family & relationships

3 Personal Hygiene Habits Parents Should Teach Children

boy in blue polo shirt standing in front of sink

Photo by CDC on Unsplash

As parents, the process of teaching and training the kids can be quite difficult. For instance, children always want to touch everything and then put their hands in their mouths or noses. 

This often leads to many infections, most of which could have been avoided. While kids will always do things like this, it is important for parents to start teaching them how to be more careful and take better care of their personal hygiene. 

This way, you can minimize the frequency of their exposure to germs that result in illnesses. The tips shared here will help you do just that. 

Frequent Hand Washing

This particular personal hygiene habit has become very important these days. No thanks to the coronavirus, parents now need to teach the importance of hand-washing to their children. 

If possible, make sure that there’s always a tap with soap right outside and train the kids to always wash their hands there before going into the house. If it’s not possible to install a tap or hand-washing stand outside, encourage the kids to head for the bathroom to wash their hands when they get back or after they’ve been outside for a while. 

Also, reinforce the importance of washing their hands after touching or doing anything that potentially exposes them to germs. And remember to be patient with them if they forget. Just gently remind them, and they’ll be happy to quickly do that.

Daily Brushing Habits

Parents need to teach children how to brush their teeth and encourage them to do so twice a day –morning and night. And as they grow older, introduce flossing habits that will help further keep their oral health in top shape. Dental specialists like https://www.riderfamilydentistry.com/ of recommend starting early with the kids. 

This way, the kids will get used to proper dental habits that will ensure that they never have to deal with dental problems for the rest of their lives. Start as early as possible. Make it fun and interesting too. 

A good tactic is to encourage them to brush when you are doing yours too. And remember to rinse the toothbrush afterward. Kids are copycats and will try to emulate whatever you do. So, keep that in mind while helping them build good habits. 

Good Sleep Habits and Hygiene 

Left alone, children will stay up late watching their favorite cartoons or TV shows, playing video games, and doing things they like. As parents, the onus lies on you to set a proper sleep-wake schedule, particularly during the school period. 

Good sleeping habits will help them get adequate sleep and keep them awake and full of energy during the day. A tired child is a cranky one, and you don’t want that. Part of doing this is setting a sleep routine. 

This includes giving them a bath at specific times, putting them to bed at set periods, preventing them from sleeping at odd hours, restricting their naps to no more than 1 hour in the afternoon, only allowing them to lie down on the bed when they need to sleep –this helps them associate beds with sleep, and getting the children to play outside. These will help them get better sleep and develop good sleep hygiene and habits.