Don’t do these 4 things to your children during the holidays!

The Spring Festival is here. According to traditional customs, we all wear new clothes and hats, visit relatives and friends, and have a lively time! During the festival, how should we reasonably arrange clothing and food for children? Please check out these thoughtful health tips!

01

Clothing

The temperature during this year's Spring Festival is "cold"! Parents are inevitably worried about their children getting cold, so they dress them in layers. But in fact, children have a high metabolic rate, and they are always running around and moving, so they are more afraid of heat than adults. Please note that if you wear too many clothes and keep sweating, it will be bad for skin care and physical health.

Image source: China Weather Network

1. How many clothes are appropriate for children?

In the north, it is windy and cold outdoors, but there is heating indoors; in the south, the temperature seems higher than in the north, but the humidity is high, and it is equally cold indoors and outdoors. There is definitely no uniform standard for how many layers to wear.

The simplest reference standard is the thickness of the parents' clothes. It is appropriate for children to wear the same amount of clothes as adults, or one piece less than adults. If the child is exercising or sitting quietly like you, then wear the same clothes. If you sit and he runs, then you need to take at least one piece of clothing off.

Pay attention to check the temperature of the back of the neck and the palms of the hands at any time. If the back of the neck is warm and sweat-free, and the palms are slightly cool, the clothes are suitable. If the back of the neck is cool, add more clothes. If the neck is sweaty and the palms are hot, take off the clothes immediately!

There is a big temperature difference between indoor and outdoor in the north. Remember to take off your clothes in time when you are indoors and put on more clothes when you are outdoors.

2. Should children wear hats?

It is generally not necessary to wear a hat indoors, but if the temperature is low and the wind is strong outside, no matter how many clothes you wear, it will not help. This is because children, especially babies, lose more heat through their heads than adults. Remember to put a hat on your child when going out in cold and windy weather to reduce the heat dissipation from the head so that they can keep warm .

02

Diet

1. How to ensure a balanced and comprehensive diet?

During the Spring Festival, parents should also let their children eat regularly and pay attention to nutritional balance, just like on weekdays. For daily dietary recommendations for different ages, please refer to the following pictures.

Image source: Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents (2022)

2. Are the meals served at gatherings suitable for children?

There are many gatherings during the Spring Festival, so the diet is inevitably different from usual. How do children eat when attending a party?

For babies who have not yet started eating complementary foods, do not eat any food on the table! If some adults feed their children at will, please stop them firmly . This is a matter of principle.

It is not recommended to add extra salt to the complementary food for children under one year old. Adults' meals are not suitable for them. We must remember to prepare appropriate complementary food for children in advance, and we must also resolutely stop feeding children at will .

It is recommended that children of all ages eat less salt, less oil, and no sugar. The food at the party tends to be heavy, so it would be best if you can prepare extra food for your children. However, for children over 2 years old, choose some relatively light and nutritious dishes on the table, and rinse the heavy-tasting dishes with water and eat them occasionally, so there is no need to worry too much.

In addition, although fish is very nutritious, parents should pay attention to helping their children remove fish bones to avoid danger.

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3. How to arrange snacks and drinks?

You can give your child some snacks that have no added sugar, are low in sodium, low in fat, and have healthy ingredients. They should be eaten between meals, 1.5-2 hours apart from the main meal, and the amount should not be too much, so as not to affect the appetite during the main meal.

Nuts are rich in unsaturated fatty acids and are very good snacks from a nutritional point of view. However, it should be noted that it is not recommended for children under 4 years old to eat whole nuts as they may choke accidentally. You can grind them into powder before feeding them to children. Similarly, whole grapes, raisins, jellies, etc. have the risk of choking into the trachea, so children under 4 years old should not eat these snacks.

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As for beverages, fresh milk and sugar-free yogurt are both very good choices . However, it is recommended that children avoid or drink less sugary drinks (the same is true for adults). Sugary drinks can easily lead to weight gain and obesity. Excessive intake will reduce the intake of other healthy foods and lead to insufficient intake of some key nutrients, which is harmful to health [3].

In addition to sugary drinks, try not to drink or drink less freshly squeezed fruit juice. Many parents mistakenly believe that freshly squeezed juice is a healthy drink. In fact, the sugar content of freshly squeezed juice is no less than that of drinks, and it is high in calories. The dietary fiber of the whole fruit is destroyed, and it is not good for health. It is recommended that children eat whole fruits or fruit puree, and not drink juice.

Honey is also not a healthy drink. It is high in sugar and may contain small amounts of botulinum toxin. Children under one year old should not drink it.

03

Safety & Health

During holiday gatherings, there may be some issues that threaten children’s safety and health, so parents must pay attention!

1. Resolutely put an end to any behavior of teasing children to drink, not even a sip!

Dip a chopstick into some wine and let your child lick it? Subtly replace your child’s drink with wine? No! These pranks are not allowed! There is no safe dose of alcohol for children, and even a small amount of alcohol can cause hidden dangers [4].

2. Do not smoke indoors where children are present, and do not allow someone who has just smoked to hold a child.

It goes without saying that tobacco has an unpredictable impact on children’s health. There is no safe range, and as long as there is exposure, there is a risk. Many medical studies have shown that exposure to tobacco increases children’s risk of asthma, bronchiolitis and other respiratory diseases, middle ear diseases, and increases the risk of cancer [5].

For relatives and friends who want to smoke, politely ask them to smoke outside, and please refuse to let them hold your child after they come back from smoking .

Pranks that require children to “take a puff” should be strictly prohibited.

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3. Don’t kiss your child casually

For example, herpes simplex virus and Epstein-Barr virus[6] can be transmitted to children through kissing. These viral infections may cause mild or even no symptoms in adults, but if newborns are infected, the consequences can be very serious.

Be sure to refuse relatives and friends who think your baby is cute and want to kiss you at a party.

4. Be careful when setting off fireworks with children

After fireworks are set off, they will release a large amount of particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, etc., which will affect children's respiratory health. In addition, eye injuries and body burns are frequent, which is really dangerous. Therefore, parents must strengthen supervision, keep children at a safe distance, and do not encourage children to set off fireworks by themselves .

References:

[1] China Weather Network http://www.weather.com.cn/radar/

[2] “Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents (2022)”, Chinese Nutrition Society, https://www.cnsoc.org/publication/

[3] World Cancer Research Fund, American Institute for Cancer Research. Diet, nutrition, physical activity and cancer: A global perspective. World Cancer Research Fund International 2018. Available at: https://www.wcrf.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Summary-of-Third-Expert-Report-2018.pdf (Accessed on June 16, 2018).

[4] Marek E, Kraft WK. Ethanol pharmacokinetics in neonates and infants. Curr Ther Res Clin Exp. 2014 Oct 22;76:90-7. doi: 10.1016/j.curtheres.2014.09.002.

[5] The Health Consequences of Smoking—50 Years of Progress: A Report of the Surgeon General. National Institutes of Health and Human Services; US Department of Health and Human Services, Atlanta, GA, 2014.

[6] Lang DJ, Garruto RM, Gajdusek DC. Early acquisition of cytomegalovirus and Epstein-Barr virus in several isolated Melanesian antibody populations. Am J Epidemiol. 1977 May;105(5):480-7.

Author: Zhang Lujie, deputy chief physician of pediatrics

Reviewer: Tang Qin, Director of the Science Popularization Department of the Chinese Medical Association

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