Babies, pregnant momma’s to be, and new mothers are perhaps the most susceptible family members to the colds & flus that circle around throughout the school year! If you’re currently expecting, planning to conceive, or are the parent of a little one, here are some tips and tools that you can use to ensure that you and/or your precious newly born stay healthy this school year. 🙂
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First, let’s talk Baby Immunity:
If you’re a new parent, you’re likely VERY aware that there is only a short list of things that are “safe” to give to babies! This poses a bit of a challenge when trying to keep your baby’s immune system strong. Good news though, there are definitely some things you can do to prevent sicknesses in your precious little one! Here are our favourite baby immune system boosters:
Baby-Safe Probiotics:
There are some extremely effective and baby-friendly probiotic supplements available that can be used to help boost your baby’s immune system. Probiotics are important for helping to build the body’s immune system, as immunity is largely linked to gut health!
One of the best baby probiotic supplements is BioGaia ProTectis, which is proven to be safe and effective for children and infants. It is one patented bacteria strain that has fantastic benefits for improving and supporting gut health.
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Vitamin D:
Vitamin D plays a major role in keeping our bodies healthy throughout our lives, and that starts from infancy. A great way to keep your baby healthy and improve their developing immune system, is ensuring adequate amounts of Vitamin D.
Nutristart Vitamin D Drops for Babies are easy to dose and give to your little one. Just one drop into their mouth or a bottle of milk or formula daily can help support your child’s immune system.
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Infant Cold Relief:
When a baby does contract a cold, there are but a few things you can give them to help alleviate the symptoms so they can sleep and be happy… and so can you.
A really great baby-friendly homeopathic formula is Boiron Coryzalia. It can be used from just 1 month of age to help to alleviate cold symptoms such as a runny or stuffy nose.
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Baby AND Mommy Food & Nutrition:
Adequate nutrition is key for ensuring that you and your baby are healthy enough to take on cold and flu season! Making sure to eat a whole-food diet rich in vegetables, healthy fats & protein will help to keep your body strong enough to tackle the cold & flu season(s) ahead. Whether you’re pregnant, breast-feeding, or the parent of a new baby or toddler, keeping yourself healthy will help you to keep your littlest treasure (or treasure-to-be) healthy, too!
Breastfeeding Mommas*:
Breast feeding can provide an immense amount of nutrition for a baby. Natural breast milk is full of essential vitamins, minerals and immune factors that help support the health of a baby. Ensuring adequate nutrition for your own body will ensure healthy milk production, and you may also want to take something to support natural lactation.
A fantastic supplement for supporting milk production is St. Francis Fenugreek & Blessed Thistle Lactation Support. Both blessed thistle and fenugreek are herbs that have been used for centuries to promote healthy lactation. This 5:1 extract is super potent has been pre-proportioned to the effective and healthy ratios of these herbs in one convenient capsule, so you have less to worry about! These awesome herbs are also great for regulating Mommy’s blood lipid levels as well as glucose levels, so you can feel great while helping your baby feel great!
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Healthy Formulas:
If you’re not breastfeeding, don’t worry! There are plenty of nutrient rich formula recipes that you can put together quickly and easily for your little one! 🙂 The link below is to a few recipes from the Weston A. Price Foundation for home-made healthy formulas. There are cow-dairy, goat-milk and non-dairy options, so whatever your baby’s tolerances are, you can help keep them nourished and thriving!
http://www.westonaprice.org/childrens-health/formula-homemade-baby-formula/
Prenatal Multi-Vitamins*:
When you are pregnant or breastfeeding, the nutritional demands of your body tend to skyrocket. It can be hard to keep your energy levels up, while providing yourself and your baby with adequate nutrition. A great way to make sure you’re covering all of your bases is to take a prenatal multivitamin.
One of the best prenatal blends available is MegaFoods Baby&Me. MegaFoods sources their ingredients from whole food sources, so your body can absorb the nutrients right away!
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Maintaining Mommy’s Health
Mamma-Friendly Probioitcs:
Whether you’re pregnant, currently breastfeeding, or have a baby at home, taking a probiotic supplement to keep your immune system boosted will ensure that you are able and available to keep your baby healthy!
One of our favourite probiotic supplement is Dr. Ohhira’s Probiotics. We love this probiotic because it has a blend of over 82 fermented vegetables, fruits & herbs and 12 live bacteria strains. This whole-food prebiotic and probiotic duo is safe and effective for most anyone to take! It is the number one recommended probiotic by local herbalist and new mommy, Charity Parkinson, CH, HNC.
Cold & Flu Remedies for Pregnant Women*:
When you’re pregnant or breastfeeding, you can run into a lot of the same problems as babies when it comes to supplementing to stay healthy or get healthy when you’ve come down with something. Options tend to be pretty limited. But, there are some home remedies that you can rely on*, and of course you can increase nutritional intake.
Lemon tea*:
Lemon tea can be fantastic for soothing symptoms associated with a cold! Here is a recipe for lemon, honey and ginger tea.*
Chicken Broth:
Bone broth is fantastic for keeping any body healthy, and is really great for rebuilding worn down or sick bodies. This recipe below can be made quickly and easily, is extremely soothing and tastes fantastic! Chicken broth has been prized for generations as the food you consume when sick… Our ancestors had it right! Chicken broth is high in an amino acid called cysteine, which helps to thin mucous so you can clear your congestion and breathe better!
Air Quality:
A really great way to ensure your entire household stays healthy is to improve the air quality in your home! Most of the colds and flus going around are airborne bacteria and viruses, and if the environment in your home allows them to thrive, it can be pretty hard to avoid the rapid spread!
One way that you can improve the air quality in your home is by diffusing essential oils into the air! A safe and effective way of doing this is with a diffuser. The EcoSpa Ultrasonic Diffuser is a great option as it has an automatic shut off, a light on or off option, and a sleek look for any room. Diffusers can be great in bedrooms or nurseries too, especially when the light can be switched off!
A fabulous essential oil blend for keeping everyone healthy is thieves oil! Thieves oil has been used for centuries to sanitize the air and keep people healthy. Marseilles Blend is made locally, on Saltspring Island, and uses the traditional essential oils in the important and effective ratios! It also smells amazing :).
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Another great addition to the home environment to improve the air quality is indoor plants! Plants are extremely efficient at recycling and filtering the air in whatever environment they’re placed in. They also help make your space feel cozier :)!
Click on the photo to check out an awesome list of 12 NASA-approved house plants that are best at keeping the air in your home clean!
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*Please note that it is best to check with your health care practitioner prior to adding any herbs, supplements or foods you are not used to, into you or your baby’s diet when pregnant or breast feeding.
We hope you have a healthy school year, and that you’re able to utilize some of the suggestions above to keep yourself and your baby thriving, whatever time of year it is :)!
