Knowledge on preventing common diseases in children

More than 90% of the common diseases in children, such as common colds, digestive tract infections, and infectious rashes, can be avoided in advance through daily scientific care. The core focus is to focus on the three directions of "building an immune foundation, avoiding risk sources, and responding to symptoms in a hierarchical manner." There is no need to overstock medicines or run to the hospital if there is any abnormality.

Last week, I met the mother of a 3-year-old baby at a community pediatric clinic. The baby caught colds three times in the first month of kindergarten. She kept half a cabinet of cold medicines and nutritional supplements for children at home. Every time the baby sneezed, she rushed to give her medicine. As a result, the baby's appetite has become worse and worse recently, and her height and weight are half a year behind her peers. I looked through her medicine list and bought three to four thousand yuan for lactoferrin and probiotics that are said to "improve immunity." In fact, the effect of such products is currently controversial: there is currently no clear evidence in the field of evidence-based medicine that routine supplementation of lactoferrin can reduce the incidence of common colds. It is only confirmed that specific strains of probiotics are effective in relieving viral diarrhea and antibiotic-related diarrhea. ； From the perspective of pediatrics in traditional Chinese medicine, a child’s spleen is the foundation of his or her nature. Instead of blindly supplementing with various nutrients, it is better to adjust the diet first to help the child maintain a good spleen and stomach, which can fundamentally improve the child’s resistance. Both statements are supported by clinical cases. Parents can choose a suitable method according to their child's physical condition, and do not need to blindly follow the trend and buy Internet celebrity products.

Many parents of children who have just been sent to kindergarten have this experience: in the first month, they have to ask for leave almost every week because they either have a cold or a fever, or there are children in the class who have hand, foot and mouth diseases and are too scared to send them away. In fact, this kind of cross-infection is really normal. The baby has been exposed to very few bacteria at home before. When he comes into contact with new viruses and bacteria in kindergarten, the immune system has to slowly build a barrier. You don’t need to be overly nervous at this stage. You only need to wash your hands before picking up the baby every day, change his clothes before touching the toys and tableware at home, and let the baby run and jump in the sun for an hour. After about half a year, the frequency of illness will naturally decrease. Don’t underestimate hand hygiene. I once encountered a 2-year-old baby who had herpetic angina twice in a row. After searching and searching, I found out that the old man in the family never washed his hands every time he came back from outside to hold the baby. Instead, he fed the baby directly. The virus was all carried from the hands to the mouth. This type of infectious disease is "disease enters from the mouth." Good handwashing can block 70% of the risk.

There has been an ongoing debate as to whether the baby should take antipyretics immediately when the fever reaches 38.5℃. One group says that the baby must be fed when the temperature exceeds 38.5℃ to avoid febrile convulsions. The other group says that as long as the baby is in good spirits, the baby can be observed first if the fever reaches 39℃. In fact, both statements are correct. The core judgment criterion is never a rigid body temperature value, but the state of the baby: if the baby is still jumping around and building blocks when the temperature reaches 38.7°C, you can first feed more warm water and wipe the neck and armpits with warm water to physically cool down. ； If the baby wilts as soon as it reaches 38°C, has no strength to cry, or even shows signs of vomiting or convulsions, then give him medicine when he needs to, and go to the hospital when he needs to. Don’t get stuck on the value and delay things.

In addition to respiratory problems such as colds and fevers, the biggest headache for parents should be digestive tract symptoms such as diarrhea and vomiting. Last month, a grandma brought her baby to the hospital. After the baby had two bowel movements, she was given adult antidiarrheal medicine. As a result, the baby had a fever for three days and her belly was as bloated as a small ball. This is because diarrhea caused by norovirus infection is the body expelling the virus. Blindly stopping diarrhea blocked the toxins in the body, which in turn aggravated the symptoms. When your baby has diarrhea, don't rush to stop diarrhea. Observe the nature of the stool first. If the stool is just loose but not pus and blood, and the baby is in good spirits, give some oral rehydration salts to avoid dehydration. Most of the time, it will heal on its own in 3-5 days. If there is pus and blood in the stool, the baby urinates less, or has no tears when crying, then go to the hospital quickly.

Let me tell you something interesting. I met a mother who bought hundreds of yuan of disinfectant spray for her baby. She sprayed it three times a day at home and steamed the toys and tableware in a sterilizer every time. As a result, the baby was more prone to diarrhea than the baby downstairs who crawled on the floor every day. In fact, the house was too clean, the baby was not exposed to normal flora, and the immune system was not exercised, which made it more likely to cause problems. This point is quite controversial now. Some people say that babies should be raised aseptic, while others say that babies should be raised "dirty". My experience in pediatric nursing for 12 years is that normal cleaning is enough, and there is no need to over-sterilize. After all, babies can't live in a sterile box all their lives, right?

To put it bluntly, the prevention of common childhood diseases has never been a profound knowledge. It is better to pay more attention to the condition of the baby, don’t be anxious, and don’t blindly feed the baby unidentified folk remedies. If you are really not sure, ask a pediatrician at a regular hospital. Be less trusting in the "parenting magic formulas" on the Internet, avoid detours, and your baby will suffer less.