How and how can you strengthen and maintain the immunity of a child from 0 to 1 year old

The baby's health must be monitored from the first months. In order to raise the immunity of a newborn child, some parents begin to vigorously patronize the baby or, on the contrary, test all methods for strengthening the body on it. Of course, good health from childhood is a guarantee that a person will be healthy in adulthood, but you should always adhere to the rule: "Do no harm".

About immunity of newborns and infants

Strengthening the immune system in a child under one year old has some specificity, since the immunity at this age in children has not yet fully formed and has a number of distinctive features:

In the human immune system, there are ten classes of immunoglobulins - protective antibodies. In children under one year old, only one of them is in an active state - this is immunoglobulin G, which he receives during intrauterine development. The production of all other immunoglobulins is in a dormant state. Up to about 6 months, maternal antibodies (immunoglobulins G) are present in the body of the crumbs, after six months their number decreases, since the child begins to form his own specific immunity. The first three months, the baby's body is protected exclusively by maternal antibodies, and its own immunity is gaining strength only by the year. Because of these features, children under one year old are especially prone to colds and allergies.
The child receives maternal antibodies in the last trimester of intrauterine life, therefore, children born prematurely, at 28 - 32 weeks, do not receive them from the mother and after birth are characterized by weakened immunity.

Therefore, before interfering with the infant's immune system, you need to make sure that it really needs support. If a child has had ARVI 3-4 times a year, is not prone to frequent allergies, then you should not take any emergency measures in order to increase immunity.

Doctor Komarovsky advises: video about immunity

What factors affect immunity and its strength? Is it true that during pregnancy the child receives immunity from the mother to many diseases? Is it enough to do a routine blood test to find out the state of the immune system, or do you need some specific tests? These and other questions will be answered by Evgeny Olegovich Komarovsky.

Signs of lowered immunity

Here are some signs that your baby's immune system is weakened:

Frequent ARVI (every two months or more), with complications in the form of tonsillitis, otitis media.
There is no temperature rise in inflammatory and infectious diseases.
Cervical and axillary lymph nodes constantly enlarged in size.
Dysbiosis phenomena: diarrhea, constipation, allergic dermatitis, diathesis.
Increased fatigue, drowsiness, moodiness, pallor of the skin.
Increased tendency to allergies.

If the baby has such violations, then the parents should immediately show the child to the pediatrician. You should not rely on vitamins, only with the help of them you will not be able to raise the child's immunity to normal levels.

How to increase and strengthen the child's immunity?

With regard to how you can raise the immunity of a child immediately after birth and support the baby's defenses during the first year, there are several tips:

Give preference to breastfeeding. Even if there is not much milk at first, continue to stimulate lactation. Breastfeed as long as possible, according to the latest WHO recommendations: up to 1 year old breastfeeding is mandatory, since milk is a source of nutrients and specific antibodies for a baby, and up to 2 years old - preferably for the purpose of psychological support, which the child continues to need. Today it is generally known that when breastfeeding children get sick less often, and this is not only because they are better protected immunologically. A more favorable psychological background (closeness to the mother) in these babies too
helps to strengthen the immune system.
Hardening procedures increase the immunity of an infant. You can start hardening with air from the first days of life. And in the future, add water procedures. Do not wrap your baby, teach to endure discomfort from a young age. Walk a lot, especially in summer and do gymnastics.
Cleanliness is the key to health. Keep the child clean, toys, dishes and personal hygiene items. About hygiene >>>
Monitor your baby's nutrition. Be careful when introducing new foods that may cause allergies. Try to provide your child with a complete diet rich in vitamins and other essential substances, give your baby fresh fruits and vegetables. From 7 to 8 months, the baby should receive fermented milk products, they are important for maintaining the intestinal microflora. About complementary foods >>>
If a child is sick with ARVI, do not abuse drugs, especially immunomodulators and antibiotics, do not bring down fever with antipyretics if it is below 38.5⁰C. Most of these drugs are contraindicated in children under 1 year of age or are prescribed in extreme cases only by a doctor. Let your child's body cope with common colds on its own. Drink an age-appropriate multivitamin.
Do not give up vaccinations. Of course, today there are many pros and cons of this method of protecting children from disease: the safety of artificial immunization has not been fully proven, there is a risk of complications, which stops many parents from vaccinating their babies. But, nevertheless, according to research, vaccinated children really practically do not get sick with these dangerous diseases. And outbreaks of seemingly rare diseases like whooping cough and mumps are still found. Therefore, if you live in a city, often communicate with other children, travel to crowded places and plan to attend kindergarten and school, then it is better to adhere to the generally accepted vaccination schedule.

Folk remedies to increase immunity

Here are some drinks and folk remedies that can be given to children under 1 year old in order to increase immunity:

Juices: apple juice (rich in vitamin C) and carrot juice (rich in vitamin A).
Rosehip decoction: 250 - 300 g of dried or fresh fruits per 2 liters of water, boil for 3 minutes and leave for 3 - 4 hours. The broth can be given to the baby to drink several times a day.
Compote from apricots (dried apricots) and raisins: 500 g of apricots and 1 tablespoon of raisins - 2 liters of water.
You need to be careful with herbal teas because of the potential for allergies. Sometimes you can give chamomile tea, it has a good effect on digestion and intestinal microflora, thereby increasing immunity. For children under one year old, it is better to buy ready-made teas for babies, where the composition and dosage are already balanced.
Closer to the year, if there is no allergy to honey, you can add half a teaspoon of it to the porridge instead of sugar.
Echinacea to children under 1 year old can only be given in the form of a decoction. The collection (roots, leaves or flowers) is sold at the pharmacy, it must be brewed and given according to the instructions. It is advisable to consult a pediatrician before use.
Decoctions of herbs (linden blossom, St. John's wort, chamomile) are useful to add to bathing water. Such baths support the body's defenses well.
If you have already begun to introduce berries into the child's diet, then the most vitamin of them are: lingonberries, cranberries, black currants, strawberries, raspberries.
And, of course, if a nursing mother wants to increase the immunity of her baby and herself, then she herself must eat well, eliminate allergens and take vitamins, because breast milk is the main food for babies up to 6 months.

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In a healthy family, it will be much easier for the baby to stay strong. Therefore, it is important to take care not only of the immunity of the baby, but also of the whole family. Make it a rule of family physical education: while the crumb is still small, take it with you for walks in the park, on the ski slopes, go to the pool. All this will not only strengthen the health of the parents and the child, but will make your family relations more friendly and warm, which cannot but have a positive effect on the general condition of each of you.