It was bound to happen: a fond farewell to summer and perhaps a tepid greeting to a brand-new school year.

How’s the state of readiness in your household? Well, for purposes of this blog, we’re going to assume you have clothes shopping, new school supplies, a return to normal bed times, and other such matters under control. Our focus, instead, is on helping you keep your kids as healthy as possible not just to start the new school year, but throughout it.

We’re confident you’ll find the following tips more than a little useful for preventing colds, flus, and other such maladies, especially for the younger students within your clan:

School nurses would agree that washing hands is the best way to stop the spread of germs. Teach your young child to wash their hands properly. If need be, remind the older ones to follow suit.

Have your child carry tissues in her backpack or pocket so she can catch those coughs and sneezes.

Teach your kids to sneeze or cough into their arm hands if a tissue isn’t accessible in the moment.

Tell them not to share their drink bottles or utensils with anyone and to keep their hands away from their eyes, mouth, and nose.

If your child does happen to get sick, keep them home. Not only can a day’s rest help them recover faster, it helps prevent infecting others.

Make sure your kids get enough restful sleep each night. Otherwise, their bodies will gradually lose their ability to successfully fight cold and bacterial infections.

Encourage your kids to adopt and adhere to a well-balanced diet packed with a variety of immune-boosting foods.

But what if, in spite of all your best efforts, your kids show all the symptoms of having a cold or some sort of allergic reaction, but mostly during the time they spend at home? In that case, there’s a strong likelihood you have some degree of polluted indoor air and, unless it’s taken care of, those symptoms are likely to persist.

If you even suspect you’ve fallen prey to sick house syndrome, contact Optimum Air to request a free indoor analysis of your indoor air quality needs along with a discussion of available remedies we can implement on your half. These include whole-house air purifiers, whole-house dehumidifiers, and more. Remember: ridding your home of common airborne pollutants won’t cure a cold or allergies, but it will remove what may be causing or aggravating them so that anyone affected will start feeling a whole lot better.