Let’s talk about… Personal hygiene

Encouraging your child to develop good personal hygiene habits from a young age will help them to be more aware of their body and help to prevent illness.

Some important areas of personal hygiene that you can work on together include:

Brushing their teeth – twice a day

This is essential to achieving good oral health. If children are in the routine of taking good care of their teeth, they are  more likely to continue doing so in adulthood. Click here for information on how to brush your child’s teeth, how much toothpaste to use and how to access a dentist.

Cleaning and washing their body on a regular basis

As children head towards puberty, they will start to sweat more, which can lead to increased body odour (BO). They may find they need to wash more regularly than before, and should be having a shower or bath every day.

They may also want to start using deodorant to combat sweating and the smell from the increased body odour.

Checking hair weekly for headlice

It is much easier to treat headlice if they are caught early on. Catching them early will also help to prevent them spreading to class mates and other family members. Click here to find out how to check for and treat headlice.

Washing hands

Good handwashing is essential to stopping the spread of pathogens and helping to prevent illness. Its important that your child is encouraged to wash their hands after the following activities:

After using the toilet

After coughing, sneezing or blowing their nose

Before meals or handling food

Click here for a step by step hand washing guide and video.