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How To Protect Your Kids from COVID-19 During Face-to-Face Classes

by Kevyn Gohu
August 9, 2022

As face-to-face classes are about to resume, here are some ways to protect our kids from COVID-19.

With the DepEd pushing harder for face-to-face classes, we need to take extra steps. Some of us know that our kids do better in face-to-face classes. Others don’t have the hardware and technological know-how to keep up with online schooling. But before sending our kids to face-to-face classes, here’s what Dr. Shirley V. Dy of Makati Medical‘s Pediatrics Department has to say to keep them safe.

1. Get your kids vaccinated against COVID-19.

“No less than the US’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recommended that everyone ages 5 years and older get a COVID-19 vaccine to help protect against the virus,” Dr. Dy underlines. “The CDC reassures that COVID-19 vaccines were developed using science that has been around for decades. They are much safer than getting COVID-19 and more effective at preventing severe diseases from COVID-19 and limiting the spread of the virus that causes it.”

Besides, we’ve heard enough horror stories of COVID-19 medical bills landing families in debt. Vaccines are free and safe. Plus, the dosages have been adjusted for kids.

2. Remind your kids of the original COVID-19 protocol.

Making sure your kids remember the original protocols when COVID-19 was still starting out helps. “Get your kids to practice them, too,” says Dr. Dy. “Stock up on face masks designed for their size and age. Remind them to stand a meter apart from people. And pack a small container of alcohol in their bags so they can use it to disinfect their hands when water and soap aren’t available.”

3. Build their immune system.

Making sure they get eight hours of sleep, eating healthy food, and adding more greens to their diet — are simple ways we can make our kids’ immune systems stronger. Greens are loaded with antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals that mix easily with water. “Even with vaccines and face masks, it is still important to build a strong immune system,” Dr. Shirley V. Dy points out.

4. Schedule an annual check-up.

“It’s a reflection of parents’ fear of exposing their kids to COVID-19 in a hospital or health center setting,” says Dr. Dy. “But do not put your children at risk for developing diseases that are easily preventable by vaccines.”

Besides, kids can be more susceptible to COVID-19 if they have a co-infection. Some doctors even argue that hospitals are a lot safer than many people think.

5. Listen to your kids.

Psychological distress can also lower kids’ immune systems because of the stress hormone cortisol. The body only releases cortisol when the mind perceives stress, granting our kids extra adrenaline to achieve strength and speed. But the drawback is that their immune systems get affected. Studies have shown that cortisol does suppress it.

But some kids fear the needles from vaccination and that’s where you’ll have to listen to them. Dr. Dy says, “Tell them that these are unprecedented times we are all trying to navigate together. Most of all, let them feel that they are always loved and that they can come to you for anything, whether it is because they’re afraid of something or are experiencing out-of-the-ordinary symptoms.”

COVID-19 is coming back and has reinforcements!

Besides COVID-19 coming back, there’s a new -pox that’s monkeying around with the rest of the Philippines. We don’t know how severe Monkeypox will be but it’s best not to take chances. We want our kids to learn safely during face-to-face classes. Not end up in the hospital.