After Hours Pediatrics Urgent Care

Containing a virus isn’t easy -- especially within a family. But here’s some advice from pediatricians and experts on infectious disease on how to prevent germs from getting the rest of the family sick.

Tips to Prevent Germs from Spreading

Get your kids to wash their hands. Yes, this one should be obvious. But it really can’t be stressed enough: hand washing is a crucial way to prevent germs from spreading. About 80% of infectious diseases are spread by touch.

 “Two of the most important things we’ve done in medicine are getting people vaccinated and getting them to wash their hands,” says Robert W. Frenck Jr., MD, professor of pediatrics at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and member of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Committee on Infectious Disease. 

When you have a sick toddler, germs can get absolutely everywhere. That means that your healthy child is bound to pick them up on his hands. But as long as he’s washing his hands regularly, the germs might not make it from his hands into his eyes or mouth. 

If kids are going to wash their hands, teach them to do it right. Experts recommend scrubbing hands for 20 seconds or so -- as long as it takes to sing “Happy Birthday” twice. The type of soap doesn’t matter -- to prevent germs, the regular stuff will work just as well as antibacterial soap.

When warm water and soap aren’t available, use an alcohol-based sanitizing gel -- just make sure to rub your hands together vigorously for about 20 seconds until the gel evaporates.

Wash your own hands. To prevent germs from spreading, the same advice goes for you too. Don’t get so focused on wiping down your sick toddler’s toys that you forget to wash your own hands. It’s important for a couple of reasons. First, you don’t want to get sick -- taking care of a sick toddler while being sick yourself can be punishing.

But second, if you’re not washing your hands, you could actually be the one who infects your healthy child -- even if you don’t get sick. All it might take is for you to pick up your sick toddler’s tissues and then make your healthy kid’s lunch. Bingo: you’ve got two sick children.

Step up your disinfecting. Even if you’re not germ-obsessed usually, now might be a time to focus more on disinfecting surfaces in your home. It can help prevent germs from spreading.

“I think when one child is sick, some extra sanitizing around the house can definitely help prevent other family members from getting it,” Altmann tells WebMD.

What should you do? You could wipe off surfaces that your sick toddler has touched -- like doorknobs, tables, and handrails -- with a disinfectant. Many plastic toys can be thrown in the dishwasher, and many stuffed animals in the washing machine. If your sick toddler is suffering from vomiting and diarrhea, take extra care to disinfect the toilet, floor, and sink in the bathroom.

That said, don’t make yourself crazy in your attempts to prevent germs from spreading. You don’t want to spend your days following your sick toddler around the house, spraying everything in her wake with disinfectant. Besides, it won’t work. There’s no way that you’ll be able to eradicate all of the germs anyway.

Practice good diaper hygiene. Be especially careful with dirty diapers now -- particularly if you have more than one kid wearing them. The changing table could be a spot where your kids exchange germs. So you could decide to use the changing table only for your sick toddler and change your healthy kid somewhere else. Or you could always lay a fresh blanket over the changing pad when putting a diaper on your healthy child.

Don’t allow sharing at meals. Mealtimes may usually be chaotic, with your kids regularly swapping silverware, cups, and food. For now, do what you can to prevent that.

Keep the bathroom hygienic. While germs generally don’t live on towels very long, they can live long enough to make a healthy kid sick. So launder them regularly. You may even want to switch to disposable paper towels for a week to prevent germs from infecting other family members. By the same token, consider replacing the bathroom water glass with disposable paper cups for a while. And get your child a new toothbrush after he's been sick.

Consider a quarantine? Obviously, you can’t imprison a sick toddler in his room until he’s better. But you can try to reduce the contact between your sick kid and your healthy one.

“You can try to separate your kids a bit,” says Altmann. “For instance, you might try to keep them playing in separate rooms more than usual.”

Still, it’s often not feasible and your kids may resist. If that’s the case, don’t worry, says Laura A. Jana, MD, a pediatrician and coauthor of Heading Home with Your Newborn and Food Fights. As long as your kids aren’t getting in each other’s faces -- and everyone’s washing their hands -- it shouldn’t be a big deal. “It’s fine to have your sick child sitting with his siblings in the same room watching a movie,” Jana tells WebMD.

How to Prevent Germs When a Parent Is Sick

What if you or your spouse is the sick one? How can you protect your kids?

•  Focus on washing your hands. Hand washing is the key way to prevent germs from spreading. You should be doing it regularly anyway, but step it up when you’re sick. If you’re laid out on the couch, keep a container of antibacterial gel in your robe pocket and apply it before touching the kids.
• Dispose of your tissues. Before you had kids, you might have spent sick days on the couch with a pile of used tissues on the floor next to you. That’s not a good idea now. Throw your tissues directly into a trashcan nearby -- preferably one with a lid or one that’s placed off the floor.
• Keep breastfeeding. Some women worry about breastfeeding when they have a cold or stomach virus -- will it make the baby sick? But experts say that breastfeeding when you have a run-of-the-mill virus is a good idea; in fact, the antibodies you pass on might help protect your baby from getting sick.
• Avoid preparing food -- if you can. It’s not always an option, but if you can have your spouse, older child, or other family member take over the meal preparations and lunch packing for a few days, it’s a good idea. If you have to prepare meals, just be very careful to wash your hands before and during cooking.
• Take precautions, but don’t go overboard. Short of leaving the house for a week, how else can you reduce the odds that your kids will get your cold? You can try to make a few minor adjustments to prevent germs from spreading. For instance, you could kiss your kids on their heads rather than their cheeks for a few days. You could ask your spouse to do bedtime stories and baths for a few nights. But obviously, you can’t be so careful in your efforts to prevent germs from spreading that you feel like you’re shunning your kids.

Babies will put anything in their mouths -- dirt, dusty Cheerios from under the couch, slimy dog toys, and fossilized cheese crumbs from the car seat. “I had to pull a fly out of my younger child’s mouth once,” Altmann says. “That was pretty gross.”So when your baby has put some ancient food into her mouth, how worried should you be? Happily, you probably don’t need to freak out.

“If a child eats some spoiled food, the worst they’ll probably get is a gastrointestinal illness,” Frenck says. Of course, it can get much more horrible than old food. With luck, you will never have the traumatizing experience of finding your baby sitting in the kitty litter eating something unspeakable. But some parents do. Even then, things will probably be fine.

“I’ve had many calls from parents who are worried because their babies have eaten a pet’s poop,” Altmann says. “However, I don’t think I’ve ever seen any of them get sick from it.”  That’s not to say that they couldn’t get sick. Pets can pass on diseases that could sicken a child. But as long as your cat or dog is getting his shots, the odds are pretty low. Some pets are riskier, like snakes and turtles, which can carry bacteria like salmonella. If you have an exotic pet, ask your child’s pediatrician for advice. Naturally, if you’re ever concerned about something your kid has eaten or had in her mouth, call the doctor. Just remember that when it comes to babies putting stuff in their mouths, the biggest risks come not from the gross things, but from choking hazards and poisons, like medicines and cleaning agents.

SALT LAKE CITY — The flashy ads and colorful labels of most energy drinks espouse the pick-me-up qualities of the popular beverages, but some local health experts say they can be really "sick."

With the start of a new school year approaching, health advocates are advising parents to be aware of the potentially harmful effects of energy drinks, which have become increasingly popular with kids, teens and young adults.

While most parents wouldn't want their children or teens drinking several cups of coffee a day, the energy drinks often contain several times the caffeine found in a regular cup of coffee, said Barbara Crouch, director of the Utah Poison Control Center.

"Caffeine has been described as the most widely used psychoactive drug in the world," Crouch said. "It's a stimulant and it also is a diuretic, which means it may result in further dehydration when used for fluid replacement for sports."

The beverages also are loaded with sugar and other substances that, combined with caffeine, can pose health risks when consumed excessively, including heart arrhythmias and seizures in the most serious cases, Crouch said.

She said the public should know what substances energy drinks actually contain and understand the potential risks from overconsumption, particularly as students sometimes feel they need an energy boost during the often-hectic schedule of returning to school.

Dr. Howard Kadish, emergency department physician at Primary Children's Medical Center, commented that the potential health risks to young people in overusing the high-caffeine beverages far outweigh any possible advantages.

"There really is no beneficial effect for these energy drinks," he said. "There is really quite a bit of adverse effects but nothing beneficial that the kids can get out of this."

Athletes especially should avoid energy drinks and consume water instead, Kadish said.

If they're ingested in excessive quantities, University of Utah emergency department physician Dr. Peter Taillac said, the caffeine-rich energy drinks can have "significant toxic effects."

Patients can experience rapid heartbeats that require medical attention, lightheadedness, nausea and vomiting, he said.

"(Energy drinks) can be very dangerous in overdose," Taillac said. "They can also be very safe if used moderately."

He said that because of the marketing of the products, kids and young adults might confuse the caffeinated energy drinks with sports drinks that replace electrolytes and fluids during heavy exercise. The energy drinks do little to hydrate the body and can actually be harmful if used in such an inappropriate manner, he added.

Because dietary supplements and drinks are mostly unregulated, there are no strict standards the manufacturers are required to meet, Crouch said.

She said in addition to energy drinks, parents should be cautious of other potential stimulants that teens may ingest, such as cold medicines, which combined with the stimulant drinks or prescription stimulants like Ritalin can cause even more possible health concerns.

"There are many other substances that we may ingest … that may have an added effect to these particular energy drinks," Crouch said.

Beverage caffeine content*

133, generic brewed coffee 8 ounces (range: 102-200 mgs)

300, Spike Shooter 8.4 oz.

288, Cocaine (drink) 8.4 oz.

160, Monster Energy 16 oz.

144, Full Throttle 16 oz.

80, Red Bull 8.3 oz.

80, Rockstar 8 oz.

*In milligrams

Source: Center for Science in the Public Interest