Docs Tell How to Help Avoid Cold and Flu at School

Sept. 2, 2008— -- As the new school year begins, children trek off to school, returning in the evening with their artwork, stories about their day -- and possibly a few germs and viruses to share with the family.

"It's never too early to worry about your child picking up germs in day care," said Dr. Tanya Remer Altmann, a pediatrician with the Community Pediatric Medical Group in Westlake, Calif. "In fact, the first day of day care they can catch a cold."

"Typically, when kids start day care or preschool, within a few days to a week, we see them coming into our office with new colds they've picked up," she said. "With my own boys, I see this."

But while sicknesses may be ubiquitous among the playground set, parents who are sending their children to day care typically don't have the luxury of keeping them out.

Pediatricians say there are better ways to solve the germ problem than keeping children in a bubble. There are several steps parents can take, they say, to help cut down the number of germs and viruses a child picks up.

As a parent, pediatrician and the owner of a day care center, Dr. Laura Jana has seen the problem of children getting sick in day care from all angles.

"People send their children to child care in part to learn how to share, and it's just not just limited to their toys, they also share their germs," she said.

The only way to minimize the number of infections that are transmitted, she said, is to make reducing the infections part of the daily routine. That includes the prominent placement of sinks in the classrooms and having policies for regular handwashing and cleaning of toys.

"Germs are going to spread, but you can significantly lessen it," she explained. "If you try to tell people that it's a good idea ... and it's not part of the child care center's routines, it's as likely as not to be overlooked in the course of a busy day."

Regular handwashing, pediatricians agree, is one of, if not the most, important step in preventing the spread of germs. And that goes for day care providers as well.