Little Girl Always Sick?

You could change schools. Seriously. I had a year with 3 kids in elementary school and a baby at home. From the beginning of the school year till we moved in November, I had a total of 5 days that I didn't have one or more of my schoolkids home sick. Then we moved. Different school. They stopped being sick. I know of a school that shut down for a week because so many kids were staying sick. It really could be the school.
Another option, have you considered homeschooling? It's amazing how much healthier the kids can be. It's an option that more and more of us are doing for various reasons. We are in a group with a great support system, lots of field trips, and bi-monthly "class days" where we get together with other families and the kids have classes together and get to play. We love it.
Hope this helps,
T. - homeschooling mom of 4, including 3 great teenagers!

Gosh, I hate to say it, but if this is the first time she's really been around other kids on a regular basis then this is very normal!

Hi D.~
Daily I drink 2 oz. of a juice called XanGo. It keeps my immune boosted all year long. It taste good and my 2 year old grand daughter loves it too. If you are interested I could send you some info.
Thank you!
S.

Has she ever been to preschool or daycare? My two middle girls stayed sick constantly when they first started daycare at 2 years, and 9 months. They stayed sick for a little over two years, constantly. I had a very good doctor w/4 kids of her own(I have 5). I asked her if they would ever get well, and she told me they are building up their immunity, and once they have it built up, they won't hardly ever be sick again. Guess what? She was right! Hardly ever a case of the sniffles now! They are 8 and 7! So bear it out, brighter days are ahead, and your 9 month old has a jumpstart!

When we first moved here we were sick for a whole year. I thought I would go crazy but... that is just the name of the game. She will probably be use to it after a year. I mean her system and she won't be as sick. Every year when school starts up again everyone is our house is sick for the first couple of weeks too. I decided right before school starts we will do a bunch of vitamin c for everyone in hopes that that will help. Good luck her system is just trying to get use to everyone elses germs.

We are having the same problem with our son right now. He is 2 and goes to daycare 5 days a week. It seems like we are at the pediatricians office every other week! My pediatrician told me that we would have to go through the constant illnesses now or when he starts kindergarten. She said to expect this to go on for around 2 years and then it would start to wane and get better. I hope your daughter gets well soon! God bless you all!

Were you a stay-at-home mom with her? Sometimes when kids are at home they don't build up an immune system (my first one did this and this is the explanation the Dr. gave us). It may take a little while for her to build it up. With my 2 others I had them go to Moms Day Out one day a week then to preschool at a local church and this seemed to help A LOT. Just keep giving her the vitamins, make sure she is eating healthy (or as best as you can), and she is getting plenty of rest. It took my little girl pretty much the entire year, but 1st grade was much better.
Also, you might have her checked to see if she is allergic to anything. Sometimes allergies can cause all of the bronchitis type stuff also. I hope this helps! God bless!

Your daughter could be reacting to the caustic cleaning products being used at her school.
I would recommend using organic cleaners both at home and in her classroom. Beware of out-gassing too if the products are being stored in the room or somewhere where she breathes those fumes all day long; no wonder.
To boost her immunity I recommend Dan Active LCasei and a children's vitamin with Oligofructose compounding which will help her body to actually absorbs the vitamin. It works for my two girls. Best wishes!

Hi D.,

Like the other moms said, we went through this the first year our daughter was in preschool, and it is much better this (second) year. My husband just read that 6 oz. of yoghurt each day has been found to reduce your chance of getting a cold by 25 percent, so you might try that (I just get regular yoghurt and add fruit--I don't think it has to be the fancy/expensive/often-sugar-loaded immunity yoghurts and drinks). I know it's a drag, but it does get better!

Hang in there!
L.

I would get her some real good vitamins that have superfoods in them and also add a child's vitamin C. Arbonne has wonderful vitamins with the highest concentration of superfoods. It comes in a powder and can be made into a punch drink, popsickle, etc. Ck out www.successfromtheheart.myarbonne.com

if she's always been home, than she's probably just not been exposed to much and hasn't built up any immunities. hopefully soon she'll start building up those immunities and sounds like you've gotten some good ideas, like the water bottle and vitamins, but most importantly, try to get her to wash her hands often, including right when she gets home before she eats a snack. good luck!

Sounds like her immune system is just building itself up. Our immune systems only get stronger if they're challenged, and that means being temporarily sick.
We use echinacea as an immune system booster when we have colds, and it works for us. If she has pollen allergies, though, don't use it because it can trigger them.

D.,
I'm sorry to hear that your little girl is sick all the time, and I'm sure you've probably put 2 and 2 together and noticed that it is from being in school. You are really doing the best thing and doing what you can to keep her immune system up, but multi vitamins, especially if they are the ones from a super market, may not be enough. First thing to do is go to a natural health food store and really get her pumped up with all natural and organic vitamins. The best are going to be whole food vitamines if they are available. The workers there usually know what would be best. If that doesn't work, for your and your childrens sake, since you are a stay at home mom, you might really consider homeschooling. My oldest will be able to start kindergarden this year, and I am getting all the info. on homeschooling. I'm not sure what state your in, but I'm in AR, and in some info I received says that every year in the last 20, homeschoolers have scored higher that those in public school. The only rebutal that I have gotten from my friends and family that are against homeschooling is that he will miss out with being with other kids. However, we keep him very active with other activities that involve othe kids, he's not missing out on anything but the peer pressure and bad influences. Also, there are so many great programs that make it impossible to not give her the proper education, especially at that age. The best I have found so far is call ABEKA. Look it up, they also have DVD's that are a class room setting with a certified teacher to give you time with your 9 mth old. Don't worry about the cost too much, b/c you will end up saving money without having to take the kids to the DR. Also, think about the schooling she is already missing by not being in school every day. Being homeschooled, you won't have to worry about that. Sorry this was so long, but my kids were in daycare for the first few years of their life, and now that I am home with them, everything has gotten better, including their health.

Well, I only have an 18-month-old right now, and another on the way, but the only way for the immune system to learn how to work properly is for it to be exposed to germs. Which means the kid gets sick. Kindergarten or pre-school tends to hit a child hard because it tends to be their first time around a lot of different people, instead of the carefully orchestrated social situations we've arranged since they were infants. Your younger child's immune system is getting an earlier start than the first, because your daughter brings the germs home.

Ironically, if a child's home environment is TOO sterile - with "air sanitizers" and antibacterial soap and whatnot - it increases their likelihood of getting sick or developing allergies, because the immune system has had less to work with and therefore overreacts to any foreign substance in the body. So, an immaculate house is not necessarily good for the healthy development of a child's immune system, and having a couple pets around can actually be beneficial. We have two indoor-outdoor cats, and our 18-month-old plays around on the floor with his toys, and while I'm not a slob, I don't run around sanitizing things before he touches them, and he does pretty well. :) Our son is overall very healthy, but he gets sicker in the winter months, just like everyone else.

I had that problem also several years ago with my son. He started 1st grade and started getting sick...alot! You might check your childs classroom at school. The "prefab" that my son was in had been known to have mold growing on the walls in previous years. Several PTA moms went in and cleaned the walls with a bleach solution. Although that helped, there was still alot of moisture under the building therefore there had to be alot of mold growing under there. It seemed that he would start feeling better during the last part of the week-end, and feeling very well after a long weekend or break, then he'd go back to school and start getting sick again. This went on all year! He finally moved up to 2nd grade and a different room, we didn't have any more trouble!! Hope this helps! D.

I'm sorry to hear it! How miserable for you all.

Here are some quick answers:

Keep her sugar intake very low. Sugar is extremely hard on the immune system..

Get her a probiotic supplement like acidophilus. Preferably, though, it should be a multi-doph (many different strains of beneficial bacteria). Be careful to keep it refrigerated if it says on the packaging that it must be kept refrigerated.

Give her miso soup. It's really good for intestinal health, and the gut is the seat of the immune system (this is also why you want her on probiotics).

Have her gargle and use a neti pot every day after school. For gargling, she needs to use very warm water (but not uncomfortably warm) and salt.

Make sure she is washing her hands every time she goes to the bathroom.

Teach her to keep her hands away from her face, and particularly to not touch/rub her eyes or nose unless she has just washed her hands and needs to get an eyelash out, rub an itch, etc.

But it sounds like this requires nipping it at the source, because being sick this often means that stuff is not being cleaned properly. So, even if her immune system is strengthened, it still sounds like a gross environment for your daughter to be in. Talk to her teacher. Clearly other kids are getting sick very often, as well. Perhaps they need to have a program where they teach kids better hand-washing habits. Maybe the janitors aren't cleaning enough surfaces, or not cleaning them as effectively as needed. Just vinegar wipe-downs on keyboards, door knobs, and other frequently-touched surfaces would make a big improvement. It sounds to me like this isn't happening. Maybe you and some other parents could organize a simple cleaning day to end this cycle of contamination!

Hope this helps!

L.

I agree with Liev about the probiotics and several other moms about building the immune system. I'm guessing your daughter has been on antibiotics for the infections. She needs yougurt with live and active cultures to help get the "good" bacteria back into her system. My 3 boys are rarely sick and I am not a clean freak. My house is clean, but I don't bleach everything and go nuts with antibacerials. We wash hands a lot and use natural, non-toxic cleaners. Good luck! Spring is just around the corner. I hope that helps!
D.

lots of vitamin c, orange juice also cover her mouth when you take her out. and tell her to wash her hands alot while at school and keep them out of her mouth!! i am sorry your babies are sick and i hope this helps!!!

I know this may sound weird but, send a bottle water with your daughter and tell her not to drink from the water fountain, and see if that helps you. There are so much they can get from that water fountain.

I agree regarding the immune system as well it can be expected beng around othr children.

Also I agree that it may be something she may be allergic
to at the school.

Have you spoken to the school nurse to see if she knows of other children having this same problem. Ask her her oppinion as what can be done for the immune system. Ask her if she can find out what cleaning products are being used. Then with this knowledge you may want to discuss the matter with the pediatrician.

It is important to get to the root of this problem as one never knows if it can effect the childs health for life!

God Bless

I am having the same problem with my 5 year old girl. Fist stomach virus, then flu, then pneumonia, and now again with another upper respiratory infection and sore throat. I was so upset about her health that I contacted her teacher about the problem. Unfortunately, there's nothing the teachers can do about the passing of infections between kids when parents don't keep their kids home if they know their child is sick! Parents will know before they send them to school that they have fever, rather than keeping them home, the parents give them fever meds before school so teachers can't catch it. It's really the irresponsible parents faults.