insideKENT Magazine Issue 41 - August 2015 | Page 92

HEALTH+WELLNESS

check in on your child's health
BY LISAMARIE LAMB

Children seem to pick up pretty much every illness going, and for many households
there isn’t a week that goes by without a sniffle, cough, or cold making the rounds. The
reason for this ‘day care syndrome’ as it is known is that young children – typically those
in nursery or the early years of primary school – don’t have a sophisticated immune
system, unlike older children and adults. This coupled with the fact that the children are
all handling the same toys and equipment means that germs spread fast.
There are a number of childhood illnesses that are common during these
first few years of nursery and school, and usually they are nothing to worry
about. These tips on how to care for your child should they catch one of
them will make the period so much easier.

Tonsillitis
Tonsillitis is usually seen in children
from the age of five to about 15
years, although adults can suffer
too. Its symptoms are a sore throat
that makes it very painful to
swallow, swollen tonsils (which
sometimes have white spots on
them), a cough, headaches, and
fever. It can be spread easily
through touch, but it can also be
an airborne virus so coughing or
sneezing can pass it on too.

Chickenpox

The first thing to do if your child
has tonsillitis is to see your GP, as
they will be able to check whether
it is the viral kind or a bacterial
infection. If it is the latter, they will
prescribe antibiotics. If it’s the former then antibiotics won’t help. To soothe
the pain, paracetomol, throat lozenges, or throat sprays are great.
If your child gets tonsillitis on a fairly regular basis, then it could be that they
will need their tonsils removed, but your GP will advise you on this.

Scarlet Fever
Although it sounds
like something out of
a Dickens' novel,
scarlet fever is still
prevalent today, and
children pick it up
easily. However,
despite it being highly
contagious in children
between the ages of
four and eight, by the
time your child reaches 10 their bodies will have usually developed an
immunity to it. It presents with a rough feeling red or pink rash, which is
sometimes itchy, and a fever.

Children catch chickenpox with seemingly no trouble at all, but the good
news is once they’ve had it, their body will build up an immunity to it, and
most will never have it again. Some parents even make sure their child
mixes with someone who has it, to get the inevitable out of the way as early
as possible. Probably the most common of all childhood diseases (apart
from a cold), chickenpox causes fever, headaches, and of course those
nasty fluid filled spots or blisters which can leave small scars if they are
removed too early, but which itch horribly.

It is extremely important to see your GP as soon as possible if your child
has scarlet fever, as antibiotics should be taken within the first 10 days.
Don’t leave scarlet fever untreated, as it can lead to further problems
including rheumatic fever and even issues with the kidneys.

Chickenpox is a viral infection most often contracted by inhaling the virus,
although touching someone’s spots will also pass on the illness.

Children will always bring home coughs, colds, and viral
infections home with them, along with their works of art and
pasta necklaces. Therefore knowing how to spot the signs of
the more serious ones, and how to help your child will make
everyone feel better.

Although there is no cure as such, once your child has chickenpox giving
them appropriate doses of paracetomol (it eases the fever) and dabbing
the blisters with calamine lotion or similar (to relieve itching) will make your
little one feel much better.

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