Who says you cannot have as much fun in winter as you do during the summer?
Winter is a great time to teach your children ice skating and sledding, not forgetting fun activities such as building snowmen. However, considering the dangers that come with winter, keeping your children safe during the cold weather is of the utmost importance.
In this article, we will look at the various safe practices to implement to ensure your children’s safety.
Let us delve into specifics.
- Dress them appropriately
The importance of dressing your kids appropriately for the weather cannot be over-emphasized. Make sure to dress your kids with an extra layer of clothing.
To ensure comfort, make sure the clothes are loosely fitting especially what they wear under their heavy jackets. To keep them warmer, ensure they wear gloves and a scarf, especially if they are going out for a walk or to play. That way, you can minimize the chances of them contracting common colds.
- Get them the fluvaccinations
Most people do not know the difference between cold and flu. As much asboth conditions have similar symptoms, flu will hit children harder. Their symptoms are more pronounced.
To ensure your children enjoy optimal health, make sure they get their annual shot of the flu vaccine. However, note that the vaccine is suitable for children above six months.
- Employ practices that keep common colds at bay
As their name suggests, colds are quite common, especially in children. As much as kids can catch a cold at anytime of the year, infections usually skyrocket during the colder seasons.For these reasons, it is essential to teach your children practices that lessen the likelihood of waking up to a running nose, congestion, mild fever, and a cough.
It all starts with keeping them warm as we discussed earlier. Also, teach your children to wear a mask when interacting with other people. Doing so prevents them from exposure to airborne viruses that cause common colds. Maintaining hand cleanliness is another way to prevent colds. However, since it is during the winter, encourage your children to use sanitizers instead of washing with cold water.
- Wearing the proper gear when engaging in winter sports
Winter games are exciting, and it is one of the reasons we will sit glued on our screens watching the Winter Olympics. Children will rarely sit with us enjoying such passive forms of entertainment. Instead, they will want to get in on the action, which means going out into the snow to practice what they saw.
Whichever winter sport your child chooses, having them what the appropriate gear is vital. For instance, when ice skating or sledding, the kids must wear a helmet, have the proper clothingand shoes. These gears are to keep them safe when they fall or hurt themselves.
It is also essential to ensure they maintain sports safe practices. For instance, when sledding, do not allow your child to do it lying down head-first. Instead, they should sled feet first or while seated.
As a further precaution, never leave them unsupervised.
- Know when to stay indoors
Children are rather excited to play in the snow. They will quickly try to build a snowman as soon as the snow touches the ground. As warm as parents may try to keep their children warm during such unpredictable weather, knowing when to stay indoors is vital.
As a rule of thumb, if the temperatures go below 0o,it is best to keep children indoors. The last thing you want is for children to suffer from hypothermia or frostbite. However, to avoid boredom, engage in various indoor activities such as playing cards anda scavenger hunt.
- A carbon monoxide detector will come in handy
Every parent’s focus during the winter season is to ensure their children remain warm.As such, it is not uncommon for parents to use electrical heating elements. Some households willeven light up the fireplace.
These heating devices produce carbon monoxide that is detrimental to our health. By installing a carbon monoxide detector, you safeguard your family against the accumulation and ingestion ofthis harmful gas.
- Reconsider the use of humidifiers
Humidifiers are handy when it comes to adding moisture to dry air that may irritate people. Parents also use humidifiers during winter to alleviate the symptoms of a common cold.
However, it is essential to reconsider its use if you have children with allergies. High levels of humidity may trigger the growth of molds, which are problematic to children especially those who have asthma and other respiratory illnesses.
- Take care of their dry skin
The low temperatures are responsible for the dry air during winter. Coupled with the regular washing of hands using soap, a child’s skin might be irritated causing it to be itchy.
To hydrate the skin, parents must make sure their kids moisturize their skin. The focus should be particularly on the hands as the hand-washing practices with soap might leave them with irritated skin. Also, remember to use mild soap.
I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!
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