If it seems like your children are falling sick every other week, you’re not imagining things. Children fall sick very easily due to their still developing immune systems and their high exposure to germs at child-care facilities and schools.

Among the commonest childhood illnesses are coughs and colds and the seasonal flu. These are spread through viruses through direct contact with someone who has the cold or flu or through airborne droplets from coughs and sneezes from the infected person.

The best way to prevent infection is of course to stay away from people who are sick but sometimes that is impossible because children live in families or have to go to daycare or school where they would be exposed to other children and adults who may be sick.

To counter this, you can boost your child’s immunity through nutrition by providing them with a healthy diet with lots of vegetables and fruits as well as protein, grains and dairy. Some dairy formulations come fortified with a complete range of nutrients to ensure the child achieves his or her daily Recommended Nutrient Intake (RNI) should they be eating poorly or eating non nutritious food.

Other ways of boosting immunity include ensuring they get adequate sleep, keeping them active with outdoor activities and exercise, and taking simple hygiene precautions like washing their hands frequently, not touching the face after touching other people or objects and staying away from sick people to the extent they can. They should also be adequately vaccinated.

The healthier the child, the less likely he or she will fall ill. But despite taking all precautions children will still fall sick now and then. Apart from colds and the flu, here are five more common childhood illnesses that you should be aware of so that you can be prepared to deal with them should they occur.

1: Ear Infections

Ear infections[1] are common with children. Also called Otitis Media, it happens when one or both of the eustachian tubes which connect the middle ear to the back of the throat, get filled with fluid and swell. A cold, throat infection, acid reflux or allergies could cause this. When the eustachian tubes swell up they block mucus from draining. Then viruses or bacteria grow in the mucus and make pus. The child will have fever and ear pain. Older children will complain about the pain and describe it but a younger child might not be able to tell you much except he may be found tugging his ear or crying and fussing. The child will have trouble eating, drinking and sleeping as movements such as chewing, sucking or lying down will cause pain.

If the fluid in the ear builds up high enough, it can rupture the ear drum with fluid draining from the ear. A child with a ruptured eardrum might feel dizzy or nauseated and have ringing or buzzing in the ear.

Children aged from two to four years old get ear infections more frequently than older kids or adults because they have shorter and more horizontal eustachian tubes. This lets bacteria and viruses get in to the middle ear more easily. The tubes are also narrower making blockage more likely. Other things that can put kids at risk of ear infections include secondhand smoke, bottle feeding and being around other kids in childcare. Ear infections are more common in boys than girls.

2: Chickenpox

In hot and humid Malaysia, chickenpox[2] is a very common childhood illness. Chickenpox is caused by the varicella-zoster virus and is easily passed from person to person − regardless of whether they are adults or children − if they have not been vaccinated against the disease or if they have not had chickenpox before.

As its name suggests, chickenpox is characterised by blistering poxes that are extremely itchy. The disease is spread by direct contact or through the air by coughs and sneezes. Once a person contracts the disease, symptoms will appear within weeks or as little as 10 to 21 days. Chickenpox is contagious for one to two days before the rashes appear and until all the blisters have dried out.

In children, the duration of the disease is short, often lasting just five to 10 days. The symptoms are usually mild. There will be a fever, fatique, irritability and a loss of appetite. The itchy poxes, often starting out as small red spots, will appear on the trunk, face, scalp, under the armpits on the arms and legs and inside the mouth, sometimes inside the ear, on the palms of the hands, on the soles of the feet and also inside the diaper area.

If your child is having chickenpox, you can use paracetamol to help bring down the fever and calamine lotion to cool the body and control the itching. Make sure your child drinks lots of fluid such as coconut water and plain water. Discourage them from scratching the blisters or peeling the scabs before they dry out completely or they may leave pockmarks on the skin. Children with chickenpox should stay home (from school or daycare) until the last scab has fallen off naturally.

3: Strep Throat

Strep Throat[3], caused by the Streptococcal bacteria, is a contagious infection that causes swelling and inflammation of the throat. The most telling symptom would be a sore throat that comes on quickly and which gets especially painful when swallowing. Other symptoms include a fever, red and swollen tonsils with white streaks or patches, and painful or swollen neck glands (lymph nodes). Children with strep throat may also complain of a headache, stomach pain, and have nausea or vomiting and a loss of appetite.

Strep throat is rare among children younger than three years old but is very common in school-age children. However, anyone at any age can get it. The germs stay in the nose and throat and when the infected person coughs, sneezes or talks, the germs get airborne and are breathed in by others. These germs can also land on things and get picked up when someone touches them.

Children with strep throat are most likely to spread the infection when the symptoms are most severe but they can still infect others a few days before their symptoms show. Strep throat usually lasts less than a week but can remains infectious for up to three weeks.

The illness is usually treated with a course of antibiotics. There is no vaccine to protect against strep throat and getting the infection does not protect someone from getting re-infected again.

If your child has strep throat, do take precautions to prevent transmission to the rest of the family by reminding everyone to wash their hands often and thoroughly. Keep the child’s eating and drinking utensils separate and wash them in hot soapy water after each use. It is also important to make sure your child does not share food, drinks, handkerchiefs and towels with other family members. Finally, store his toothbrush separate from the rest of the family and give him a new toothbrush after he gets well.

4: Conjunctivitis or Pink/Red Eye

Conjunctivitis[4], also called pink or red eye, is a common eye condition that affects children especially those under five years of age, although anyone at any age can get it. Conjunctivitis causes the eyeball to become infected, itchy and inflamed. It can be caused by a virus or bacteria or by an allergy. Children tend to get infected because they rub their eyes, touch people and things that others have touched and they don’t wash their hands as often as they should.

Symptoms of conjunctivitis is a redness behind the eyelid of one or both eyes, swollen eyelids, excessive tears, a watery or yellow-green discharge from the eye which dries and form crusts, a gritty feeling like there’s sand in the eye and itchy eyes.

To help relieve the symptoms, clean the eyes regularly with a moist cotton ball, always wiping in one direction from near the nose to the outer corner of the eye. Discard the cotton balls properly each time. Do not use the same cotton ball for both eyes. Do not clean the inside of the eyelids as this may cause damage to the eyes.

Most cases of conjunctivitis are due to an infection rather than an allergy. Your child may also have a runny nose, cough or earache.

Bacterial conjunctivitis can last up to 10 days [5]or shorter if an antibiotic eyedrop prescribed by the doctor is applied. Viral conjunctivitis can last up to 14 days.

As conjunctivitis is contagious, avoid sharing pillows and towels with the child and make sure the family wash their hands regularly. After cleaning his eyes, wash the towels and face cloths in hot soapy water.

5: Gastroenteritis/Stomach Flu

Stomach flu, also sometimes called stomach bug or gastroenteritis[6], is very common in young children. Gastroenteritis is caused by viruses such as the rotavirus[7] or norovirus[8]. It can cause an upset stomach, cramps, vomiting, diarrhea and sometimes a fever. Gastroenteritis typically lasts three to seven days, sometimes longer or sometimes shorter.

Children who spend a lot of time around other children are prone getting gastroentiritis as it spreads the same way as other common childhood illnesses − that is, when children pick up the virus on surfaces or objects and then touch their mouths. This is why children must be taught to wash their hands frequently, especially after going to the toilet and before eating.

As an example, rotavirus is spread through the oral-faecal route, meaning the hands are not washed properly after using the bathroom. These same hands then touch objects and people and that is how the virus is spread. Norovirus, on the other hand, is spread through contact with food, water, objects or people contaminated with the virus. Do wash your hands thoroughly when preparing food and wash utensils such as chopping boards and knives before using these items to prepare other foods.

If your child has stomach flu of any kind, make sure he rests and drinks plenty of fluids mixed with electrolytes such as Pedialyte to prevent dehydration. One of the biggest dangers of diarrhoea is that it causes the body to lose water. The younger the child, the more susceptible he is to dehydration when compared to older children and adults. This is because of his smaller body size and smaller reserves of water.

[1]Middle ear infections (Otitis media) (for parents). (n.d.). https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/otitis-media.html
[2]Https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/-/media/images/Johns-Hopkins-medicine-logo-horizontal-full-color.svg. (n.d.). Johns Hopkins Medicine. https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/chickenpox
[3]Strep throat (Bacterial). (n.d.). https://www.nationwidechildrens.org/conditions/strep-throat
[4]Conjunctivitis in children :: Healthier Together. (n.d.). https://sybhealthiertogether.nhs.uk/professionals/gp-primary-care-staff/safety-netting-documents-parents/conjunctivitis-children-advice-sheet
[5]How long is pink eye contagious and when can I send my daughter back to school? (2024, January 4). American Academy of Ophthalmology. https://www.aao.org/eye-health/ask-ophthalmologist-q/my-daughter-has-pink-eye-how-long-is-pink-eye-cont
[6]Philadelphia, C. H. O. (n.d.). How to Survive When a Stomach Bug Hits your Household. Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. https://www.chop.edu/news/health-tip/how-survive-when-stomach-bug-hits-your-household

[7]Rotavirus - Symptoms & causes - Mayo Clinic. (2021, April 28). Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/rotavirus/symptoms-causes/syc-20351300
[8]Norovirus. (2024, April 24). Norovirus. https://www.cdc.gov/norovirus/index.html