People, attention!!!
Remember the most important thing: the tactics of your actions are completely independent of the name of the virus. Seasonal flu, swine flu, elephant flu, pandemic flu, not flu at all - it doesn’t matter. The only important thing is that it is a virus, that it is transmitted by airborne droplets and that it affects.

There are more than two hundred viruses different types– rhinoviruses, enteroviruses, adenoviruses, coronaviruses, influenza and parainfluenza viruses and others. The most common culprits of colds are rhinoviruses; they cause the disease in 25–50% of cases. Rhinoviruses love a relatively environment and therefore prefer to live in the nasopharynx rather than deep inside the body - which is why the main symptoms of a cold appear there. The frequency of “colds” depends on age: on average, adults catch a cold 2–3 times a year, children – up to 5–6 times, and older people – once a year; There are also those who practically do not get sick. Typically, the disease lasts 7–10 days; with its standard development, the symptoms worsen during the first 3–4 days, remain stable for 1–2 days, and disappear over the remaining 3–4 days.

Infection with the virus that causes ARVI occurs through the air (inhalation of microscopic mucus from a coughing or sneezing person) or through self-infection (touching the mucous membranes, mouth or nose) after contact with sick people or objects used by them. Viruses can live on surfaces for several days (and survive longer on smooth, non-porous materials) and remain infectious for 24 hours, so you can catch a cold in public transport, or through common objects in an office, store or school. The virus cannot enter the body through the skin, so it takes several hours for it to get, for example, from the hands to the nose - unless we ourselves help it by delivering it to the mucous membranes.

The mechanics of infection are as follows. When the virus enters the nasal passage from fingers or inhaled air, it is transferred to the back of the nasopharynx. There it attaches to local receptors using a protein and penetrates the membrane into the cell, where it “unpacks” its RNA - this is how the virus begins to divide and infect the body. This process takes 8–12 hours, and from the moment the virus enters the nasopharynx until cold symptoms appear, it can take from 12 hours to 1–2 days.

PREVENTION OF FLU and ARVI

If you (your child) are exposed to the virus and you do not have protective antibodies in your blood, you will get sick. Antibodies will appear in one of two cases: either you get sick, or you get vaccinated. By getting vaccinated, you will not protect yourself from viruses in general, but only from the seasonal flu virus.

Conclusion: how to protect yourself from influenza and ARVI? — Answer: get vaccinated!

• Get vaccinated

If you have the financial opportunity to get vaccinated (vaccinate your child) - get vaccinated , but on the condition that to get vaccinated you won’t have to sit in a snotty crowd at a clinic. Available vaccines protect against all variants of the influenza virus that are current this year.

• Don’t be fooled by “folk remedies”

No drugs and folk remedies» with proven preventive effectiveness does not exist. Those. no onion, no garlic, no vodka and no pills you swallow or put into your child can protect against any respiratory virus in general, or the influenza virus in particular. Everything you are dying for in pharmacies, all these supposedly antiviral drugs, supposedly stimulants of interferon formation, immune stimulants and creepy healthy vitamins- all these are drugs with unproven effectiveness, drugs that satisfy the main mental need of a person “something needs to be done.”
The main benefit of all these drugs is. You believe, it helps you - I’m happy for you, just don’t spend money on it - it’s not worth it.

• The source of the virus is human and only human.

How less people, the less likely you are to get sick. Walking to the stop and not going to the supermarket one more time is wise!

• A mask will not protect a healthy person.

A useful thing, but not a panacea. It is advisable to see it on a sick person, if there are healthy people nearby, it will not delay the virus, but it will stop droplets of saliva that are especially rich in the virus. A healthy person does not need a mask.

• Wash your hands!

The patient’s hands are a source of the virus no less significant than the mouth and nose. The patient touches his face, the virus gets on his hands, the patient grabs everything around him, you touch it all with your hand - hello, ARVI.
Don't touch your face. Wash your hands, often, a lot, always carry wet disinfectant sanitary napkins with you, wash, rub, don’t be lazy!
Learn yourself and teach your children, if you don’t have a handkerchief, to cough and sneeze not into your palm, but into your elbow.
Chiefs! By official order, introduce a ban on handshakes in the teams subordinate to you.
Use credit cards. Paper money is a source of virus spread .

Viral particles remain active for hours in dry, warm, still air, but are destroyed almost instantly in cool, humid, and moving air.
You can walk as much as you like. It is almost impossible to catch a virus while walking. Therefore, if you are already going out for a walk, there is no need to ostentatiously walk around the streets wearing a mask. It's better to get some fresh air. The optimal indoor air parameters are temperature about 20 °C, humidity 50–70%.

Frequent and intensive cross-ventilation of the premises is mandatory. . Any heating system dries out the air. Wash the floor. Turn on humidifiers. Urgently demand air humidification and ventilation of rooms in children's groups. It is better to dress warmly, but do not turn on additional heaters.

• Moisturize your mucous membranes!

Mucus constantly forms in the upper respiratory tract. Mucus ensures the functioning of the so-called. local immunity - protection of mucous membranes. If the mucus and mucous membranes dry out, the work of local immunity is disrupted, and viruses, accordingly, easily overcome protective barrier weakened local immunity, and a person becomes ill upon contact with the virus with a much higher degree of probability. Main enemy local immunity - dry air, as well as medications that can dry out mucous membranes. Since you do not know what kind of medicines these are (and these are some antiallergic and almost all so-called “combined cold medicines”), it is better not to experiment in principle.

Moisturizing mucous membranes is very simple: 1 teaspoon regular table salt per 1 liter boiled water. Pour it into any spray bottle (for example, from vasoconstrictor drops) and spray it into your nose regularly (the drier, the more people around - the more often, at least every 10 minutes). For the same purpose, you can buy at the pharmacy saline solution or ready-made saline solutions for administration into the nasal passages: “Salin”, “Aqua Maris”, “Humer”, “Marimer”, “Nosol”, etc. The main thing is don’t regret it! Drip, spray, especially when you go from home (from a dry room) to where there are a lot of people, especially if you are sitting in the corridor of the clinic. Rinse your mouth regularly with the above-mentioned saline solution.

TREATMENT OF FLU and ARVI

In fact, the only drug that can destroy the influenza virus is oseltamivir, commercial name Tamiflu. Theoretically, there is another medicine (zanamivir), but it is used only by inhalation, and there is little chance of seeing it in our country. Tamiflu actually destroys the virus by blocking the neuraminidase protein (the same N in the name H1N1). Do not eat Tamiflu for every sneeze. It’s not cheap, there are a lot of side effects, and it doesn’t make sense. “Tamiflu” is used when the disease is severe (doctors know the signs of severe ARVI) or when a person at risk even gets sick mildly - asthmatics, diabetics (doctors also know who belongs to the risk group). The bottom line: if Tamiflu is indicated, then at least medical supervision is indicated and, as a rule, hospitalization is required.

The effectiveness of other antiviral drugs against ARVI and influenza is very doubtful (this is the most diplomatic definition available).
How to protect yourself from influenza and ARVI and how to treat influenza and ARVI? Treatment for ARVI in general and influenza in particular is not about swallowing pills! This is the creation of such conditions so that the body can easily cope with the virus.

TREATMENT RULES

If you (your child) are already sick, it is too late to think about how to protect yourself from the flu and ARVI. But it's time to do the right thing:

1. Dress warmly, but the room is cool and damp. Temperature 18–20 °C (better 16 than 22), humidity 50–70% (better 80 than 30). Wash floors, moisten, ventilate.
2. Categorically If he asks (if he wants) - light, carbohydrate, liquid.
3. (to give something to drink). Drink (water). Drink (water)!!!
   The temperature of the liquid is equal to body temperature. Drink a lot. (finely chop an apple into tea), raisin infusions, dried apricots. If a child drinks too much, I will, but I won’t, let him drink whatever he wants, as long as he drinks. Ideal for drinking - ready-made solutions for oral rehydration. They are sold in pharmacies and should be there: “Regidron”, “Humana Electrolyte”, “Gastrolit”, “Normogidron”, etc. Buy, breed according to instructions, feed.
4. Drip and spritz saline solutions into your nose frequently.
5. All “distracting procedures” (cupping, mustard plasters, smearing the fat of unfortunate animals - goats, badgers, etc.) over the body are classic Soviet sadism and, again, psychotherapy (“something needs to be done”). Steaming children's feet (by adding boiling water to a basin), doing steam inhalations over a kettle or saucepan, rubbing children with alcohol-containing liquids is crazy parental banditry.
6. If you decide to fight high temperature- only paracetamol or ibuprofen. Absolutely no aspirin!
   The main problem is that to dress warmly, moisturize, ventilate, not push food and give him something to drink - this in our language is called “not to treat”, and “to treat” means sending dad to the pharmacy...
7. . Damage to the lower respiratory tract (bronchitis, pneumonia) has nothing to do with self-medication at all. Medicines that suppress cough (the instructions say “antitussive action”) are strictly prohibited”!!!
8. Antiallergic drugs have nothing to do with the treatment of ARVI.
9. Viral infections are not treated with antibiotics. Antibiotics do not reduce, but increase the risk of complications.
10. All interferons for local application and for ingestion - drugs with unproven effectiveness or “medicines” with proven ineffectiveness. The same applies to homeopathy.

ALWAYS!!!
But this is unrealistic. Therefore, we list situations when a DOCTOR IS MANDATORY:
no improvement on the fourth day of illness;
elevated temperature bodies on the seventh day of illness;
worsening after improvement;
severe severity of the condition with moderate symptoms of ARVI;
appearance alone or in combination: pale skin; thirst, shortness of breath, intense pain, purulent discharge;
increased cough, decreased productivity; a deep breath leads to a coughing attack;
when body temperature rises, paracetamol and ibuprofen do not help, practically do not help, or help very briefly.

A DOCTOR IS NEEDED MANDATORY AND URGENTLY, if observed:

Loss of consciousness;
convulsions;
signs of respiratory failure (difficulty breathing, shortness of breath, feeling of lack of air);
intense pain anywhere;
even a moderate sore throat in the absence of a runny nose (sore throat + dry nose is often a symptom of a sore throat, which requires a doctor and an antibiotic);
even moderate headache in combination with vomiting;
swelling of the neck;

Instructions

Before you send baby V , kindergarten or just go outside, lubricate his nostrils with oxolinic ointment. And upon returning home, you need to wash off the ointment with baby soap. Use this remedy only if the child goes to crowded places. Constant use oxolinic ointment can only do harm. Also wash your baby with seawater-based sprays.

Pay close attention to how and what your child is wearing. Avoid hypothermia, this is the factor that often leads to illness.

IN dangerous period Treat your hands as often as possible with any alcohol-based hand rub, or simply wash them with soap, especially after or. Use when sneezing or coughing paper napkins, and then be sure to dispose of them carefully.

Wear a gauze mask or any other protective disposable dressings during an epidemic flu when the child is in in public places.

After consulting with your pediatrician in advance, give your child specific prophylaxis, especially if he or she has low immunity. Include in your baby's daily diet foods that contain vitamins and strengthen the immune system: green onions, garlic, daily tea with honey and lemon. You can drink infusions containing root. Even during the warm period, you can take vitamins and herbal preparations that increase immunity. However, most effective method prevention flu is timely vaccination.

Video on the topic

Tip 2: How to protect your child from diseases in kindergarten

When sending their baby to kindergarten, mothers worry that he will catch some kind of infection and get sick. So that many diseases pass by your baby, and he felt cheerful and cheerful, take measures in advance to improve his health.

Instructions

In children's garden diseases are often common, since children are in close proximity to each other, and many infections are transmitted by airborne droplets or through shared objects. Therefore, teach your baby to take care of his own hygiene. Hand washing is mandatory before eating, as well as after using the toilet, playing on the floor, playing sports and walking outside. Keep paper handkerchiefs and wet wipes in the cabinet. Wash your child's clothes often to ensure they are always clean. Talk to your child about how during a street walk you should not pick anything from trees or pick anything up under them and eat it. Explain that unwashed and unripe fruits can cause severe illness.

Vitamins and minerals are needed to strengthen the immune system. Make sure your child eats enough fruits, berries, vegetables and greens. If he has a low appetite, come up with an interesting dish, a funny saying, or engage with him more often physical exercise. Consult your pediatrician about taking vitamin complexes, because children often do not receive the required amount of microelements through food. Do not forget to give them to your baby on time, especially during periods of epidemics. Immunostimulating and use only as prescribed by a doctor, because they can cause allergies.

Gradually it will also strengthen the child’s immunity. You can start with air and sun baths, and then move on to water procedures. A gradual decrease in water temperature or a contrast shower will strengthen the body’s ability to resist viruses. Ventilate the rooms at home, take a walk with your baby every day, look for interesting outdoor games fresh air to interest the baby.

Pay attention to whether your baby is sleeping, because a tired body is more susceptible to infection. Try to ensure that your baby's sleep lasts at least nine and two hours during the day. If it is bad, consult a specialist; you may be prescribed soothing teas or syrups.

Vaccinations are also a good protective measure against viruses. To enter the kindergarten, you must receive a number of mandatory vaccines. But there are dangerous diseases for which vaccinations are given at the request of their parents, for example, chickenpox or tularemia. It is better to protect your baby from such infections in advance, but after consulting a doctor.

Related article

Sources:

• How to protect your kindergartener from viral diseases

Influenza is one of the most dangerous acute respiratory viral infections. Increasingly, this diagnosis is being made to children. Children have a hard time with the flu, and the disease often ends in complications. Therefore, during a period when the risk of infection is especially high, everything possible must be done to prevent the child from getting sick.

You will need

• - disposable masks;
• - saline;
• - antibacterial wipes;
• - soap;
• - fresh vegetables and fruits.

Instructions

The peak incidence usually occurs in December. For the season flu you need to prepare in advance. Begin hardening procedures in the summer - this will strengthen the child’s immunity. Swimming in a nursery, contrasting douches and rubdowns, cool foot baths - all this will help to harden baby. Pay attention to nutrition too. Introduce more fresh and boiled vegetables into your child’s diet, fruit juices and puree, lean meat. During the period of peak incidence, give your baby more citrus fruits - provided that he is not allergic to them.

Consider getting a flu vaccine. Vaccination can be done starting at six. But it is usually recommended for those already attending kindergarten. According to doctors, the effectiveness of protection against the virus, if done in a timely manner, is 70-90%. It is best to vaccinate before the peak of incidence - that is, from September to November. Unfortunately, there is no universal vaccine yet, and new variants for specific influenza strains are proposed every year. The doctor selects the required vaccine.

Look after your own health. Do not allow your baby to get the virus from one of your family members. If you feel unwell, consult a doctor and limit contact with your child. Buy disposable protective masks at the pharmacy and change them every two to three hours. Throw away used masks and paper handkerchiefs immediately. Wash your hands frequently and use antibacterial wipes to wipe down surfaces that your child might touch.

Make sure your child washes their hands regularly, especially before eating. Invite your child to rinse his nose with saline solution. for preventive purposes. Do it together - such measures will not harm all family members.

If the child does, invite a doctor to see him. Do not self-medicate - the symptoms of flu are too similar to other diseases, sometimes more serious. While waiting for the doctor, do not lower your temperature - antipyretic drugs are needed only when the thermometer rises above 38.5-39°C. Give your baby plenty of warm drinks and do not force him to eat. Isolate the sick person from others, for example, by separating his bed with a screen.

When caring for your baby, wash your hands as often as possible and wear a disposable protective mask. Be sure to wash hot water with soap and baby toys. Make sure your child's nose is free of mucus. Infants need to remove it with a small enema; teach older children how to blow their nose and provide them with paper handkerchiefs. Place the child on a moderately hard bed with a couple of pillows under his head - this will make it easier for the patient to breathe.

Is it possible to protect a child from colds? Everything, as they say, is in your hands. Every mother probably has her own secrets and I am no exception. Here are a few of them I think will be useful.

Everyone knows that you need to take a walk with your child so that he grows up strong and healthy, but you also need to walk properly. When you are going for a walk, do not try to dress your child warmly, especially if he is not sitting in a stroller on the street. After all, a child who is sweating will get sick faster, just a cool breeze is enough. If you come home and notice that your child's back is wet, be sure to change him and next time dress lighter. Yes, and you shouldn’t cover your baby’s face with a scarf while breathing humid air, he can easily catch a cold.

When, upon returning home from a walk, you notice that your child’s legs and arms are cool, you need to rub them as quickly as possible. For this, you can buy a special children's warming ointment at the pharmacy, "Barsukor", for example. You can do it without ointment - with your own hands, until your hands and feet warm up. Or place them under warm water, this will also help warm them up. After these procedures, give your baby a warm drink, for example, tea with rose hips or raspberries.

Of course, in order for children to get sick less often, they need to be hardened from birth, but we will talk about this in a separate article.

What people are used to calling a cold is called in medical language ARVI- acute respiratory viral infection. Why respiratory? Because most often the inflammatory process affects the respiratory organs: nasopharynx, trachea, bronchi, lungs.

ARVI is accompanied by a low rise in temperature (maximum 38.4), profuse nasal discharge or congestion, inflammation of the tonsils, and cough. If the temperature is above 38.4, there is aching in the bones and severe chills - we may be talking about the flu. In any case, you should call a doctor at home and follow medical recommendations. Frequent colds (more than 6 times a year) indicate weak immunity and require compliance with preventive measures.

Prevention of ARVI should begin with a complete examination of the child for the presence of chronic diseases. Often the cause of reduced immunity can be chronic tonsillitis. To avoid further colds, it is recommended to sanitize the child’s tonsils once a year - irrigate the throat with saline solution from a special syringe with a rounded nozzle.

After sanitization, teach your child to maintain proper oral hygiene and rinse his mouth at least 3 times a day after meals. After treatment of chronic diseases of the nasopharynx, hardening should begin.

Having adopted the habit of wrapping their child warmer from their grandmothers, parents forget that a bunch of clothes will not protect the child from ARVI, but, on the contrary, will weaken the immune system. The more unnecessary clothing a child wears, the sooner the body begins to sweat and cools down faster in a cool room. Do not insulate the child too much; the body must breathe. Hardening is designed to improve body thermoregulation and strengthen children's immunity.

For hardening, purchase a needle mat (Lyapko or Kuznetsov applicator), a soft massage mat and small foot baths (2-3 pieces). Every morning, give your child a “walk” along the “road of health.”

First, the child stands for 2-3 minutes in a bath with hot water (39-40 degrees), then with cold water (19-21 degrees), then thoroughly wipes his feet on a terry foot towel and walks along massage mat. Finally, you need to walk in place for 5 minutes on a needle mat.

Instead of water, you can use solids such as sand and ice. For a hot foot bath, the sand should be slightly heated. Hardening is impossible without morning exercises. If possible, exercise in the fresh air in warm weather, and in a pre-ventilated room in cold weather.

Hardening will be the most effective measure for the prevention of ARVI if combined with proper nutrition. The child's diet should be enriched with all necessary vitamins and minerals. Once a week, the diet should contain fish meat rich in omega fatty acids (lamprey, halibut, mackerel, tuna, sardines). Vegetables and fruits - every day.

Organize a mini herbal bar at home by brewing healthy herbal infusions for your child. As a prophylaxis against ARVI in folk medicine They use decoctions of rose hips, linden flowers, thyme, burdock and chicory roots. Homemade cranberry and raspberry fruit drinks strengthen the immune system.

In the winter of 2011, many were gripped by panic, fueled by the media, about the high number of deaths during the swine flu virus epidemic. People on the street in protective bandages were not surprised, and many were simply afraid and... didn't do anything!

Influenza is most dangerous for children, pregnant women, immunocompromised people and the elderly.

So how can you protect yourself and your child from the flu virus, including swine flu? Everyone knows that There is no medicine to treat influenza: both vaccinations and antiviral drugs are aimed at stimulating your immunity, and not at destroying the influenza virus. Therefore, we have to repeat the hackneyed truth: disease prevention is no less important than effective treatment.

To reduce the likelihood of infecting yourself and your children with the influenza virus, you just need to follow simple rules:

1. In the morning and in the evening rinse your nasal passages with Dolphin systems(and it is not necessary to constantly buy additional bags for preparing the solution at the pharmacy; it is enough to prepare a saline solution that does not cause severe discomfort and burning when rinsing) or use sprays like Aqua-Maris or Aqua-Lor(or similar). It is more difficult for the virus to overcome the barrier in the form of moistened mucous membranes and enter the body.

Attention! If you use Dolphin incorrectly, acute otitis may develop!

Air humidifiers also create unfavorable conditions for the virus - it doesn’t even matter what it is: a modern household ultrasonic humidifier or a pot of water on a radiator in a nursery. Indoor flowers also make a small contribution to air humidification, and some (for example, myrtle, laurel, lemon, geranium) also release substances that are harmful to microbes - phytoncides.

2. After rinsing in the morning, lubricate your nasal passages oxolinic ointment or drop 2 drops into each nostril. calendula oils(oil is difficult to buy in a pharmacy - it is better to prepare the oil macerate (extract) in advance in the fall yourself). Oil significantly increases the body's resistance to infections.

Attention! Excessive and frequent use of oxolinic ointment can cause mucosal atrophy, and before using calendula oil it is necessary to carry out individual tolerance test!

3. How possible wash your hands often with soap: the influenza virus, like all microbes, likes to wait for meetings with you door handles, handrails of public transport, fountain pens in public places, banknotes, etc. Avoid touching your nose, mouth, eyes with your hands, and try to wean your child off this.

4. Use a powerful natural antiviral agent to disinfect the air - tea tree essential oil (if you and your child are not allergic to it) - in aroma medallions, aroma lamps, or simply spread cotton wool around the house, dripping oil into it. You can use other essential oils with antiviral effects - rosemary, lavender, juniper, thyme, marjoram, lemon, bergamot. Alternatively, cut it onto a plate garlic or onion, which purify the air using phytoncides.

5. Healthy image life also increases the body's resistance to infections. Healthy sleep, consumption food products, rich in proteins, vitamins and minerals- all this will also strengthen your immunity. Take throughout the ENTIRE period from autumn to spring multivitamin or vitamin and mineral complexes , It's best to follow a doctor's recommendation. But remember that vitamins A, , , and zinc absolutely necessary to protect the body from infections and the full functioning of the immune system.

6. Refuse to visit large shops, entertainment in crowded places, even Christmas trees: the health of your child and your own health is much more important than temporary inconveniences. Perhaps this point can be called the most important in flu prevention measures.

7. If the temperature rises sharply, immediately call a doctor.

To accurately diagnose the type of influenza, it is necessary to undergo tests, therefore, if the doctor does not give you a referral for tests, but immediately prescribes treatment, you should insist on laboratory tests. The doctor is not God; he can make mistakes both in prescribing treatment and in making the diagnosis itself.

If you are advised to get a flu vaccine (for example, Grippol vaccine), consider whether it is worth exposing yourself and your children to danger: the reaction to the introduction of a foreign protein into the body can be unpredictable, and you do not have to be allergic for the vaccine to provoke anaphylactic shock. In any case, the vaccination must be done BEFORE the onset of the flu epidemic.

Dear parents! There is now a lot of debate about the need for standard universal vaccination, and many doctors, based on their practical experience, state that it is Flu shots are not very effective. Take responsibility for your health and the health of your children!

Can be used to prevent influenza Grippferon or IRS-19 within 2 weeks before the incidence increases and Arbidol– adults 200 mg twice a week for 3 weeks, children in an age-appropriate dosage (gripferon and arbidol are also approved for use during pregnancy).

Prevention of influenza and acute respiratory viral infections is of particular importance during pregnancy: a woman’s body experiences significant stress during this period and the immune system is often significantly weakened. A particular difficulty is that influenza during pregnancy is not recommended to be treated with many pharmaceuticals, as well as some medicinal herbs. The use of homeopathic remedies for the flu during pregnancy is not prohibited, but it is better to take care of prevention than to think later about how to cure the flu so as not to harm the fetus.

Flu treatment

How to treat the flu? As mentioned above, there is no pill for the flu; the pharmacy will only offer you drugs that can alleviate certain symptoms of the flu - runny nose, cough, reduce high fever. Herbal medicine is by far the most effective and safe remedy for influenza.

It is necessary that a patient with the flu use separate dishes and utensils, a towel, and be isolated in a separate room. Peace – best doctor with the flu. At the first symptoms of any cold, mandatory bed rest is required, the maximum possible increase in drinking regime (rosehip decoction, herbal teas, lingonberry, cranberry, sea buckthorn fruit drink, mineral water with lemon, raspberry tea or honey, lemon And ginger) to remove toxins - waste products of the influenza virus in the body. An effective universal detoxifier is Liquid chlorophyll .

Use paper tissues; Cover your mouth when sneezing and coughing and be sure to wash your hands afterwards! This will reduce the number of viruses circulating in the air.

When treating influenza, especially if you start treatment from the first day, homeopathic medicines are effective (for example Girel, Oscillococcinum) and drugs Echinacea. Don’t forget about vitamin-mineral complexes and zinc to support the immune system, but keep in mind that for medicinal purposes the dosage should be increased 2-3 times (this applies ONLY to vitamin complexes; an overdose of some minerals can be dangerous for the body!).

You cannot hope that the flu will pass by - it is necessary to engage in active prevention now. Even by doing such seemingly basic actions every day, you can protect yourself and your children from the flu or, at least, weaken the effect of the virus.

According to medical statistics for 2011, only Regular nasal rinsing reduces the incidence of influenza and ARVI by almost half !

Take care of yourself so that others don't get sick! I wish you and your children health!

Caring mother of three children,

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When one of the household members catches a cold, the whole family is instantly faced with two problems at once: how to quickly cure the patient, and how not to infect everyone else? It is especially important to protect children! Regarding how to properly and promptly treat ARVI, every grandmother and mother knows a dozen of her own “proven recipes.” We, relying on the experience and strong knowledge of doctors, will tell you how to protect the whole family from infection as much as possible. In other words, we will teach the basics of preventing ARVI in children and adults.

To protect both children and adults from colds (and above all from respiratory viruses), you must first have two “things”: common sense and basic knowledge.

ARVI: for whom in the family is the disease most dangerous?

Regarding the prevention of ARVI, it makes sense to immediately warn - there are no measures or means that could 100% protect some people from contracting a viral infection in conditions where there is already a sick person nearby. Moreover, the carrier of the virus (and its active spreader) can be not only those who this moment with a runny nose and high fever, he sneezes left and right.

In relation to any ARVI, the process of transmission of the virus from one person to another is completely unpredictable and spontaneous. But something is still known about him. For example, what than adults. However, among adults there are categories of people for whom infection with respiratory viruses may be even more dangerous than for children. This:

• Pregnant ladies and nursing mothers;
• Elderly people with weakened immune systems;
• People with chronic respiratory diseases, for whom even a mild form of a “cold” usually results in severe complications;

The likelihood that a child will get ARVI from an adult is approximately 2.5 times higher than vice versa. Moreover, than younger child- the higher the risk of infection. The only exceptions are very small babies - babies in the first three months of life - they are protected by their mother's immunity.

On the other hand, it does not matter at all who exactly “brought the infection” into the house - an adult or a child. If someone in the family “comes down with a cold,” we must objectively try to protect the rest. Even if there are no guaranteed measures to prevent influenza and ARVI in this situation.

Precautionary measures at the household level: basic prevention of ARVI in children

So what can you do to minimize the risk of passing the virus from one family member to another? Firstly, some everyday “formalities” should be observed:

• 1 Isolate the sick from the healthy. If possible, you need to “separate” the sick household member and his still healthy relatives as far as possible from each other. Obviously, it is extremely difficult to take such a position in the conditions of a typical city “kopeck piece”, but if there is such an opportunity, use it without delay.
• 2 Bed rest for the sick, walking rest for the healthy. This condition is often not taken into account, and in vain! In fact, the less a patient with ARVI wanders around the house, and the more often and longer those who are forced to live side by side with him spend time in the fresh air, the less likely it is that he will “come down” with a cold by the end of the week the whole family. The “lying down” position of the patient will reduce the spread of the virus throughout the apartment, and frequent walks for everyone else will provide healthy people with additional chances to counter the virus.
• 3 The room where both sick and healthy people live needs to be frequently ventilated and washed.. And also to maintain an optimal climate in an apartment or house - this is an air temperature of no more than 21 ° C and a humidity of about 65%. The patient should be given a separate set of dishes. Like other household items that the patient touches every now and then, these dishes should not only be washed regularly, but also wiped with disinfectant solutions (any pharmacy will offer you a dozen different disinfectants).
• 4 During close contact and communication of the patient with healthy It is advisable to wear a mask on both (and not just on the patient).
• 5 If a nursing mother has suffered from ARVI, then Some other family member should take on all the care of the baby, and the mother should have contact with the baby exclusively during feeding (while using disposable masks). Before and after feeding, the baby should rinse his nose with a physiological (saline) solution.

Extremely simple, but very effective measures to protect children from ARVI: from time to time, wash children’s noses with saline solutions and, whenever possible, walk with children in the fresh air as often and as long as possible.

Simple but effective measures to prevent influenza and ARVI in children

The above measures are “good” and useful in the case when one of the household members is already sick and there is a high risk that ARVI (the most common type of which is influenza) is about to attack other family members, especially children. But besides this, it also makes sense to know about simple but very effective ways to prevent ARVI - so that no one in your family gets sick, at a time when, perhaps, everyone around you is sick.

It should be understood that there are only two strategic maneuvers for protecting against respiratory viruses: the first is not to encounter them at all, the second is to significantly increase the body’s protective functions when in contact with infection. The first option is practically inaccessible to us, city residents, but to implement the second, there are a number of different measures.

• 1 Don't forget from time to time throughout the day wash your hands thoroughly. And remind your children to do the same! No matter how banal and simple this technique may seem to you, it really works. After all, one of the most common types of transmission of viral diseases is contact. When respiratory viruses (including the influenza virus) get on the skin (of course, most often on people’s hands), they can live there for 1-2 days! So any friendly handshake with a colleague or friend who is not too clean can result in contact infection with ARVI. And if we can’t control those whose hands we shake, we can certainly control ourselves! So, wash your hands and your children’s hands more often - this is one of the most effective ways prevention of influenza and other acute respiratory viral infections.
• 2 Wearing a mask(both by a sick person and those who are forced to come into contact with sick people) - has some protective effect. However, keep in mind that wearing a mask outside is useless. In general, if you don’t touch anyone in the fresh air, then you probably won’t get infected, even if the passerby walking in front of you desperately sneezes. Viruses are actively transmitted from person to person through the air only in enclosed spaces, while in the open air this is almost impossible. So walk outside more and more often and breathe freely - this in itself is the prevention of colds.
• 3 Vaccination is one of the most effective ways to prevent influenza and other acute respiratory viral infections. And in those cases, if infection does occur, the disease proceeds much easier and faster (in many cases, it is completely asymptomatic).
• 4 Eat yogurt with probiotics once a day(or any other product containing, for example, bifidobacteria or lactobacilli). A number of recent studies have shown that probiotics significantly increase the body's overall defenses against respiratory diseases by strengthening local mucosal immunity.
• 5 Since we're talking about products, we can't help but mention garlic. It’s not in vain among the people garlic is revered as the main fighter against any cold– multiple studies have proven that garlic phytoncides (phytoncides are volatile substances contained in different plants and having the properties of “killing” certain types of bacteria, fungi and even viruses) effectively suppress the activity of influenza viruses, preventing them from multiplying. The only thing you should pay attention to is that despite folk wisdom As part of garlic prophylaxis against ARVI, this product should not be eaten, but... inhaled! After all, phytoncides are volatile substances. And the main reproduction and activity of respiratory viruses occurs not in the human stomach, but in respiratory system- in the nose, in the throat, in the lungs. So, in order to deliver the “killers” directly to their “victims,” we just need to inhale the phytoncides, and more deeply. And to do this, you just need to cut the garlic cloves, put them on a saucer and place them by the bed for 2-3 hours (or overnight). This way you will protect yourself from colds and will not spoil the freshness of your breath. It’s no secret that children also find it much more pleasant to breathe garlic than to eat it, gnaw it or swallow it without chewing...
• 6 Some doctors claim a direct connection with. So partly prevention of iron deficiency anemia can also be considered a prevention of colds.
• 7 Use of various immunotropic agents for the prevention of acute respiratory viral infections (in particular, phytoimmunomodulators) may be justified, effective, and very useful. But it should be understood that to protect the child, such drugs should be prescribed not by the parent, but by a sensible and experienced doctor.

February is the peak of the seasonal flu epidemic. Radio, television and the Internet are “screaming” about the next mutation of the virus and scaring us with unfavorable prognoses. Concerned parents are ready to buy all possible medications so that the child’s health is not in danger. Rambler/Family - about how to protect yourself from the flu and what remedies to use if you do get sick.

Vaccination

No matter what numerous advisers from the world say about the uselessness of vaccines social networks, influenza is an airborne virus. Therefore, you can only protect yourself by obtaining antibodies. Modern vaccines intended for children contain a weakened or dead virus and its parts, which allows the body, having developed antibodies, not to get sick.

General practitioner Anna Mishina emphasizes the important role of vaccination in the prevention of influenza, since it provides 70-90 percent protection against the disease and thereby prevents the spread of infection in the community. If a vaccinated child gets sick, his illness will be mild and without complications.

It is especially important to vaccinate children who are weakened after previous colds or as a result of chronic diseases, as well as children who have recently started attending educational institutions and have not previously encountered the flu.

At the same time, remember that you can vaccinate your child, and even vaccinate yourself, only as long as there are no health complaints and the body is ready to face the virus fully armed. At the first symptoms of a cold or flu, it will be too late to get vaccinated.

Quarantine

family is sick

As a rule, when the number of cases exceeds the norm, kindergartens and schools are closed for quarantine. But by this point it is often too late to protect the child from contact. Therefore, if possible, try to be proactive - do not take your child to kindergarten, cancel visits to sections, clubs, and social events.

At the same time, remember that the virus lives well in dry, warm air, that is, in heated, unventilated rooms. But on the street it quickly dies, so it’s better to relax in the fresh air - walk in the park or get out of town.

You can often catch the virus on public transport, so if distance allows, it is better to walk to work or negotiate with management about temporary work from home.

Strengthening immunity

Another preventive measure against influenza is strengthening the immune system. Of course, doing this when an epidemic has already begun in the city is late and useless. But regular hardening of the child, receiving his daily dose of vitamins (primarily A, C and B vitamins), consuming bee products and phytoimmunomodulators approved by a doctor will make him more resistant to all viruses.

Compliance with the rules of personal and household hygiene

Influenza, like most other viruses, is transmitted from person to person. There are especially many viral particles in the patient’s saliva, his breath and on his hands. Therefore, for the entire time that the flu is raging in the city, protect your child from close contacts with potentially dangerous people, and teach him to follow enhanced virus safety measures. These include the following: wash your hands, regularly wipe them with disinfectant wipes, do not touch your face with your hands, and in public places wear a mask and change it every two hours.

Pediatrician Irina Troyanovskaya advises not to forget about regular rinsing of the nasal sinuses with saline solutions. You can buy ready-made products based on sea water at the pharmacy, or you can prepare the solution at home yourself.

During this period, pay special attention to cleaning and airing the apartment. Cold, damp air is your best friend in fighting the flu. Ventilate the apartment every 2-3 hours, sleep with the windows slightly open. The best option- this is an air temperature of about 20°C and humidity of at least 50%. Of course, the child will need to be dressed warmer than usual, but this inconvenience can be tolerated. You can achieve high humidity during the heating season by washing the floor more often, turning on humidifiers, and if they are not available, hanging a soaked cloth around the apartment or placing containers of water.