Beware of the cold

At least two medical professionals are cautioning parents and caregivers to pay extra attention to their children when the country experiences colder-than-usual temperatures.

Two recent cold fronts came at a time that paediatricians Dr Carolin Thomas Boyd and Dr Lisa Franklin-Banton both labelled “flu season”.

“The thing is, in the cold weather, viruses live longer, respiratory viruses, so because there are more viruses around, number one, children are, [and] people are inside more. Then, if somebody gets a cold, the likelihood of it being spread is greater and your immune response goes down when you get cold. And the viruses being around, people being closer and in poorly ventilated indoor conditions, that will increase your susceptibility to getting sick,” Thomas Boyd told The Gleaner.

Franklin-Banton added that the cold makes conditions more favourable for viruses.

“First of all, there are lots of viruses, so this is the time of year that you are going to have an increase in respiratory viruses, and we have been seeing that in Jamaica. What the cold weather does, though, is that it kinda changes the environment that these viruses work in, which makes it perhaps a little easier for them to cause infections in kids. The other thing with regard to cold weather is that it does cause us to have a weaker response. Our immune response is perhaps a little bit decreased, just because of the stress of that cold temperature. ”

Both doctors pointed to some of the greater risks for more vulnerable children.

“Asthmatics, and anybody, really, that’s on any drugs that might cause immuno suppression so, if you have a patient that has HIV or sickle cell, or has childhood cancer, I can think of right off the bat, but asthmatics are a lot more common to see some ill effects. Usually, this time of the year we would call it asthma season, anywhere between September and March, because they are the cooler months of the year,” said Thomas Boyd.

CHILDREN ARE MORE SUSCEPTIBLE

“First of all, the younger you are, the weaker your immune system is, so you are definitely more susceptible. Those kids with chronic illnesses are also more susceptible, so those kids who have chronic respiratory illnesses, those kids who have cardiac illnesses, they are definitely more prone to these infections than any other child, just because their immune system is somewhat compromised,” Franklin-Banton pointed out.

The health professionals offered some advice on how children can be protected.

“During this time, keep them warm, get enough rest, eat properly, stay hydrated; nutrition is important, of course, and a vitamin additive. What I found that helps though, if you feel like you’re getting sick, I find that being warm and steam inhalation really do help. And warm teas, soups, broths, so you know there was merit to your grandma always saying, ‘Have chicken soup when you are sick’. I will also mention garlic. Garlic is a natural antibiotic, so there’s no harm in garlic tea. We like honey and lime and garlic. The lime is the vitamin C and the garlic is nature’s antibiotic, but remember, children under a year old should not get honey,” cautioned Thomas Boyd.

COVID-19 protocols saw basic hygiene included in public education campaigns, and Franklin-Banton cited them as critical.

“One of the things that we underestimate is the benefit of simple handwashing. I find that our kids don’t wash their hands enough. Remember, viruses are spread because of the germs being on surfaces, and they are touching and they putting their hands on faces. So, just teaching them simple things like washing their hands, keeping their hands out of their face; the etiquette of sneezing and coughing – so you know you cough and you sneeze in the elbow of your hands, because those areas are less likely to touch a surface to spread germs. In day care settings, one of the things that they can also practise is washing the toys and wiping down on a daily basis. So, at the end of the day, put those toys in a basin of water with disinfectant, because kids will be kids.”

Franklin-Banton also recommends the influenza vaccine for all children six months and older, especially those who are immuno-compromised.

The doctors urged parents to also keep their children hydrated and ensure they get fresh air, despite the cooler temperatures.

Scientists attribute these harsher cold spells to long-term climate shifts that push arctic air into non-traditional areas, like the Caribbean.

karen.madden@gleanerjm.com