When it comes to teaching personal hygiene for kids, there are many things to think about. It can be a lot of work from brushing their teeth to washing their hands! But kids need to learn how to take care of themselves from an early age. This blog post will discuss ten tips for maintaining good personal hygiene habits for your children!
Healthy Body: Hygiene Habits Start Early
Having good hygiene habits involves more than just hand-washing and food hygiene. Teaching your kids to have healthy personal hygiene practices when they’re young can create habits that last throughout their lives. Use this head-to-toenails guide, and teach your kids good hygiene habits.
Washing hair
Most young children can go two or three weeks without washing their hair.
You can practice poor hair hygiene if you overdo or underdo it. Too much hair washing dries out young scalps, making them more prone to dandruff. The hormonal consequences of puberty begin to take hold as children enter their tweens and teens, causing their hair to become oily. Shampooing their hair at least every other day may be necessary.
Bathing
Baths are either loved or hated by young children. On non-shampoo days, you can turn a thorough bath into a game. Put on a bathing suit and place your child in the tub with a washcloth, a bowl of warm, soapy water, and a bowl of warm water for washing. Make sure kids understand that they should soak the washcloth in soapy water before cleaning a body part, then rinse it before repeating.
Clothing
Even if their old clothes don’t smell, children require new clothing every day. It’s very vital to wear clean clothes and underwear every day. When they return home from school, you (or they, if they’re old enough) can hang up their uniform to dry.
Same with your shoes. There are numerous reasons to keep your feet clean. The fact that they stink is unquestionably at the top of the list. When your feet’s sweat is trapped in your socks and shoes, it cannot dissipate, resulting in a foul odor.
Washing your feet properly is an easy and inexpensive remedy to stinky feet. Scrub your toes and base thoroughly with a washcloth. Soak your feet in a mixture of baking soda and lemon juice.
Alternatively, you can bathe your feet in a mixture of Epsom salts and vinegar. It’s also crucial to wear clean socks and shoes to avoid nasty odors emanating from your feet.
Skincare
Parents must still assist toddlers and preschoolers with skin maintenance.
At this age, skin imperfections such as the following are common:
- rashes
- bumps
- scabs
Before your child gets dressed after their bath, help them check their skin from head to toe for any new blemishes that require attention.
Oral hygiene
Brushing teeth and gums as part of your healthy habits can help you avoid various health problems later in life, such as poor breath, cavities, food hygiene habits, and heart disease. Brush and floss your child’s teeth at least twice a day, if not after each meal.
You can carry brushing kits in the backpacks of older children to brush at school. Meanwhile, younger children may need your assistance in keeping track of the 2 minutes required for a thorough brushing.
Underarm care
Many tweens and teens despise or neglect washing their underarms and wearing deodorant as a rite of passage. Sweat turns into body odor at various times, although it usually begins around 9 or 10.
As part of your personal hygiene routine, discuss the significance of washing under their arms with your child, especially after sports practice. Depending on how much your youngster sweats, you may wish to use an antiperspirant rather than just a deodorant. Antiperspirant helps to reduce sweating, while deodorant controls bacteria and adds smell.
Hand washing
Washing hands is an important part of maintaining kids’ personal hygiene properly. The easiest approach to avoid germs is to wash:
- before and after meals
- after playing in the dirt or with pets
- and after coming into touch with someone unwell.
To make personal hygiene fun, tell your child that scrubbing with soap for the time it takes to sing “Happy Birthday” twice is important. Because hand sanitizers aren’t as effective as soap and water, use them only when necessary.
Nail care
Bacteria thrive on the surface of your fingernails. Germs living beneath your child’s nails can readily spread to their eyes, nose, and mouth.
Before bedtime, get your child a decent nail brush and help them scrape the dirt out from under their nails. A weekly cutting will aid in the removal of dirt and the prevention of unpleasant ingrown nails.
You’ll clip your child’s nails when they’re a baby, but as they grow older, you can help them care for their nails. Encourage your children to wash under their nails at each shower — a fun nail brush will help. Then, sit down with them weekly after a shower for a trim. Your nails are softer and clip more easily after a shower.
By age 7, most children should be up for the task alone.
Toilet hygiene
You’ll need to focus on the practices that keep small parts clean once your youngster has learned to use the toilet. Teach children to wipe their hands thoroughly from front to back and wash their hands afterward. These healthy behaviors will aid in reducing discomfort and preventing infections.
Sickness hygiene
If you’re sick, you should take precautions to avoid transferring germs to others. Covering your mouth and nose while sneezing, wiping down shared surfaces with an antibacterial wipe, and not sharing utensils or electronics are all examples of this. Also, throw away any filthy tissues right away.
Side effects of poor personal hygiene
Personal cleanliness habits are linked to fewer illnesses and improved health. On the other hand, poor personal hygiene can result in minor adverse effects such as body odor and oily skin. Issues with all the hygiene habits can potentially lead to more problematic or even life-threatening problems.
If you and your child don’t wash your hands frequently, for example, germs and bacteria can readily enter your mouth or eyes. This can cause various problems, ranging from stomach viruses to pink eye.
Tooth decay and plaque buildup can result from not brushing your and your child’s teeth. Poor dental hygiene is linked to several major health problems, including heart disease.
Poor hygiene habits can harm self-esteem. Looking and feeling presentable can enhance your confidence and make you feel good about yourself.
Help your kids practice good personal hygiene to avoid or reduce the risk of other conditions.
It’s never too early to start start teaching hygiene. You can wipe down your child’s hands after changing their diapers or before eating, brush their teeth and gums before bed, and get them into a daily bath routine. This helps you begin the process and slowly teaches them as they grow and take over it.
References:
https://www.everydayhealth.com/healthy-living/guide-to-good-hygiene.aspx
https://www.healthline.com/health/hygiene-habits-kids
https://www.verywellfamily.com/smelly-teen-lets-talk-teen-hygiene-3200879
https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/personal-hygiene-for-children
https://www.healthline.com/health/personal-hygiene
https://www.lifehack.org/376174/10-personal-hygiene-hacks-you-should-know
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