Monsoon Care for Kids

Nature comes to life in the rain. But as much as we love the monsoons, it comes with its own set of challenges like protecting kids from the unhealthy climate. Dampness in the environment rises in the monsoon and that encourages the spread of infectious germs.

While kids love monsoon for water puddles and a few extra holidays, nasty illnesses like pneumonia and viral fevers turn up in full force during this time of the year. Along with their health, you must also take monsoon care of their skin and hair.

7 monsoon care tips for kids

Below is the list of 7 tips that will help you take your kids care during monsoon:

• Apt clothing is essential for kids

The weather changes drastically in monsoons. It can be increasingly chilly at night and so, while soft and light clothing is fine during the day, you must add an extra layer of full-sleeve clothing to keep your kids warm during the night.

Also, make sure that your kids’ wardrobes are dry. As dampness in clothes is common in monsoon, which can cause rashes and itchiness. You can even iron your kids’ clothes slightly to make the fabric dry and comfortable before they wearing the clothes. You can also rinse the clothes with an antiseptic while washing them to prevent fungus from growing. Avoid synthetic and nylon fibres as they can irritate the skin. Cotton clothes are recommended clothing during the rainy season.

• Get them to eat right

Make sure that your kids eat only home-cooked during monsoons. Try to include things like ginger, turmeric, Tulsi leaves, mint, seasonal fresh fruits like cherries, guava, banana, papaya, pomegranate, plums and jamuns, and dry fruits in your kids’ daily diet. Avoid bringing home outside food, and fermented and fried foods. 

Fruits and vegetables hold an important place in your kids’ diet. Rich in nutrients such as potassium, fibre, folate, phytochemicals and vitamins like A, E, C, K, fruits help build long-term immunity in kids and keep diseases at bay. Vegetables like beans, cucumber, tomatoes and gourds are good for your kids' health, especially during the rainy season. Also, avoid serving your kids pre-cut fruits or salads. Dry fruits and nuts are also good foods to boost the immunity of kids during the rainy season.

• Take care of their skin and hair

Children have a highly sensitive skin and high humidity levels of monsoon don’t really help with that. Humidity can cause skin infections or rashes in kids. So, you must ensure that your kids’ skin is hydrated by applying a moisturising lotion that protects her skin from irritation and dryness.

Also, sweat and moisture can clog the pores on your kids’ scalp, and things like itchy scalp and tangled hair are all so common during the monsoons. You must wash your kids’ hair at least twice a week with a gentle shampoo to keep their scalp healthy and clean.

• Make it a habit for them to wash hands

Washing hands frequently, or at least six to eight times a day is important for kids care during rainy season. Handwashing is one of the effective means to stop the spread of infection. Washing the feet and hands whenever your kid comes home from outside has to be a dictum. It is important for children as kids are vulnerable to infections from unwashed hands.

• Make them drink boiled water 

Excessive rainfall in this season can hamper sanitation facilities, decrease water quality and force households to source water from unsafe sources. This affects your kids’ health and nutrition, which can cause diseases like diarrhoea. You have to be extra cautious in the monsoons. Get your children in the habit of drinking only boiled water. You can even add ajwain to it for a better effect. Also, after the baby drinks water, you must discard the remaining water and wipe the container clean as used utensils attract flies.

• Keep your surroundings clean

It is very important to keep your surroundings clean in monsoon. Remove stagnant water, prevent wet walls and keep windows closed when raining among others to keep your surroundings dry and clean. This prevents flies, mosquitoes and other disease-carrying insects from entering into your house. You must clean the floor twice during the rainy season and add some floor cleaners and antiseptics to the water for cleaning the floor. 

• Pay attention to personal hygiene of your kids

Hygiene of children is as important as the cleanliness of the surrounding environment. The best way to take your kids care during monsoon is to maintain their personal hygiene. Sweating in humid weather can cause the germs to accumulate and lead to fungal infections. Make sure to give your kids baths with antiseptic soap every day to help prevent skin problems like rashes and allergies during monsoon.

Kids need care in all seasons, but monsoon care is different. The monsoon season needs your extra carefulness as a number of diseases prevail in this season. Following a healthy and hygiene schedule can keep your kids monsoon safe and make the season enjoyable for them.