CONTRIBUTED CONTENT — As we head into this winter’s cold and flu season, parents are extra concerned this year due to COVID-19. 

But not to worry – not only are children naturally more resilient to COVID-19, but you can also implement some easy but powerful strategies to shore up your kids’ immune systems for advanced protection.

These are the same strategies I use with my patients at the RedRiver Health and Wellness Center, one of the largest autoimmune practices in the country, and that I learned while conducting my own coronavirus study in Utah earlier this year and as part of my postgraduate education in public health through Johns Hopkins University. 

I understand that implementing new health strategies for kids comes with more challenges than it does for adults. Therefore, as a father myself, I have put a kid-friendly and parent-tested spin on the following four strategies to keep kids healthier during the pandemic.

Increased vitamin D and glutathione

Perhaps one of the single most important nutrients you can provide your child is vitamin D. The average American is deficient, yet it’s a vital compound for immune health and has been shown to be very protective against coronavirus. 

I recommend 2,500 to 5,000 international units of vitamin D a day for children. Make sure you buy the cholecalciferol form. The good news is there are plenty of kid-friendly ways to deliver vitamin D, including chewables, which are extra nutritious if you can get one that also includes immune-enhancing omega 3 fatty acids, or drops you can add to their food. 

The second powerhouse nutrient when it comes to protection from COVID-19 is glutathione, the body’s “master antioxidant.” Although our bodies make glutathione, we all are at risk from low levels as environmental pollutants, sugars and sweeteners, processed foods, sleep deprivation and other stressors deplete the body’s glutathione stores. 

My favorite forms of kid-friendly glutathione include Trizomal Glutathione from Apex Energetics and Tri-Fortify Orange by Researched Nutritionals. Both are sweetened with glycerin and are often well-tolerated by children or can be mixed into a drink or smoothie. I have my adult patients take three to four times the recommended dose; for children, give the recommended dose or double that. 

Glutathione is safe and there’s no risk from taking too much. However, people who don’t tolerate onions, garlic or other sulfuric foods may not do well with glutathione as it’s a sulfur compound. If that’s the case, cordyceps mushrooms, Gotu Kola extract and milk thistle are other compounds that raise glutathione levels. 

Sleep is crucial

The most powerful immune support doesn’t come in a supplement bottle or a food. Instead, research shows plenty of sleep is one of the best ways to keep your immune system strong. I realize that with the pandemonium of the pandemic, getting a kid to bed on time can seem unreasonably challenging. However, making sure your child gets all the sleep they need will pay off significantly. 

Health experts recommend the following hours of sleep each day for each age category:

• Age 0 to 3 months: 14 to 17 hours. 
• Age 4 to 12 months: 12 to 16 hours.
• Age 1 to 2 years: 11 to 14 hours.
• Age 3 to 5 years: 10 to 13 hours.
• Age 6 to 12 years: 9 to 12 hours.
• Age 13 to 18 years: 8 to 10 hours. 

Play more, preferably outdoors and in nature

Although people were advised to stay indoors when the pandemic began, the truth is spending time outdoors is healthier and will better support immunity.  Regular play is vital to proper neurological and immunological development in children, even more so if it’s outdoors.

Pro tip: Adults need regular play too to stay healthy, so find something that is fun for both you and your kids.

If it’s cold out, bundle up instead of letting it force you indoors. Play stimulates necessary brain development pathways, the outdoors activates the immune system so it stays robust, and regular exposure to sunshine helps make vitamin D and maintains regularity in the body’s metabolic rhythms.  

Give them the right diet

For my adult patients who want to optimize their immune resilience, I put them on a diet that is anti-inflammatory and nutrient-dense. This diet is basically a paleo diet that eliminates grains, sweeteners and processed foods and consists of ample vegetables, meats and healthy fats. 

I realize for the average family this is going to be a tall order for children, especially around the holidays. Instead, here are some principles to keep in mind when it comes to dietary strategies to support a child’s immune health.

Balance blood sugar: Because they are growing and burning so much energy, kids love sugar, sweets and simple carbs like pasta, white rice, potatoes and bread. However, the blood sugar spikes from these foods tax the immune system and promote inflammation. Try and keep sweets and processed foods to a minimum and instead focus on healthy meats, produce and whole grains. 

If your child does eat something sweet or starchy, adding some fiber, protein or fat can help slow down how quickly the sugar hits the bloodstream (starchy foods are immediately converted to sugar in the body). For instance, ice cream that is higher in fat or a fruit smoothie loaded with fiber is going to deliver less of a sugar shock than hard candy, soda or fruit juices. 

Minimize inflammatory foods: Some children already struggle with chronic immune conditions such as gut problems, neurological issues including tics, obsessive-compulsive disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and mood disorders, skin rashes, respiratory issues or even listlessness and fatigue. Many children these days also have autoimmunity, in which the immune system is attacking a tissue in the body – though it’s typically underdiagnosed or misdiagnosed. 

Such children may be more prone to viruses because their immune system is already overburdened. In these cases, I strongly recommend you seek out immunoglobulins lab testing to screen for food intolerances, such as from Cyrex Labs.

In my practice of treating primarily adults with chronic health conditions, almost 100% of them have an undiagnosed food intolerance driving their inflammation and symptoms. When we identify and remove the offending food from their diet, most experience a profound improvement of symptoms.

Eliminating a child’s favorite foods, such as gluten or dairy, is challenging at first, but I can tell you from firsthand experience it’s usually not as bad as parents think it will be. Children often feel so much better that they come to willingly embrace their new diet. It works best if the entire family can adopt the same diet so the child does not feel left out of family dinners and gatherings. The rest of the family usually ends up feeling much better too!

Children’s immune health today.

Any health care practitioner today will tell you we are seeing increasing numbers of children with chronic health conditions, and the numbers seem to keep growing. Today’s children are dealing with unprecedented immune challenges from environmental toxins, industrialized and processed foods, lack of play from excess screen time and busy schedules and frequent sleep deprivation. 

The good news is that children’s bodies and immune systems are wonderfully responsive to even the slightest shifts toward better health. It’s just a matter of understanding the basics. 

To learn more about how to keep your family healthy during the coronavirus pandemic, please check out the free articles and e-book available on my website. If you’d like to learn more about becoming a patient at one of our seven clinics, visit the RedRiver Health and Wellness Center website. 

Written by JOSH REDD, chiropractic physician at RedRiver Health and Wellness Center.

• S P O N S O R E D   C O N T E N T •

About Josh Redd

Josh Redd, MS, DABFM, DAAIM, is a chiropractic physician and author of the Amazon bestselling book “The Truth About Low Thyroid.” Redd owns seven functional medicine clinics in the western United States and sees patients from across the country and around the world who are suffering from challenging autoimmune, endocrine and neurological disorders. He also teaches thousands of health care practitioners about functional medicine and immunology, thyroid health, neurology, lab testing and more.

Resources

• RedRiver Health and Wellness Center | Address: 2297 Santa Clara Drive, Suite B, Santa Clara | Telephone: 435-767-9355 | Email: [email protected] | RedRiver Health and Wellness Centers.

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