Summer is fast approaching, and what does that mean if you have kids? That’s right. It’s the best time of the year — summer vacation! While this is an incredible time to make memories with your kids, it can be stressful for parents to manage their family’s health and wellness away from their home base. If you’re worried about how to stay healthy in the coming months, here are the top travel tips for kids and families.
1. Stay updated on your destination
If you want to keep your family safe and healthy on upcoming travel, keep an eye on your destination. It will tell you what you should be prepared for.
For a domestic vacation, seek advice from your family doctor or pediatrician. Review your itinerary and planned activities with them, so they can provide any recommendations. While this may seem needless, trips to the beach differ tremendously from backcountry camping or national parks. Having a health professional weigh in on these plans can be extraordinarily helpful.
For an international vacation, start with the CDC’s Travelers Health Page. This site will let you know any vaccination or medication requirements. After that, you can head to your family doctor or pediatrician to make sure everyone in your household has what they need.
We advise making an appointment at least a month in advance of travel to give you plenty of time.
2. Instill good habits in your kids
If you want to keep your kids healthy, you must focus on what you can control. Kids are kids, and they’ll get sick sometimes. However, you can help keep them well with some basic steps like handwashing.
Use upcoming travel as an opportunity to discuss good habits like handwashing and not touching eyes, mouths, and noses in germ-filled situations. Point out all the different items that your child will touch that everyone else will too like doorknobs, handrails, fingerprint scanners, buttons, and so much more. Let them know that it’s a good idea to wash their hands more than usual in these situations to help keep their body healthy.
If you’re in a pinch and no soap and water are available, hand sanitizer is a good swap.
3. Pack the necessities
There are numerous items you could pick up at a pharmacy on the go if you need them. Yet, it never hurts to be prepared. Keep the following items in your bag for easy access.
- Disinfectant wipes and hand sanitizer
Staying healthy while traveling can be a challenge because of all the new germs your family will be exposed to. That said, you can arm yourself with tools like disinfectant wipes and hand sanitizer to mitigate germs on planes, in hotel rooms, at restaurants, etc.
- First aid kit
Stick a small first aid kit in your purse or backpack. This will have all the core necessities like bandages and Tylenol within arm’s reach.
- Prescription medications for your family
Be sure to pack all prescription medications for your family, even if they don’t get used often! It isn’t impossible to get “as needed” or “daily” prescription medication on vacation, but it can be a hassle.
- Underwear and a light change of clothes
Just trust us on this one. The minute you don’t have it on hand, you’ll need it.
- Healthy snacks (i.e., dried fruits, string cheese, crackers, bananas)
Snacks are key when traveling with small children. Whether they’re hungry or you want to avoid a meltdown, they’re a helpful tool for any parent or caregiver.
- Motion sickness medication
Travel involves a lot of motion that your kids may be unfamiliar with, including planes, boats, and buses. It’s no fun for anyone when your little one suddenly thinks they’re going to vomit. Having small and bland snacks on hand and staying hydrated is a great fix at the moment. However, in the future, you can give them motion sickness medication.
4. Balance your food choices
Vacation is often when parents let loose. Goodbye, sleep schedules and healthy diets! However, as fun as this may seem for a few days, it can often interrupt the routine that keeps your children well. Almost everything is healthy in moderation, but you’ll want to keep your food choices balanced, so your kids feel well at the end of the day.
Choices like fast food, theme park treats, s’mores, popsicles, ice cream, and more are all part of childhood and summer vacation memories. Just be mindful to mix in the treats with high-fiber fruits, vegetables, legumes, lean proteins, and other healthy options that will help avoid tummy troubles.
5. Prioritize good sleep
Sleep allows our bodies to support healthy brain function and maintain our physical health. When we don’t sleep, our bodies have a hard time warding off illnesses and stress. Many families struggle to get adequate sleep whether they’re at home or on vacation. Young children can have sporadic sleep schedules, and this can interrupt the sleep that their parents can get.
However, as you head out on vacation this summer, remember that everyone will have a better time if they’re well-rested. It’s worth planning your trip around naptime and bedtime if it means that everyone will have a better chance of remaining healthy and in good spirits.
6. Keep everyone hydrated
Hydration is always necessary, but when the weather gets hot, dehydration can occur a lot faster. To prevent any issues, you should be mindful of how much water or milk your child is consuming. For children ages 1 to 3 years, 4 cups of beverages are necessary per day. From ages 4 to 8 years, this increases to 5 cups. For older children, you should ensure they get 7 to 8 cups.
If you often struggle to keep your kids hydrated, here are some tips you can use to ensure that it doesn’t become an issue during your vacation.
- Have your child drink a full glass of water before play or physical activity begins
- Require them to take water breaks every 30 minutes
- Bring water-rich snacks like watermelon, grapes, and orange slices
- Offer 100% juice popsicles as a treat.
7. Build in downtime
When traveling, most people want to go, go, go. You’re out of your typical routine, and you might feel like you should take advantage of your location. However, it can pay off to build in time for rest and relaxation. This will allow you to avoid anyone getting run down or burnt out, which can open the door to illnesses via a weakened immune system.
One way to build in downtime is to maintain your daily nap or rest time that you have at home. Another way to is to alternate activity days with mellow days. For instance, if you’re vacationing at the beach, you could have one “lazy” day at the beach where you head back for a set nap time. The next day, you could head into town and do activities like mini golf or the aquarium where naps may be on the go.
Final Thoughts
Would you like additional help staying healthy during your upcoming summer travel? Jacksonville Pediatric Care Centers provide care. Dr. Benitez and his team of Jacksonville pediatricians work around the clock to provide exceptional pediatric care, including assistance with vaccines, medications, and destination-specific health information!
