Protecting Your Children From The Flu And H1N1

Although the Swine Flu pandemic appears to now be coming under control, there are still illnesses and deaths being reported that strike fear in the heart of every parent and insert an extra degree of caution in our daily activities. But even when this threat passes as parents we must all remain vigilant in helping protect our children against the flu.
Flu vaccines present their own dangers. According to the Charleston Gazette, “No one questions the EPA’s recommendation that pregnant women consume only certain fish because of mercury contamination. Why then is it a stretch to question the wisdom of injecting very young children with mercury in excess of the EPA’s and National Academy of Science’s standard safe level for daily ingested mercury? For example, a 22-pound child given a flu vaccine receives 25 times the established safe level with this one shot, unless the (close to) mercury-free version of the vaccine is given. (Both Fluzone, for children under 4, and Fluviron, for children over 4, make two versions of the influenza vaccine. One of each of these versions has only 0.3 micrograms of mercury, while the other has 25 micrograms of mercury.)”

According to holistic pediatrician Dr. Eric Rydland, “Influenza, also called the “flu”, is a viral infection similar to, but more severe than a common cold. Occasional epidemics occur, which may at times be very severe and even life-threatening. During these epidemics many physicians and the media often recommend “flu shots” and certain prescription medicines for the flu. Dr. Rydland, many of his patients and his family use a natural approach to flu prevention.” Here at Atlantis Natural we also take a healthy and natural approach to prevention through strengthening of the immune system and educating our families about ways to lower risk.

While we do suggest that you check with your own healthcare provider on the best approach for your family, here are the steps we are taking this flu season:

1. Wash hands regularly. Explain to children what germs are and the importance of clean hands before touching food or anywhere on your face. If soap and water isn’t handy we like Hand Sanz, an all natural sanitizer without artificial polymers.
2. Sneeze into your elbow and not your hand. This is good practice for limiting the spread of cold and flu germs.
3. Think carefully about whether you really need to take children to crowded public places. Perhaps that shopping trip could be scheduled for a less busy time.
4. Take Vitamin C – Dr. Rydland recommends 300 milligrams per 10 pounds of body weight daily, divided into two to four doses two days per week (e.g. on weekends).
5. Take kidsWellness daily defense herbal remedy during flu season
6. Take Colloidal Silver as a preventative and use in a nebulizer if coughing or congestion is present. Colloidal silver is a liquid preparation made of only silver and water. The silver is suspended in a solution of purified water. The process involves the use of purified silver electrodes that slowly seep the silver into solution. The longer the electrodes are left on, the more the silver that gets in the solution. The amount of silver contained in different preparations can vary from 5 to 500 PPM (parts per million). Silver has been shown effective against infections. Check out Dr. Victor Marcial-Vega’s article on Pneumonia, Colds and Flu Protocol for more.
7. Look to homeopathy for natural flu remedies. We use Ohm Pharma, a high quality Florida based manufacturer and like their Cold and Flu remedy.
8. Serve home cooked organic meals whenever possible with whole grains, fruits, vegetables and high quality proteins like wild caught salmon and grass fed beef.
9. Get plenty of sleep to allow your body to rebuild and be at peak immunity for the next day. According to pediatrician Dr. Sears, Below is a chart of average sleeping times for children of different ages.

By taking proper precautions, keeping a clean environment and taking steps to build your child’s immune system, the risk of contracting a seasonal or more serious flu will be reduced.