How To Stay Healthy When Your Kids Keep Getting Sick

Ugh, that cough that won’t go away!! We’ve all experienced it to some degree in our household if we have kids. This year it just seems to be longer lasting than usual. It doesn’t have to mean that YOU have to get sick though, mama. Because isn’t that just the WORST thing ever… being sick but still having to take care of our kids?! Listen in as Laura tells you how you can keep your immune system strong and stay healthy.

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Links Mentioned

5 Weight Loss Mistakes Guide
www.avogel.com (coupon code: newmamanation20 for 20% off site wide)

Transcript

You’re listening to the Love and Lettuce podcast with Laura Lima episode 38. Let’s talk about how not to get sick mamas when our kids keep getting sick. You know what I mean? Let’s talk about it.

Hey, this is Laura Lima, holistic nutritionist and founder of New Mama Nation, and host of the Love and Lettuce podcast. I am here to help mamas know what to eat to give them energy and help them feel fantastic. So they can better enjoy life with their littles. And remember, this podcast is for educational and informational purposes only, and does not replace medical advice from your health care provider, and is not intended to diagnose or treat any medical condition. As always, please consult your health care provider to find out what is right for you. With that said, let’s get to the show.

Is weight loss is a goal that you have, but you feel like you’ve tried all the things and nothing sticks?

Well, I want to give you some advice. Specifically, I want to give you the five common weight loss mistakes that I see so often. And I want to break them down for you. So go to http://bit.ly/5wlmistakes and get my free download there.

So when I’m recording this, right now, we have all three kids who have had some kind of cold or flu, these past couple of weeks. All at different times, different stages, different flu or cold bugs. It’s like what is going on?! We can’t seem to get away from it. It’s just what everyone seems to be experiencing. And it’s cold and flu season, this is just going to happen. And it’s hard to prevent our kids from getting sick because their immune systems are still developing.

I mean, we can do so many good things for them. And we try to, but naturally, they’re going to catch more in the air typically than we are because we’ve already been exposed to so many things. Ideally, we have the antibodies for those particular things in our system already to be able to fight it off before it even takes hold. Because the thing is, it’s not the germ, it’s not the cold or flu bug. It’s the terrain. It’s our body that determines whether or not that germ will take over us if you will. So if we are like, Oh my gosh, this cold is going around like crazy, I’m gonna get it for sure – you might get it.

There are various factors that determine whether or not you will get it.

But it really does come down to your body. And how strong is your body at this particular time to fight off that germ? So our kids are going to get sick, it just is what it is. And we can do what we can to try to avoid it. Of course, you want to avoid it and want to keep them comfortable when they get sick. And we want to give them all the healthy immune system remedies for sure. That is what I do in my home for sure. And we do preventative measures too. But it is inevitable. Every time they get sick, I’m just like, Okay, there’s a healthier immune system. Their immune system is now stronger.

So this is good, even though it sucks when they’re sick. I feel so bad. It is actually good in the long run because their immune system is now stronger. But how do we as moms avoid getting sick because we are just taking care of them? Even extra – even more than usual. So we are exerting ourselves even more than usual. We are likely more tired than usual. Oftentimes sick kids wake up more often. Am I right? Yes, right now my four-year-old Ben. Sorry, my four-month-old. Then he has some kind of, I don’t know if it’s a cold or flu. It’s like a cough. He’s got mucus, all these things.

Now he normally is a great sleeper.

He’ll be in his bassinet in our room. And he’ll sleep on his own. It’s great. He’ll have usually one feed in the night. He’ll go back in his bassinet. He can fall asleep typically on his own. Sometimes I have to replace a soother here and there but usually, he’s okay. I know. I’m lucky. Believe me, I totally am so grateful for this every single day. But for the last two nights, he’s been like, nope, nope, mom, pick me up. No, not comfy in here. He just wants the comfort of mum. And I totally get it and I want to give it to him.

So, he’s been laying beside me and my bed and it’s been fantastic. We are going to be getting up more frequently with the kids. So now our own immune system is being more rundown and rundown. The less sleep we get, the more rundown our bodies get. The more rundown our bodies get, the less defense we have against getting these, against allowing these germs to take over, against getting these colds and flus ourselves.

Get Enough Rest

So we have to number one, get enough rest. And I know that is sometimes impossible. Like I just get it because if you have a child or more than one, and if they’re sick, and if they’re getting up, you are too. And so I get that we can’t always get it. But when you can get your sleep, can you go to bed earlier? Because you know you’re going to be up tonight, do that. Can you rest some time during your day? Maybe take a 20-minute nap? Can you take 20 minutes to just lay on the couch or sit on the couch? Scrolling through your phone or flipping through your book? Can you take that for yourself and if it’s not possible, I get it.

But if you can do it, because this will help you to get that rest that your body needs in order to fight off any germs that come its way. And let’s face it, our kids, they cough in our faces. They basically sneeze in our mouths literally. I’m pretty sure my daughter Maggie sneezed in my mouth the other day. Yeah, it happens. So rest and sleep as much as you can. That’s number one.

Diet – Avoid Sugar

Number two is our diet, we have to avoid sugar as much as we can. I’m like I know Debbie Downer. Sugar is delicious. And it’s in so many foods. And it’s convenient because it’s in most convenience foods, I totally get all that. But the more we can avoid it, the better. Sugar suppresses our immune system for I’ve heard six hours. I’ve heard 18 hours. Regardless, after you eat sugar, your immune system is suppressed. And that means it has way less ability to fight off germs.

Therefore, if you’re eating a regular diet, like if you’re eating sugar regularly, then you are way more likely to get sick. When that cold or flu bug is going around your house, you will likely get it if you don’t get it a lot of sleep. And if you eat a lot of sugar. Let’s face it. So try your best to cut down on sugar. Try instead to have I mean real foods my friend. Meat, fish, eggs, beans, lentils, nuts and seeds, vegetables, fruits. Those are real foods. Eat more of those and less of the packaged stuff as much as you can.

Sugary Examples

Especially the things that have sugar in them or especially straight up sugar. Fermented foods are also really great for an immune system. So for example, sauerkraut, I love sauerkraut, and I never thought that I would because I used to hate it. But I love it. It is fermented cabbage, it is so delicious. I don’t know, it gives me that tang, that sour, that saltiness that I love. And it’s just so darn good. That’s what I think about sauerkraut anyways. There’s also kimchi, which is similar to sauerkraut. A little bit spicier, typically. Love kimchi.

You can have these things on their own. I’ll just put it in a bowl and I will eat it. Or you can have it with something else. So with my scrambled eggs in the morning, sometimes I’ll put them on the side, or with my fried eggs or whatever. I’ll put some sour cream on the side, done. You can heat it up if you want to and have it warm with a dish that you’re making. I don’t do that. I like to have it cold and straight up raw. But you can do that if you like.

Good Bacteria

I love fermented foods because they provide our gut with good bacteria. They provide our bodies with good bacteria. And we need good bacteria in order to get rid of the bad guys, in order to have a strong immune system. So much of our immune system is in our gut, which is primarily made up of these bacteria. Now we have good bacteria and bad bacteria in our guts. We’re supposed to have both, but many of us have too much of the bad stuff, and not enough of the good stuff.

If you’ve ever taken an antibiotic in your life (that’s all of us, raise your hands) then you’ve wiped away your good bacteria. And the only way to get it back is to eat foods that have good bacteria in them – take a probiotic supplement. These will help to rebuild that good, healthy gut flora that is so essential to our immune system. So taking a probiotic can be really helpful especially when you have a cold, or to prevent a cold. I like to take it all the time because I’m breastfeeding and that’s a really good way for Ben to get probiotics from me. Through breast milk.

The first exposure a baby has to any bacteria at all, is through birth when they go through the vaginal canal. They’re covered in moms, ideally, good bacteria, healthy bacteria, and that absorbs through the skin. And then through breast milk. As long as the mom has enough of that good probiotics that will pass through the breast milk into the baby. After that you can give the baby a probiotic, whatever ones are meant for babies. There’s some good ones out there, and from their fermented foods when they get older. So for you, have more fermented foods in your life.

Fermented Foods

So I mentioned sauerkraut, kimchi, even yogurt is fermented. And if you want an even better form of yogurt, get kefir. Some people call it kefir (tomato tomahto.) This is fermented milk, but even more fermented than yogurt. It’s even more tangy, and it’s got more of a sour taste, I love it. You can drink it straight up because kefir is more liquid than yogurt. So you can just drink the kefir. It’s delicious. Or you can put it into a bowl as you would yogurt. You can add some berries, you can add some nuts and seeds, you can add some coconut oil. Whatever you want to do. Stir it up and have it off the spoon. So good for your gut, so good for your immune system. And delicious.

Supplements

So let’s talk about supplements. Well, there are some main players when it comes to immune system supplements. Number one, I would say is vitamin C. So important for a healthy immune system. So double up on your vitamin C, or make sure at least that you’re taking it to prevent the colds and flu and/or to get rid of it faster. And a lot of these things by the way, when we take supplements, when we give them to our kids, when we’re going through a cold, it doesn’t mean that we’re not going to get it at all. It doesn’t mean that it’s going to go away like that. But it does mean that our symptoms can be less, they can be a little bit more manageable, and the virus could go away faster.

Vitamin C

So when we have these immune system supplements, they just help our bodies deal with the germs better, they deal with a virus better, and stops the virus from replicating further and allows it to go away faster. It gets the virus gone faster, so you heal more quickly. So it’s not like it’s supposed to go away that quickly. But it helps you manage it better. And it does help to get it away faster. It just helps your immune system. That’s what you want to do. So vitamin C, very important.

Vitamin D

The next one is vitamin D. Oh my gosh, so important, especially now, we have hardly any sunlight right now, because of our short days. And we’re all covered up when we’re outside. We need, in order to get proper vitamin D from the sun, we have to have bare skin. And we’re not going to have that, most of us, in winter. So we are not getting enough vitamin D from the sun. We need it. So many of us, North Americans are vitamin D deficient, get a blood test, it doesn’t cost very much money. If you are in a place where you have to pay for it. I am in Ontario and I have to pay for it. It does not cost a lot. And it is so worth it to know what your number is. The lower the number, the more vitamin D you personally need. So definitely make sure you’re taking it on a daily basis, especially in the wintertime and especially if you are trying to prevent or get rid of a cold or flu, probiotic.

Probiotics

So I already mentioned this one, and I’m just repeating it here. So it’s under the supplement list. But yes, so very important to have a probiotic. Cod liver oil. I always talk about this one with supplements because it’s just one of my mainstays. It’s just one of the ones that I always love to have. Cod Liver Oil provides Omega three, which is so important for so many things in the body. It’s an essential fatty acid that we just don’t get enough of in our diet. Typically, most of us don’t get enough, whereas we get way too much Omega six. Omega six tends to be inflammatory, whereas Omega three is anti-inflammatory. And we tend to get way too much six and not enough three.

We have to flip that around. And cod liver oil is a great source of Omega three in supplement form. Now cod liver oil because it comes from the liver of the fish also provides vitamins A and D. Super important for the immune system as well as so many other areas of the body. So cod liver oil, one of those ones that I take all the time and in fact, you can start giving it to babies. Depending on which one you buy. Look at your labels to make sure it tells you how much to give to what age, but the one that I get starts from two months and up. So you can start getting them to your babes right away. It’s so important. It’s like food. Cod Liver Oil is basically like having a whole food, but in a supplement form. It’s awesome.

Zinc & Echinaforce

And the last one for me now there’s so many explanations in the last one. I also want to say zinc lozenges, because I just love those. Zinc. Super important for the immune system and in the lozenge form. Kind of fun to have chewable and then finally Echinacea or some kind of cold or flu remedy. Now the one I will mention to you is Echinaforce force. A. Vogel is the brand and Echinaforce is the name of the product. The reason I want to mention that one is because it’s the one I take, because it is safe during pregnancy and breastfeeding. And most Echinaforce products, in fact, most cold and flu products that I have seen, don’t have that on their label that it’s safe for pregnancy and breastfeeding . Most of the time, they can’t be tested during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

You want to be in a study when you’re testing to see if something is safe. Right? But Echinaforce has been tested and it is safe. And so I do love that one. If you go to the A. Vogel website and you use the coupon code, newmamanation20, you can get 20% off of the entire site including Echinaforce products! There’s the Echinaforce, Jr, which are little chewable tablets. My girls love them. And the one that I take is just the Echinaforce, liquid tincture. I put it in water, it’s awesome. It’s good for prevention, you can take it twice a day for prevention, or when you have the cold or the flu. Especially if you feel it coming on, you can take it up to four times a day. Fantastic.

There is hope to stay healthy while your kids are sick!

So I hope this has given you some hope that there is hope. If everyone in your house is getting sick, there are absolutely things that you can do to prevent yourself from getting sick, because honestly, who wants to be sick as a mom? I can’t think of much. I can’t think of many worse things than being sick and still having to take care of your kids and still having to exert energy when you literally have none. Still having to be excited as you can be. When you’re chatting with them throughout the day, when you’re just like no, I want to sleep. You still have to cook and provide snacks for them. When all you want to do is sit down and close your eyes.

Nobody wants that. It’s one of the worst things honestly for me to think about. I have been sick a few times during the course of motherhood and it is just awful. I’m like, no, no, no, no, no, no! So if I ever feel myself coming down with something like this past week with my kids being sick on and off. I felt swollen glands in my throat like my tonsils, I can always feel when they’re getting a little bit inflamed. I’ve always tended toward strep throat, especially when I was a kid. And I’m like, Nope, I can feel those things getting inflamed. My throat is a tiny bit sore. Nope, not going to happen.

I’ve been taking all the things that I’ve been telling you today

And so far, so good. Knock on wood, I have not gotten whatever bug this is. It hasn’t taken over. So I’m trying my best to get my rest. I’m drinking lots of water, which is another thing. Another really important thing, make sure you’re hydrating constantly. Throughout the day walking is really important to get your body moving, stretching, yoga, that kind of thing. And eating the healthy foods, avoiding the sugar as much as possible. Eating fermented foods, and I’m taking my supplements. So I’m feeling good.

I hope this has given you some hope that you can there is something you can do to prevent and get rid of faster and to manage it better when you have something. And I hope it’s given you some help as to what you can do. Now if you enjoy this episode, and if you would like to take a minute to leave me a review that would be so fantastic. Thank you so much in advance for doing that. I appreciate it so much. And I will talk to you next week. Bye for now, Mama.

Thanks for listening to the Love and Lettuce podcast! To find out how to work with me and for more great info check out newmamanation.com. This is Laura. Until next time, love and lettuce.