Checklist For Mothers To Boost Their Kids Immunity

According to a survey conducted by IMRB recently, mothers across the country have spent more than 10,000 rupees annually on paediatric medicines.

According to the same survey, more than 30 per cent of the children missed schools due to various frequent ailments. And weak immunity is the biggest reason for kids falling ill often.

Being a mother, you realise that cold and cough are a way of life with kids, but it becomes a problem when the infection becomes recurrent.

A total of 30 per cent of the mothers take their kids for a doctor's visit at least once in a month. As a mother, you cannot control entirely the viruses and germs that your child is being exposed to on a daily basis be it at home or in school.

So, what you can do is to adopt certain healthy habits that will go a long way in boosting your child's immune system to help fight germs and microorganisms.

Here's a checklist to boost your child's immunity. Do have a look at these points and make sure you inculcate these in the long run.

Micronutrient-rich Food

Your child's immunity can take a hit if you feed them a diet loaded with preservatives and sugar. Foods not rich in micronutrients have a direct relation to low immunity.

About 82 per cent of the mothers feel that low immunity of the child can have negative repercussions in the long run.

Feeding your child foods rich in immunity-increasing agents such as carrots, green leafy vegetables, fruits rich in vitamin C and milk will help your child to fight microorganisms and viruses better.

All of the above-mentioned foods are loaded with essential micronutrients that support immunity. Some of the micronutrients that help support immunity are vitamin D, Selenium, Vitamin B12, Iron, Vitamin C and Folate.

Healthy Diet

A healthy diet is essential for boosting your child's immunity and keeping him/her healthy in the long run. A total of 85 per cent of the respondent mothers in the survey felt that immunity impacts the overall growth and development of a child. To give an immunity boost to your child, feed him/her food that is rich in nutrients.

Vitamin D

Vitamin D is one of the best supplements that is available abundantly in the early morning rays of the sun. This essential nutrient can boost your child's microorganism-fighting immunity. And what better way to stock up on this much-needed vitamin source than by soaking in some sunshine?

Presence of vitamin D in the body reduces the chances of an infection that can otherwise lower the immune system's functioning in your child. About 85 per cent of the mothers who took part in the survey felt that frequent cold is a sign of low immunity.

Physical Activity

Majority of the women feel that their child falls sick easily. Now, this can be due to the fact that children nowadays rarely go and play outside, as they can be seen stuck to their routine video games in closed indoors.

In order to address this concern, increase the playtime and motivate your child to take part in games like cricket/football etc., which require a lot of physical movement.

Physical activity is known to help flush the bacteria out of the body. Doing this can actually boost your kid's immunity and decrease his/her chances of falling sick often.

Good Hygiene Practices

Inculcating good hygiene practices among your kids goes a long way in boosting your kid's immunity.

Making sure your kid imbibes good habits like taking bath regularly, washing hands after visiting the washroom, etc, can help him/her keep pathogens at bay.

A total of 71 per cent of the working mothers have missed work due to their child's illness.

Remember, a healthy child means less missed days of work, for working mothers.

Now, thankfully, you can use a simple assessment tool to discover the hidden gaps in your child's nutrition with NutriMeter. Along with that you can also add new Horlicks in your child's regular Diet which now has 2X immuno-nutrients* that support your child's immunity.

*2x immuno-nutrients refer to twice the quantity of Selenium and Vitamin D as compared to erstwhile formulation. Horlicks contains 9 nutrients (Vit B6, B12, C, D, Copper, Folic Acid, Iron, Selenium and Zinc), which are scientifically proven to play an important role in supporting immunity.