Sniffle Solutions

Lauren Brown, RN, offers this flu-exposure advice:

Flu symptoms can appear anywhere from two to seven days following exposure. Typical symptoms can include headaches, body aches, fever, congestion and coughing. Every child is different, though, so your son could display any or all of these symptoms at the same time.

The best flu prevention is regularly washing your hands. Before eating and after coughing or sneezing, use alcohol-based sanitizers. Additionally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends the flu vaccine for all children 6 months and older. So speak to your pediatrician about vaccinating your child.

If your child does get sick, there’s not much you can do to alleviate symptoms beyond keeping him rested and hydrated. Try to get him to drink water and juices and eat as much as he can tolerate. Provide general headache and fever reduction medications as directed by your pediatrician. 

Every school district has its own rules on whether sick children should be kept home; my school’s guidance is if you’re in doubt, keep your child home. If he’s been near a sick friend and starts to feel sick, take precautions to keep him from getting his other classmates ill. Kids share everything -- and this is one instance when we shouldn’t encourage it.

Do you make any changes to your home or routine when you hear that an illness, like the flu, is circulating at your child’s school? Join the conversation.