All of us like to laze around on weekends and some even skip baths on one of the days. We’d prefer staying in bed all day Netflix-ing with our laptops on our bellies. But that doesn’t beat the refreshing feeling of a hot shower and fresh, clean clothes. Taking a bath, which is one of the ways to maintain good hygiene, makes us feel good and keeps us healthy and happy.
Maintaining personal hygiene is a basic necessity for kids and adults alike. The germs and viruses we come in contact with on a daily basis will thrive on our bodies until we wash them off. Practising good hygiene tips will basically help us prevent illnesses. An added bonus is that following all hygiene tips will ensure you don’t have a bad body odour or bad breath – this will automatically boost self-confidence and self-awareness.
Thus, it is crucial to teach our kids the importance of good hygiene and list out the ways in which we can maintain a healthy lifestyle. This will become all the more important for them when they hit puberty. So take a look at these personal hygiene tips for kids and make sure they follow every one of them.
1. Brush your teeth twice a day
I don’t get why children seem to think brushing their teeth is a mammoth task. How many times has your child walked up to you swearing that he or she brushed his or her teeth but clearly hadn’t? It’s always good to set up a good oral hygiene routine early on. A little push today will go a long way.
I make sure my daughter, Sanaa, brushes and flosses twice a day. Brushing your teeth twice a day is a must-do as tooth decay is a very common issue among kids. Also, visit the dentist from time to time for regular checkups and ask for an antibacterial mouthwash that your child can use.
2. Take a bath every day
While you have to drag some kids to the bathroom for a shower, others will simply not leave the bathroom after! Don’t give up even if they give you a hard time. If you skip bathtime on one of the days, they’ll make it a regular thing. Once they are around 5 years old, kids can practically take a bath themselves with a little supervision here and there. Try to make showers a part of the bedtime routine as well. This way, they will keep clean especially when they hit puberty and they get all stinky.
Find an antibacterial soap or body wash so that you can easily get rid of the bacteria trapped by sweat. Also, a moisturizer and a good natural deodorant will help maintain a good body odour.
3. Wash your hands
This is probably the most important good hygiene tip of the 5 tips. Kids are constantly touching toys, books, nibbling on chocolate all day. We need to teach them to wash their hands before and after having food, after using the restroom, after taking the garbage out, after petting an animal, on coming home from school, or after being around a sick friend or hospital.
Keep a soap dispenser at every washbasin in the house and a couple of sanitizers around the house. Choose fragrances that the kids liked so that they are motivated to wash their hands.
4. Trim your nails
While you can take care of trimming their nails when they are younger, around the age of 7, they should be able to do it themselves. Trimming nails is very important as it is the breeding ground of germs of many diseases. So, make it a point to get your kids to trim their nails every week. You can ask them to do it after their shower as nails tend to get a little soft after a shower and are easy to cut.
5. Use hand sanitizer at school
It’s easy to walk up to a washbasin and wash your hands at home but the same might not be possible at school. Your child may not be able to go and wash their hands every time they touch a dusty bookshelf or write on the blackboard with a piece of chalk. That’s when hand sanitizers come in handy. So, make sure you send a bottle of hand sanitizer with your child every day.
6. Imbibe the habit of carrying a handkerchief
Whether your child has a cough or cold or not, make it a habit to send a handkerchief every day. Every time you cough or sneeze, you let out millions of germs that can infect another person sitting nearby. With a handkerchief, kids can cover their mouth when they cough or sneeze. Hygienic practices such as these go on to teach kids etiquette too.
7. Parents should help identify germ-prone objects
Apart from obvious items such as garbage or used tissues, everyday objects also carry germs. These are mostly things that multiple people use such as currency notes and coins, door handles, mobile phones, laptop keyboards, elevator buttons, etc. Teach your kids that any object used by more than one person or used throughout the day by the same person is a bed of germs. They should avoid touching these objects or ensure washing their hands right after.
8. Keep your surroundings clean
You could follow all good hygiene tips for kids but an unclean desk or bedroom will mean an abundance of bacteria and germs. Therefore, teach your kids to keep their surroundings clean, starting from their study table to their bed and bathroom. Make sure they put away dirty clothes in the laundry basket and use fresh clothes and towels at all times.
We should teach our kids the value of personal hygiene and get them to follow tips to lead a hygienic and healthy lifestyle. What do you think of these personal hygiene tips for kids? What other tips would you like to add? Let me know in the comments.
