How to prioritize your child’s health
When thinking about getting your kid ready to go back to school, it’s easy to remember to buy school supplies or new clothes, but preventive health might be something you forget about. As you get your kids ready to head back to school, Dr. Michael Turco with Methodist Physicians Clinic says preventive health should be your priority.Keeping your kids healthy benefits everyone.READ MORE: What immunizations does your child need for school?”Less sick time, less days off, less time for mom and dad to have to pull them out of school and stay home and take care of them or find child care,” said Turco. To keep your kids healthy, Turco says they need frequent checkups just like adults. “Even though they don’t have the same kind of problems, they are growing and they’re dynamic. And so, their needs change almost as quickly as their shoe sizes,” said Turco. Turco says vaccines are required for kids when they start school, and again when they reach junior high age, but you may want to consider optional vaccinations, too.”I’m in favor of making sure that every kid has an opportunity to not have to spend a couple weeks out of school, so I recommend getting the seasonal flu and COVID boosters if needed as well,” said Turco. If your older kids are getting involved in sports, do not forget their physical.”It’s an opportunity for us to examine that kid’s ability to participate and say, ‘This is how you can do it safely, and here’s what I’m going to recommend, and let’s find a way to keep you playing but also keep you healthy,'” said Turco. READ MORE: Back-to-school guide: What you should know before summer comes to an endAs you get ready for school to start back up, Turco says you will need some time to adjust to your new schedule. “It can be a pretty rough start if you’re waiting until the last day to adjust your bedtimes or change your routine. So I would say, you know, give it a week or two to start practicing your routines, and everybody will be ready to go from the start,” said Turco.NAVIGATE: Home | Weather | Local News | National | Sports | Newscasts on demand |
When thinking about getting your kid ready to go back to school, it’s easy to remember to buy school supplies or new clothes, but preventive health might be something you forget about.
As you get your kids ready to head back to school, Dr. Michael Turco with Methodist Physicians Clinic says preventive health should be your priority.
Keeping your kids healthy benefits everyone.
READ MORE: What immunizations does your child need for school?
“Less sick time, less days off, less time for mom and dad to have to pull them out of school and stay home and take care of them or find child care,” said Turco.
To keep your kids healthy, Turco says they need frequent checkups just like adults.
“Even though they don’t have the same kind of problems, they are growing and they’re dynamic. And so, their needs change almost as quickly as their shoe sizes,” said Turco.
Turco says vaccines are required for kids when they start school, and again when they reach junior high age, but you may want to consider optional vaccinations, too.
“I’m in favor of making sure that every kid has an opportunity to not have to spend a couple weeks out of school, so I recommend getting the seasonal flu and COVID boosters if needed as well,” said Turco.
If your older kids are getting involved in sports, do not forget their physical.
“It’s an opportunity for us to examine that kid’s ability to participate and say, ‘This is how you can do it safely, and here’s what I’m going to recommend, and let’s find a way to keep you playing but also keep you healthy,'” said Turco.
READ MORE: Back-to-school guide: What you should know before summer comes to an end
As you get ready for school to start back up, Turco says you will need some time to adjust to your new schedule.
“It can be a pretty rough start if you’re waiting until the last day to adjust your bedtimes or change your routine. So I would say, you know, give it a week or two to start practicing your routines, and everybody will be ready to go from the start,” said Turco.
NAVIGATE: Home | Weather | Local News | National | Sports | Newscasts on demand |
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