This post has been sponsored by Pfizer Consumer Healthcare. All thoughts and reviews are my own.

There is nothing I dread more than sending my kids back to school after the holidays and having them return with a cold in just a few days. Every time I inform one of the kid’s teachers that they will be staying home sick that day, the response is always that there are also many other students home sick. I can recall one day this year where my son’s teacher informed me that half of his class was home sick! When your kids return to school for the second half of the year, you want to make sure they’re healthy and thriving to not only succeed, but also enjoy spending time with their friends. As parents, the last thing any of us want is for our children to get sick and miss school and activities. So without further ado, here are some helpful tip for keeping your family healthy after the holidays.

Boost Your Immune System

There are so many simple and effective ways to boost your family’s immune system! Immune boosting foods and drinks will keep your body well-nourished, so when viruses do strike… the immune system has fuel to work efficiently and fight off the virus! Some common and easy to find immune boosting foods are garlic, ginger, apple cider vinegar, eldeberry, fresh green vegetable juices and foods packed full of vitamin C such as orange slices or pomegranate seeds. Fermented food and drink is also very important to keep healthy. Our family is especially fond of kombucha and there are so many different flavors and varieties out there now. 

Make Sleep A Priority

I am a mom of three, my kids do afterschool activities and most nights the bedtime ritual is a nightmare… I get it! I am not talking about a strict bedtime schedule, just make sure that your children are getting a good stretch of sleep as often as possible and that they don’t get worn out and exhausted from lack of sleep. Sleep is how our bodies repair and heal during the night, so you have to make sure your child is getting enough sleep during cold and flu season. If your child is having a difficult time unwinding at the end of the day, try diffusing some essential oils like lavender or chamomile before bed.

Eliminate Stress

There are going to be moments during the school year where your child is so overwhelmed with school work, activities and life that you find yourself having to make a decision… which is more important, their school work or their health? I found myself sitting at the dining room table one night with a crying 10 year old that was coming home each day with loads of work and little time to be a kid. In that moment I dropped my hands and said you know what… go be a kid! Run around the yard, play a game, draw a picture… let’s eliminate that stress! Stress is one of the biggest immune system busters and when we are under stress, the immune function is greatly impaired. Your body can’t actually tell the difference between different types of stress… so unfortunately the body reacts to over-scheduling activities the same way it reacts to a food we are sensitive/allergic to or an emotional worry we are thinking about. Our body responds and reacts the same to all three of these very different type stressors and when the body is in a stress response, the immune function declines. So remind yourself of this when your child’s life starts to get overwhelming during the school year and make sure to stay protective of your child’s schedule as much as possible.

Be Prepared

You didn’t think you were going to make it the entire school year free of colds did you? Unfortunately no matter how many precautions you take, all it takes is one sneeze in your child’s direction and they are crippled with a cold that same night. That is why it is important to make sure you are prepared when those dreaded colds hit. The Pfizer Pediatric team wants to ensure that you will always be ready to relieve the fevers, coughs, and colds that keep your kids from being kids, so that your lives can get back to normal and they can get back to feeling like themselves. When sick gets real, the pediatric brands of Pfizer Consumer Healthcare are there with three solutions; Children’s Advil®, Children’s Robitussin® and Children’s Dimetapp® to tackle the ickiest of symptoms.

Ease those aches and pains, while reducing a child’s fever fast with Children’s Advil®, which is a great solution for kids as young as 2 and up to 11. Children’s Advil® comes in several great-tasting flavors, including: Sugar-free Dye-free Berry, Bubble Gum, Grape, Blue Raspberry, Fruit and Dye-Free White Grape flavors.

There’s also Infants’ Advil® White Grape, which provides unsurpassed fever relief (among OTC pain relievers) with a syringe for easy dosing for children 6-23 months.

For your child’s cough, you can trust Children’s Robitussin® Extended-Release 12 Hour Cough Relief to control and relieve symptoms all-day or all- night. This is available in grape or orange flavor, for children ages 4 and up. Please note, certain Children’s Robitussin® products are only suitable for children ages 6 and up.

Children’s Dimetapp® Multi-Symptom Cold Relief Dye-Free eases your child’s stuffy and runny nose, while quieting a bothersome cough. All in a great-tasting grape flavor that’s dye-free, for children ages 6 and up.

Don’t be left unprepared when you get that dreaded call from the school nurse that your child is under the weather. Don’t be the mom digging through every medicine cabinet and first aid kit at 3AM trying to find medicine for your child that has been up for hours with a runny nose and cough. Keep your supplies stocked so that you are always ready!