5 Ways to Keep Your Kids Healthy Going Back to School

There are many different ways to keep kids healthy going back to school. There are many different things that could work for your family that I have not mentioned, but these are things we try and stay on top of so our kids spend more time at school, and less time sick at home. I say this loosely because we're actually homeschooling one of our kids this year, but that is another tangent for another day.

Keep Kids Healthy Going Back to School

Keep Kids Healthy Going Back to School:

Back-to-school season is a love hate relationship for me. I'm excited my kids are back in school, seeing their friends, and all the excitement that comes with a new school year. I also hate it because it's the beginning of sick season, and for my medically complex daughter, it means she will be six for 30+ school days between August through May. These are some of the things we try to do relentlessly to help her stay healthy, and for our son as well.

Daily Baths After School:

When our kids were younger baths were never a huge priority because we never went anywhere or did anything to get dirty so we would do them about twice a week. Since they started school a few years ago we've gotten into a much better routine of about every other day. The last year or two though, we've gotten a lot more strict about it and get the kids into the tub after dinner each night. We don't want them sleeping with whatever germs might be on them, and we especially don't want those germs going back into the school the next day. All the dirty laundry goes into one basket for the entire house, the kids clean off, and get into fresh clean pajamas. It's a little like a biohazard scene, but also necessary.

Clean Their Fingernails:

Not to brag, but if there is one thing I do well at, it's cleaning my kids nails. They touch things at school all day long, and come home with enough dirt in their nails to plant potatoes (something my grandma always said!) I like to take the fingernail clippers and get the dirt out of their nails right when they get home because my kids are constantly picking their noses and rubbing their hands all over their faces, and all those germs from the school are hibernating in those dirty nails. Whatever I don't get out does come out in the bathtub after dinner, but keeping those nails clean is a huge way to prevent illness.

An Essential Oil Routine:

While I'm not a Doterra sells rep, I can say I've used their oils pretty exclusively for the last eight years. The ones we use the most are OnGuard and Breathe. I have the little roller ball bottles of them and before my kids go to school I roll them on the backs of their necks to help boost up their bodies anyway I can. They're also amazing for fighting existing coughs or colds, and we keep these on hand 100% of the time. I also order them right on Amazon. A Doterra rep will tell you not to do this, but I've literally have had zero issues and have no intentions of changing my ways.

Clean Your Bedsheets Regularly:

Your kids spend so much time in their beds and especially on their pillows. Keeping these cleaned (I typically wash them once a week!) will be a great way to to make sure you're washing out any lingering bacteria from their mouths and sweat that they produce while sleeping.

No Shoes in the House:

I'm convinced that shoes are the filthiest things to enter our home. We have a hard rule that the kids take their shoes off right when they get in the door, and they stay in the shoe closet. That way the bacteria and germs aren't getting onto our floors that the kids are constantly playing and crawling on.

These are the things we're doing and working on to keep our kids healthy this year, I'd love to know what you do in your homes in the comments below!

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26 comments

  1. We love essential oils, I have 4 kids and seriously the first week of school my oldest came down with a cold and infected the whole house. Children are little plague carriers.

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  2. Great ideas! Sheets can get nasty, especially if your kid has a touch of something but isn't full-blown sick yet. We always had the shoe rule at our house growing up.

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  3. These are such great tips! A lot of people forget how much bacteria can hide under fingernails, and how important it is to scrub underneath them :-)

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  4. Great post, these are good ideas! I'll be sure to share with my parent friends :)

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  5. These are all great tips! I'm not a parent but I can imagine it's super stressful trying to keep your kids from getting sick. It sounds like you're doing a great job!

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  6. Definitely daily good hygiene will keep the sickness mostly away. I also love using essential oils for holistic healthier living.

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  7. I love making my own blend of essential oils! It's super handy, I just put mine on a roller and I can take it with me anywhere! We also follow the no shoes inside policy (well, mostly because we're Asians and we're used to it since little), it's really a big help in keeping the house clean!

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  8. What a great post, This is actually something that I really need. I want my kids to keep healthy and my elder is now officialy going to school.

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  9. 7. Put them in a bubble. It's unreal. Less than 2 weeks of school and my son already caught a cold. And we do all of these things (except the essential oils). Great tips though

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  10. These are some great, practical tips. Kids are among so many new people and different environments. It is vital to be proactive.

    ❥ tanvii.com

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  11. These are some great tips. We keep a nailbrush by the sink so when our Grandkids wash their hands they can give their nails a quick clean as they always get dirty when playing outside.

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  12. These are great hygiene tips to keep the school going children away from germs as much as possible. We too have the shoe rule in our house. Keeping the shoes in the shoe cabinets at the entrance saves a lot of infections from entering your house. I also like the idea of using essential oils.

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  13. These are some really great tips. I will share it with my friends who are parents.

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  14. Definitely NO shoes in the house! That's the easiest way to cut down on gross stuff on your carpet.

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  15. I'm team no-shoes-in-the-house. Not only does it help keep germs out, but it makes keeping floors clean so much easier!

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  16. We're trying to adopt the policy of no shoes in the house, but its providing difficult as I play out on the street and am constantly running indoors with my friends!

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  17. No shoes in the house is my biggest issue. I address this on a daily basis.

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  18. Essential oils always come in handy. That, and not tracking in things from outside by leaving your shoes at the door.

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  19. Essential oil’s are a great way to keep the kids safe thankfully Josiah hasn’t started school yet so I don’t have to do too much worry about him getting sick from being there these are great tips.

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  20. No shoes and essential oils are a must in my house. Thank you so much for sharing. This was really informative.

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  21. Great list! We follow all these and more. Essential oil's are a definitely must for every household with kids.

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  22. All great advice!! I don’t have any kiddos but I know that advice can be applied to anyone!!

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  23. It's so important to keep kids healthy. These habits are easy to take up. Thanks for sharing!

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  24. This is the same trauma we are having right now with our son. We put him into the nursery at the age of 2+. He suddenly always gets sick. I've seen their clean and you know all the hygienic rules within the nursery but all that failed. The very last thing he got before we really decided to stop him from going to the nursery was foot, hand and mouth disease and influenza. Now I don't know how to put him back to school he's going 4.

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  25. It's so easy for the kids to catch a virus or an infection in school and you'll never know what they're up to while they're there so it's really important to teach them proper hygiene. I think these are helpful tips especially for parents who are sending their kids to school for the first time.

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  26. No shoes in the house is a big one and I definitely feel that should be implemented.

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