Back to School Immune Boosters

The time has come. School is in full swing and with that comes all the colds, boogers, flus, and who knows what else. It’s always funny to me how by the end of summer I’m ready for my kids to get back into a routine, for things to slow down a bit, and then when they come home with that first sign of a cold, I think back to how nice the summer was when they were outside, playing in the dirt, and healthy.

Going back to school doesn’t have to signal cold and flu season, but a lot of times it seems like does. The truth is that as school starts and our kids are indoors, more than they are outdoors, and they are in closer contact to others, it only makes sense that their immune systems will be under attack more. The great thing though, is there are plenty of things that we can do to help strengthen our children’s immune systems now, at the start of the school season, so when they do come home with the sniffles, they are back to feeling better in no time.

Below are my tips and tricks for strengthening the immune system this school year.

1.       Make sure your child is getting plenty of sleep. When they sleep, their bodies are recovering from all the day to day stresses. So, if they are deprived on sleep their bodies are missing out on important healing times.

2.       Keep those kids hydrated. As they head back to school, they may forget their water bottles, and if they become dehydrated fatigue can set in. A fatigued body is a weaker body and those bacteria and viruses love to attack the weak.

3.       Have your kid take a daily vitamin. In our house my kids not only take a multi-vitamin, but we take extra vitamin C, fish oil, extra vitamin D, and elderberry syrup.

4.       Get those kids outside. I know at the end of a long school day, it’s easy to let our kids veg out in front of a screen, but having them play outside will not only give them extra vitamin D, but the fresh air will help with their mental fatigue and ensure that they sleep better.

5.       Get your whole family adjusted! Keeping their spines aligned allows their nervous system to function at its optimal level, and when it does this, their little bodies will fight off those germs so much better.

So, bring on the school year and remember that getting sick is okay. In fact, it’s good. When we are exposed to viruses and bacteria it strengthens our immune system, but if we have a strong immune system already, we don’t get sick as often and we bounce back much quicker when we do get sick!