Hello again Dear Mommies

How is life ? Are the little ones with their adorable and innocent mischiefs bringing immense joy to your life? Am sure they are!

You know who else is being joyous right now? The worms, yes , the worms inside your little ones intestines are super joyous to receive all that yummy food that you are feeding your little ones. Unless, off course you being responsible mothers have been deworming your kiddies regularly.

Let us delve into the nitty-gritty of the worms infecting our dear little children to help you remember why deworming needs to be done regularly.

Why do kids need deworming?

It is simple, it is needed because worms infection basically interfere with nutrient uptake; can cause malnutrition, anaemia, vitamin A deficiency, impaired cognition, decreased concentration, reduced attention span, poor school performance as a result posing a serious threat to the child's health, education, and productivity. Also children are more vulnerable to worm infections as their immune systems are not yet fully developed.

Now some of us mothers may think that 'we live in clean areas, practice all hygiene measures, very particular about cleanliness at home & outside' but my dear moms there are factors that are outside of your jurisdiction that can cause worm infection in our poor dears. So beware!

When do kids need deworming?

That is when the kid has become mobile and has started to explore places and objects on her/his own. That is when they are most exposed to worm infections. So we can say that after 2 years of age one should be regularly deworming their child. And I know that it is practically impossible to keep an eye on them all the time, some times you will find them with some object in their mouth or with their hand in their mouth immediately after petting the dog or other times simply throwing tantrum and not letting you cut their nails (which can be the bed of worm eggs). That is why I suggest you regularly deworm your children to keep them healthy.

How to know if your kid has worm infection?

There are plenty of signs and symptoms pointing at it and sometimes they are so mild that in our busyness of life we simply ignore them thinking it to be a tantrum. Now am not asking you to blame it all on the poor worms here but better to rule out, isn't it?

Tummyache, Sweet cravings, excessive Hunger, Tiredness, Weight loss (despite proper eating), Itching around anus especially at night (may even cause Sleep disturbance in some kids), Irritability, Nausea, Vomiting in some cases, PICA (eating inedible things, like chalk, soil, crayons, etc.)

In severe cases, there can be stunted growth of the child, poor intellectual development, anemia, poor cognitive functions. But let us not get too much into the severity of it all because I know you mothers are going to take measure to prevent it.

Several investigations to diagnose worms infestation are available but usually the clinical signs and symptoms are enough for a paediatrician after examining the child.

How to prevent the worms from infesting

1. Reminding them to wash their hands with soap and running water every time they come back from outside, after using toilet, petting the beloved pet and before eating anything.

2. While sending them outside to play teach them to avoid mushy areas, or putting hands inside mouth when playing outside, or walking barefoot in the grass or soil.

3. Make sure their feet are fully covered when playing in gardens or grassy areas, so preferably make them wear shoes.

4. Teach them safe swimming practices (yes that water in the swimming pool might be the culprit here).

5. Ask them not to share water bottle with other kids at school.

6. Teach them to make it a habit to drink clean water, RO purified or boiled.

7. Make sure they are not fed any under-cooked or carelessly washed food items (especially some veggies and meat)

And despite all the above measures sometimes we fall short or the kids do, we are humans after all, so my advice is to never skip on deworming and religiously deworming twice a year after consultation from your kid's paediatrician.

Take care of yourself and the babies! Ciao for now.