates blood and lymph flow.

Even the healthiest child can catch the occasional cold or flu. The natural-health savvy parent knows how to nip a cold in the bud before it becomes too serious and/or spreads to the rest of the family. For otherwise healthy children over the age of 10 I like to use the Homeopathic remedy Aconite at a 30C potency to stop an illness in it’s tracks. Two pellets under the tongue every 2 to 4 hours at the very first sign of a cold will often knock an illness out of their little bodies before it takes hold. Similarly, the remedy Occilococcinum by BHI is a great one to have around. Again, you have to act fast, as soon as you see your child is starting to come down with something, (you know that look they get!) and then just use as directed on the package. (Always use common sense and consult a physician when necessary.)

Single nutrients such as vitamin C and botanical medicines such as Sambuccus, Larch and Yarrow can also be very powerful cold and flu fighters. Consult a Naturopathic physician for safe dosing instructions.

Taking the time to empower yourself with the knowledge of how to use natural remedies to prevent illness and care for your family will help make this a healthy and productive year for your children at school. They deserve nothing less.

This article was written by Dr. Steven Ehrlich ND, as a patient education resource for The Center For True Harmony Wellness and Medicine. Edited and revised by Sherry VanGoethem, Dr.Christine Brass-Jones OBGYN, and Dr. Denise Quance Grobe N.D. If you have any questions or comments contact the office at (480) 539-6646 or through email at info@trueharmonywellness.com