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The seasons are changing and there is a sniff and a cough everywhere. It's a time when parents especially get concerned about their little ones and wonder what measures could be taken to prevent them from frequently falling ill. Some of the questions I get asked as a paediatrician on a daily basis in the clinic are the following -
"I feel I am here every week. Is there any reason why my child keeps falling sick?"
"Can I do something to improve my child’s immunity?"
"What are we doing or not doing that contribute to my child getting many illnesses since he/she started nursery?"
However, there is one question at the heart of it all: Is there a reason for recurring illnesses in children? We will discuss this along with symptoms and problems that are perceived as same illnesses and what can be done to minimise recurrence and improve general health.
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Common illnesses that circulate every year in most countries and the UAE are viruses, bacterias, parasites and other fungal infections.
The following are the commonest ones I see in patients coming to the clinic, which is likely to reflect the the community.
We have a unique set of conditions that increases the risk of infections in general and other set of circumstances that help reduce infections. Conditions that contribute to more infections can be listed as follows:
On the other hand, the following factors help reduce risk of infections:
It is widely accepted that children and infants will have many mild viral infections and sometimes more serious infections in the first six months of joining schools or nurseries. On average one infection every four to six weeks for the first three to six months after joining nurseries is to be expected.
Each infection is normally followed by wet cough to clear the chest, which is involved in many viral infections. This clearing of the chest could take up to six weeks with mild cough which will fde gradually.
For parents, it feels that the child is coughing forever, which is a reason for many doctor visits and changing medications. It is important to avoid cough syrups in children; most of the times, using honey (for children over one year), as well as lemon and fresh oranges are good alternatives.
Other tips to improve general health and reduce illnesses are healthy living, exposure to outdoors, no screen time for the under two years of age and the maximum screen time for older children to not exceed half an hour a day.
The best tip I would like to give all parents is to introduce sporting activities in your child’s life as early as possible, and I always recommend a self-defence sport, a team sport and swimming to be part of every child’s life.
Dr Talal Farha is a Paediatric Consultant and Medical Director at Somerset Clinic Dubai
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