Keeping Hands Clean to Ward Off the Unseen
The new school-year has arrived, your youngsters have taken another leap in their learning journey and I hope you are enjoying some well-earned you-time.
The highly anticipated return-to-school-date landed, bringing both joy and concern. Those rooting for a return to the old routine now find themselves reinforcing the routine of good hand-washing. Children, it would appear, whilst loving seeing their friends again and sharing summer stories, love to share germs!
For the concerned new parents wanting a heads up on the typical diseases children can be exposed to, what to look for and how to treat them, I have compiled a list of the most common, complete with NHS guidance.
Chicken Pox—red blister spots that may appear all over the body, causing itchiness and discomfort.
Rubella (German Measles)—a rare illness. Red or pink spotty rash appears 2 to 3 weeks after catching it.
Measles—highly infectious viral disease. Fever and a red brown rash appears. Vaccinations have rendered this disease less common in the UK.
Whooping Cough—continuous whoop sounding cough caused by a bacterial infection of the lungs.
Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease—infection causing sore throat, mouth ulcers, blister spots on hands and feet.
Scarlet Fever—contagious infection. Flu like symptoms with a raised all-over-body rash.
Mumps—viral infection causing painful swelling in the side of the face.
Impetigo—contagious skin infection which causers blister sores which burst easily and spread to other parts of the body.
Flu—infectious disease causing high temperatures, joint ache, head ache, sore throat and ear ache.
Common Cold—a minor viral infection sometimes causing sneezing, headaches, runny nose, sore throat and loss of taste and smell.
Gastroenteritis (Tummy Bug)—a germ that causes inflammation of the stomach and intestines resulting in diarrhoea and vomiting.
Conjunctivitis—a contagious eye infection that causes red painful sticky eyes.
Warts and Verrucas—viruses causing lumps that appear on skin, contagious by close skin contact or by contaminated surfaces.
Bonus Bugs (the insect variety):
Head Lice—small insects that live in hair, easily spread by head to head contact.
Scabies—a tiny burrowing mite that lays eggs under the upper layer of skin. They cause an itchy rash, which can spread quickly and to others by skin to skin contact.
The links above give in-depth steps to take, if infected. As for prevention, the safe and sure advice to give, driven home in this current climate, is the importance of washing hands. Simple as it is, it goes a long way to reducing the spread of many harmful microbes. Where some children are tired of being told or others are too young to fully comprehend the reasoning, these hand washing songs might aid the teaching process.
Keeping on top of this routine helps keep the germs at bay so you can continue building good memories of your child’s school years.