Health advice on throat infection: What do I do to avoid my kids getting throat infections - keeping in mind I live in a cold country where 9 months of the year is cold?

Making sure that the children are healthy is a cardinal key in fighting off infections and obtaining speedy recovery from illnesses. One of the most important issues to keep in mind is to teach children to have a balanced diet and maintain proper hygiene. Consuming a diet that is abundant in essential nutrients, vitamins and minerals helps keep their immune systems healthy and give them more power to fight illnesses and ailments.

It is true that when winters arrive, they bring along with them various problems and one of the most common among them is throat infections. Throat infections during winter are a highly communicable disease and hence following a few simple tips can ensure that your children are not greatly affected by the infections.

• It is important to wash hands daily before and after meals and practice good hygiene in order to prevent viral contamination.
• If your children are prone to contracting throat infections repeatedly, it can help to humidify the child's room especially if their room is too dry.
• If possible, you can inculcate a healthy habit in your child, by teaching him or her to chew a clove every morning, as it can go and long way in ensuring daily protection against viral infections.
• A daily saltwater gargle with a pinch of turmeric powder is one of the most popular and well-known home remedies against throat infections. Salt and turmeric act against the bacteria and the pathogens at the back of the throat and destroys them before they cause the infection.
• Changing your children's toothbrushes every couple of months can help to prevent re-infection. All personal hygiene products must be sanitized and sterilized before use, especially during winters in order to prevent contamination and infection.
• It is important to teach children to cover their mouths and noses especially during coughing or sneezing. According to numerous experiments, covering the mouth cuts down the hazards of throat infections from being passed from one person to another. It would also help to keep separate towels or drinking glasses for each individual, as it would ensure that transmission of pathogens are reduced within the family.
• If the children are experiencing repeated throat infections, it is important to get their tonsils thoroughly examined by a doctor. Recurrent throat infections can sometimes point out to infected tonsils and hence it is important to correctly diagnose and treat the condition accordingly.

answered by G M

Home Remedies for Throat Infection

Throat infections are every common among children and each time they get one of those infections it takes forever to get them back to normal again. In a cold country it is especially difficult to prevent these infections.

You can give your children regular decoctions made with fresh ginger. Boil pieces of ginger in a cup of water till the water is reduced. Strain this and add one tablespoon of honey. You can give your children this drink at least once a day. You can also ensure that they eat at least a few cloves of raw garlic every day. This will help prevent an infection. If your children do start an infection, you can give them a cup of hot milk at bedtime. Add a pinch of turmeric to this and let your child drink this. Drinking a glass of hot water with lemon juice and a tablespoon of honey added to it is effective.

You should ensure that your children have their ears and head covered when they go out. Don't allow them to drink carbonated drinks, eat ice creams or other cold things since these will only aggravate the throat and are likely to cause an infection. Always give them warm milk, water that is at room temperature and hot food.

answered by M W