Summer is here and everybody is on full vacation mode! But whether you are going to the beach, headed to an exciting overseas trip or just staying home for some bonding time with family and friends, remember that the scorching heat isn’t the only thing you should worry about.
The rise in temperature brings with it a variety of diseases and exposes us and our kids to a lot of environmental triggers that can ruin our fun in the sun.
Getting tough on cough
Summer break is always a great time to yank your kids away from their mobile phones, tablets and gaming consoles and let them loose for some physical activities and exercise. Playing outdoors is a great way to get them to be more active and serves as an opportunity for them to socialize with other children. Moms, however, should be cautious with their children’s playmates especially if one or several of them are coughing.
Cough and colds are quite common even during the summer because of erratic weather patterns that causes a shift in temperature.
Coughing is a natural reflex and is usually a sign that your child’s body is trying to rid itself of an irritant, such as mucus or a foreign object. The most common cause of cough in kids is an upper respiratory tract infection from one of more than 100 cold viruses1. Other common causes of cough include infection, asthma, allergies/sinusitis or pollution.
Although cough is quite common, having a kid with cough is something you should take seriously as it may easily be passed on to other children with weakened immune systems. Cough caused by viral infections may result in fever, headache, and pains.
Transmission may happen when an individual makes direct contact with an infected individual, or even infected surfaces such as doorknobs, computer keyboards, and gadgets and then touching their nose and mouth.
There are generally two kinds of cough; dry cough and productive cough (cough with phlegm)2.
For productive cough, pediatricians can recommend protussives such as Ambrolex® (Ambroxol), to enable the cough to get rid of excess mucus in the airways3.
Unfortunately, a lot of cough medicines have a bitter aftertaste, which children dislike and often spit out, making medicine time difficult for moms. Ambrolex®, however, has a sweet blackcurrant flavor that kids will love, making cough medicine time easier for moms, and allowing their children to get better, faster.
Should moms or their husbands also suffer from cough, Ambrolex® comes in thrice-a-day tablet and once-a-day capsule formats for adults that are both easy on the budget.
Ready for allergies
Another common problem of children during summer is allergies. To have allergies is to have the body’s immune system overreact to foreign substances or even a change in the environment.
When the body detects a foreign or potentially harmful substance, it produces antibodies and histamine, which are then released into the blood stream to fight it off. At that point, an inflammatory reaction happens. Some of the common symptoms of allergy are asthma-like symptom such as rapid, shallow breathing, wheezing, and cough. Other symptoms that can be observed are sneezing, itchiness, or development of rashes4.
Allergic reactions may also be triggered by allergens or substances that can be found in food such as peanuts, milk, eggs, seafood, etc. A lot of children also develop allergies to plants, pets, house dust mites, mold spores, or medications, especially antibiotics4.
Of course, allergies are not limited to children — moms and their husbands can develop allergies too. When allergy happens, use the antihistamine that is trusted for 20 years, Virlix® (Cetirizine). It contains Cetirizine, an antihistamine that helps you manage the symptoms of your family’s allergies.
“Allergies don’t have to ruin your family’s summer fun. All you have to do is take note of what causes allergies among your family members and try to avoid them, so as to manage your allergy symptoms”, says Dr. Sheila Chua, GSK’s Medical Affairs Manager, and a practicing Dermatologist. “It also helps to always have a trusted allergy medication in your bag whenever you travel so you can easily address the symptoms of allergies when they occur.”
GSK Expert moms
Led by celebrity-host and Expert Mom herself Rica Peralejo, the campaign seeks to educate mothers on how to correctly and promptly address cough and allergies for the entire family.
“As a mom, I want to make sure that summer would become a memorable time for the whole family. My husband and I always make sure we take care of ourselves first so we can take care of our son, Philip. Being in tip-top shape allows our whole family to have the best summer and enjoy our vacations. Of course our priority is to keep Philip healthy, so we always make sure we are prepared with the necessary medications whenever we travel just in case he gets sick.
“I think being an Expert Mom is all about ensuring that the whole family is happy, healthy, and free from disease. I’m very happy to be part of the Expert Moms campaign because I think it’s exciting to meet other moms who are keen on keeping themselves healthy in order to take care of their families,” says Rica. TVJ
To know more and share tips on how to be an Expert Mom, visit: www.facebook.com/MommyDoc.
