Hi-
to all moms and dads what do you to prevent your children from becoming sick? what vitamins or supplements do you give them daily to prevent sickness and keep general good health? give me brands and doses? tell me all. :)
thanks in advance. he is sick often in the winter months 8 years old
We don't do any of that. We want the kids immune system's to get exposed to everything so they will be healthier adults.
If they don't get childhood illnesses they will not be able to fight off as much stuff when they grow up.
Forget supplements, don't work. Eat well, sleep and wash hands!
No vitamin or supplement will immunize a child from a virus. The best prevention is handwashing by all family members.
Personally we don't give our kids any supplements or vitamins. Not as a deliberate choice we just never have. Our kids aren't sick at all.
Not sure if it's genetics or diet (our kids don't eat the healthiest).
So I'm not a lot of help
I give my kids vitamin C and probiotics. We also wash our hands (mostly before we eat) or touch something that might be extra nasty. Other than that, I just let them be. They get dirty and I don't use anything antibacterial. So far no sickness this school year :)
Washing hands and keeping hands away from your face as much as possible is what doctors do. They work in hospitals all day. They don't touch their faces. If their nose itches, they use their forearms to scratch. It's really hard to readjust to not touching eyes/nose, etc.
We don't do supplements or vitamins . I try to give them lots of fruits and some veggies :) Also, lots of hand washing,showers every night (washing hair too), clean clothes every day. That helps us cut down on germs from school and others who are sick . I swear it really helps . My kids sleep better after a nice warm shower too . When they get stuffed up , I give them Mucinex for kids . The doctor said its important to keep the mucus liquid so it doesn't turn into an infection . Saline nose spray helps too . Good luck and stay healthy !
Our best prevention is frequent hand washing. I know this is hard with a kid sometimes, but it really is the best way to avoid coming in contact with those pesky germs.
My friend who is a naturopathic doctor recommended I give my daughter a dose of elderberry syrup everyday. It tastes good and gives her a vitamin boost that's all natural!
We never have bought into the supplement hype.
We do believe in exercise, drinking a lot of water, washing hands regularly and using common sense.
More info please... how old are the kids? Are they sick often? General health? Good or picky eaters? Underweight or overweight.
I'm trying to be helpful but IMO your question is too general.
No standard over-the-counter vitamin pills -- they have all kinds of unhealthy additives such as aspartame and sorbitol, they carry warning labels saying to keep them away from kids (!), and they generally have low absorption rates and too few nutrients to make much of a difference, except in the pockets of the manufacturers.
No single nutrients - nature does not provide immunity that way, so just loading them up with (for example) Vitamin C does zero.
Have you been reading up on epigenetics? It's been in Time, Newsweek, on Dr. Oz and many other reputable magazines/shows. There is phenomenal research over the past 15 years and there are multiple scientific studies showing that damage to our genes through lifestyle choices, environmental toxins, processed foods, etc. can be reversed. Genes are inherited of course, but the packaging around them that causes good genes to switch on and bad ones to switch off is influenced by factors and can be repaired.
There are 2 ways to do this - one is a comprehensive supplement that gives nutrition plus the necessary natural peptide for gene switching repair, and the other is to go for just the peptide itself. This is not a drug approach so there's no such term as "dose" - anymore than you can say "What's the correct dose of spinach and carrots?" Effective amounts vary based on age/weight of kids, whether they are picky eaters and have taste preferences, and what they already eat that you can either give this to them directly or whether you need to "hide" it in something else.
We've been using this approach anyway for years, but with the new discoveries (and I've been to multiple seminars/conferences on it to learn how the research just keeps growing), it's getting better and better. The prevention aspect is huge. There are also numerous patents awarded, and most companies don't take the time or have the quality to obtain a patent on food. There are some pretty simple ways to evaluate the competence and integrity of companies, such as finding out where they manufacture, what safeguards are in place, and so on.
If you want to give me the ages of the kids, the health issues (if other than just "always sick with colds and flu", and any other preferences, I can give you more advise quickly. Friends of mine who had a sick kid for a year (pneumonia-like symptoms 3 weeks out of every 4), others with a child with multiple food allergies, and many others have found great relief. There's a network of people you can talk to as well - supportive success stories with picky eaters and so on.
