--Before, during, and after preparing food
--Before eating
--After using the bathroom
--After changing a diaper
--After handling animals, their toys, leashes, or waste
--After contact with blood or body fluids, such as vomit, nasal secretions, or saliva
--When your hands are dirty
--Before dressing a wound, giving medicine, or inserting contact lenses.
--More frequently if someone in your home is sick
--Whenever they look dirty
Visit WebMD's Health Center
How to wash:
--Wet hands and apply soap.
--Rub hands vigorously for 10 seconds. Imagine singing "Happy Birthday" twice.
--Rinse hands under running water.
--Dry hands with a paper towel or air dryer.
--If possible, use your paper towel to turn off faucet.
--If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based wipe or hand gel.
Besides proper hand washing, kids should learn not to share eating
utensils or drinks. Garcia adds, "It's very important for kids to eat
breakfast and get enough rest. Establish regular bedtimes. Teens, in
particular, need more sleep than they get."
Six Serious Symptoms You Can't Ignore
The Latest on Immunizations
Thanks to universal vaccinations over several generations, dreaded
diseases such as smallpox, polio, and diphtheria are rarely encountered
in the Western world. But some diseases such as whooping cough and mumps
have made a resurgence.
Perhaps the best news is there's now a booster vaccine for
diphtheria, tetanus, and whooping cough (pertussis). "We've seen an
increasing number of kids with whooping cough in middle school and high
school in the past 15 years," says Posner. "It used to be that we
couldn’t give booster shots after age 5, and by age 12, the
effectiveness had waned."
Commenting on the cases of mumps on college campuses, Posner says,
"Of all the vaccines, the mumps vaccine has the least take. We now give
the vaccine twice -- at 12 months and again at age 4. It may be that
college kids who got mumps didn't get the second dose." He adds that
chickenpox (varicella) also is making a comeback. "Soon there will be a
recommendation to repeat the chickenpox vaccination, as well."
A summer shortage of a vaccine against meningitis -- meningococcal
conjugate vaccine (MCV4) -- caused the CDC and AAP to agree to defer
recommended vaccination for kids aged 11 and 12. "Residential colleges
are requiring students to be vaccinated, and the demand for vaccine was
underestimated," says Posner. "Freshmen living in dorms are at the
highest risk."
For children whose immunizations were up to date upon entering
kindergarten, these are some vaccinations that may be due or
administered if they were missed earlier according to the CDC’s
"Recommended Childhood and Adolescent Immunization Schedule, U.S.,
2006":
Hepatitis A (HepA) series. If not already vaccinated.
Hepatitis B series. If not already vaccinated
Measles, mumps, rubella. If not already completed.
Varicella (chickenpox). If not already vaccinated.
Influenza (flu). This changes every year.
Tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis (Tdap) booster.
Pneumococcal vaccine. If not already vaccinated.
Meningococcal vaccine. Unvaccinated students entering high school; college freshman living in dormitories.
WebMD Tool: Childhood Immunization Planner
By Leanna Skarnulis, reviewed by Louise Chang, MD
SOURCES: Amy Garcia, RN, executive director, and Marian Smithey,
nursing education director, National Association of School Nurses,
Silver Spring, Md. Michael Posner, MD, FAAP, spokesman, American Academy
of Pediatrics, West Springfield, Mass. American Academy of Pediatrics
web site. CDC: "Recommended Childhood and Adolescent Immunization
Schedule, U.S., 2006"; "An Ounce of Prevention Keeps the Germs Away"
brochure. WebMD Feature: "Keeping Catchy Infections Contained."