7 ways we can help our children’s health without going to the doctor
Tatiana Spiggou
30 Oct 2017
/ 10:07
CORFU.One of our main concerns as parents is, undoubtedly, our children’s health. However, visits to the doctor, vaccinations and antibiotics when needed are not the only ways to take care of it - ‘health’ is defined as being not just the absence of illness, but complete physical and mental well-being.
There are several ways of improving our way of life to ensure better health for us and our children - now and in the future. They may seem simple but more often than not we just don’t bother to apply them. So, starting from today, we are going to do the following:
1. Improve the ‘health’ of our home. The building we live in could be ‘ill’ because of the poor quality of the air. What can we do? Maintain and clean the air conditioners, air the house regularly, avoid chemical cleaning agents and synthetic furniture, don’t smoke.
2. Get rid of unhealthy foods. There is no reason for there to be packaged sweets, soft drinks, crisps and packaged juices in the house. We can’t tell our children on the one hand that these things aren’t good for them and on the other fill our cupboards with them ‘…in case someone visits’.
3. Drink running water. If the quality of the tap water isn’t good, then use a water filter. Alternatively, use bottled water – in glass bottles. There has been a lot of discussion about chemicals in the water in plastic bottles - which are also often exposed to high temperatures before being consumed.
4. If we are overweight, then we should exercise and lose weight so that we can be healthy and set a good example to our children. There’s no point in taking our overweight children to dieticians and to the gym when their role model is an overweight and unfit parent.
5. Give up smoking - to avoid health problems and to have a better quality life; not to be short of breath when we play with our children; to reduce the chances of getting lung cancer and above all, to persuade them through our example not to smoke. So that they can be healthy not only now, but also when they are 30, 50 or 80 – they’ll still be our children then!
6. Cut down on the use of plastic. Our planet is groaning under the ‘weight’ of plastic. Turtles are drowning with the plastic bags and plastic objects found in even the cleanest seas. The environment and the ‘big house’ that our children are going to live in is becoming polluted. If we care for them, then we should protect it – we can’t have healthy children living on an unhealthy planet.
7. Drive carefully and follow the Highway Code. With a badly maintained car, worn tyres in wet weather, speeding, drink driving or overtaking when you shouldn’t you can lose it all! In the worst case, our children are with us and suffer the consequences of our irresponsibility, but even if they aren’t with us, they will be left with parents suffering from injuries or…with no parents.
