How many parents are prepared for the upcoming summer season? The school year was busy, but you managed to get through it once again. Now, you’re looking forward to the change of pace, laid back schedule, and time with the kids. All too often, however, kids end up spending a bulk of their time in front of screens, indulging in unhealthy foods, and a host of other things that decrease their health during the summer.
As a parent, it’s your job to make sure that you find a balance between enjoying the summer and keeping health a top priority. A lot easier than it sounds, here is a look at some tips to keeping your kids healthy this summer:
Schedule Medical Appointments
Trying to get your kids to see the doctor, dentist, eye doctor, or dermatologist in Vineland (or close to wherever you live) is often a challenge throughout the school year. You don’t want them to miss time from school, and correlating a schedule between the doctor’s office and your work schedule is often another obstacle.
Now that school is out and you’ve likely taken off some time to be with the kids, make scheduling medical appointments a priority. It is imperative that children have their annual physical, eye exam, dental cleaning, and when necessary dermatology visit to treat common skin issues in children.
Keep Them Active
A few days in front of the television binge-watching television shows or playing video games is expected during the summer for kids. However, too much screen time is horrible for their physical and mental well-being. It can result in anxiety, depression, headaches, eye strain, obesity, diabetes, and more.
Get your kids up and away from the screen by having plenty for them to do this summer. You can plan day trips, play around in the backyard, take them to the park, volunteer as a family, enroll them in camp, let them participate in community sports, or take a few vacations.
Sun Protection
Speaking of getting your kids out of the house more, be sure that you’ve properly protected their skin from the sun. Their sensitive skin is vulnerable to being harmed by the ultraviolet rays given off by the sun. Direct contact for too long can result in sunburn and skin cancer, both of which would be trying for a child to cope with.
Your children should be sure to wash and moisturize their skin daily. They should also wear sunscreen with SPF 30 protection. Lastly, give them sunglasses and hats for added coverage.
Feed Them Right
Just because school is out doesn’t mean that you should stop feeding your family healthy foods. While cooking in the heat may not be the most convenient or comfortable task, there are ways around it. For starters, you can cook on the grill more or look for cool summer recipes that require very little preparation. Make sure that your children are getting plenty of fruits and veggies, whole grains, lean protein, and dairy on a regular basis.
Spend Quality Time
You may not be fortunate enough to stay home with your kids the entire summer, but it’s important to try and pencil in some quality time. Though they may have camp and other activities to keep them occupied, family time keeps them mentally strong. It helps to build better bonds, boost their confidence, and improve their mood. So, whether you plan a picnic in the park or just sit back and watch a movie on the weekend, do what you can to give your child some extra special attention this summer.
Summertime is just around the corner and everyone is excited about the much-needed lifestyle break. As convincing as it can be for you to allow the kids to sit in front of a screen all day and chow down on unhealthy snacks, that’s the worst thing you can do for their well-being. To keep your kids happy and healthy during their summer break, it is best instead to follow the advice provided above.