Encouraging personal hygiene habits in your kids
The arrival of Covid-19 pandemic has made discussing health and hygiene issues a dire need in today’s time. Teaching your child about the importance of personal hygiene will help them live a healthy life. As we know, kids are more vulnerable and exposed to harmful virus and bacteria as they regularly move out of the house and lack knowledge about diseases. Therefore, assuring personal hygiene among them is very important. It strengthens the immune system in kids and helps them fight diseases better.
Developing safe and hygienic habits also reduces the spread of illness from one child to another. On the other hand, it increases self-confidence and positively impacts personal relationships. Each person’s idea of personal hygiene differs. But broadly speaking, we can divide these practices into different sub-categories such as hand hygiene, toilet hygiene, shower hygiene, nail hygiene, clothes hygiene, oral hygiene etc.
If you are a parent and want to incorporate personal hygiene habits in your child’s routine, here are few suggestions that can help you to succeed in the mission.
Set reminders
If your child tends to forget things like taking a shower, wash hair, clip nails, or brush their teeth, set an alarm or use other techniques to help them remember and incorporate these as daily good habits in their lifestyle. Once they start doing it because the alarm reminds them, they will begin to do it by themselves without the alarm over time.
Help your child Identify germ-prone objects
The pandemic has clearly proved to us that any object used by more than one person, or used throughout the day by the same person, can contain a large load of germs and bacteria. Thus, parents need to help their child identify germ-prone objects and impart a habit of washing hands right after touching them. Things that multiple people use include currency notes, coins, door handles, mobile phones, laptop keyboards, elevator buttons, etc. Teach your kids that any object used by more than one person or used throughout the day by the same person is a bed of germs. They should avoid touching these objects or ensure washing their hands right after that.
Encourage kids to keep their surroundings clean
You could follow all the good hygiene tips for kids, but still manage to not assure appropriate hygiene for them because you forgot to clean a desk or bedroom. Parents need to ascertain on small things that can create a major difference. So, teach your kids to keep their surrounding clean, starting from their own room. Make sure they keep dirty clothes in the laundry basket and use fresh clothes at all times.
Carry hand sanitizer always
A parent can assure that their child is taking hygiene precautions at home, but it becomes difficult to control your child once you step outside. The pandemic has created a mass sensitization of the benefits of using sanitizer. Emphasis on these benefits and help your child develop a habit of sanitizing their hands whenever needed. Buy them a bottle of sanitizer and ask them to take it along with them.
Be a Role model for your child
It is morally wrong if you tell your child to ensure hygiene but in the end, you are not following them. Kids at a tender age look up to their parents and start replicating their activities with time. Sensitizing your child about the benefits is not enough, you have to preach it so that your child acquires your best habits.