Issue link: https://fredparent.uberflip.com/i/1527525
www.FredericksburgParent.NET 19 CLEAN HANDS STOP GERMS While vaccines are an essential line of defense, it's still impor- tant to observe all of the com- monsense measures that help stop the spread of disease. Stay home from work and school when you are sick. Cover your mouth when you cough and sneeze. Wear a mask if you think you could be contagious. And wash your hands. Oct. 15 is Global Handwashing Day This is a great time to add a little fun to this important skill and teach young children good hand-washing habits. Here are a few ideas: • Sing a fun song while washing hands to ensure they scrub for at least 20 seconds. Songs like "Happy Birthday" sung twice or the "ABC" song work well. • Use glitter to represent germs. Have kids rub glitter on their hands and then try to wash it off. This shows how thorough they need to be to remove all the "germs." • Fill a bin with soapy water and let kids wash toys or their hands. You can even freeze water in latex gloves and color them with washable markers to represent germs that need to be washed off. RSV What is it? Respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, is a respiratory virus that infects the nose, throat and lungs. Its symptoms look a lot like the common cold, flu or COVID-19. According to the CDC, RSV tends to peak in December and January. Who is most at risk? RSV does not typically cause complications in healthy adults and chil- dren, but it poses a significant risk to older adults and children under 6 months. RSV is the leading cause of hospitalization among U.S. infants. Who should get vaccinated? Vaccines have been developed and are recommended for three specific groups of individuals. These single-dose vaccines are not annual shots, so you only need to get them once. CDC recommends RSV vaccines for: • Adults over 75 years of age, or those 60-74 who have chronic heart or lung problems, compromised immunity or reside in a long-term healthcare facility. • Pregnant women, between 32 and 36 weeks' gestation. • Infants younger than 8 months who were born in October through March, whose mothers did not receive the RSV vaccine. PERTUSSIS What is it? Pertussis is a bacterial infection also known as whooping cough. It is a highly contagious respiratory disease that poses a high risk to babies under 1 year of age and individuals who are immunocompromised or have asthma. Are cases increasing? Yes. As of Aug. 1, more than five times as many pertussis cases had been reported in Virginia than at this same point last year, according to the State Health Commissioner. How can we prevent it? The Virginia Department of Health recommends that everyone stay up to date on their pertussis vaccinations. The pertussis vaccine is combined with vaccines for tetanus and diphtheria as a single injection. The combination vaccine (called "DTaP") is given at 2, 4, 6, and 15 months of age and when a child enters school. Current recommendations also advise that children receive a single booster dose of vaccine (called "Tdap" for this age group), at 11-12 years of age. Adults who anticipate having close contact with an infant younger than 12 months (pregnant women, new parents, grandparents, childcare providers, and healthcare providers) also should receive a single booster dose. A great first stop for scheduling your family's shots is vaccines.gov.