Triaminic Cold and Flu Thin Strips: Giveaway (1/31)

I love winter actually (I know I may be in the minority here, LOL) . I love fireplaces, cozy nights, rain (moderate...not stormy downpours) and chilly crisp mornings. What I don't like about winter obviously is that it brings us the cold and flu season. Now that my five year old is in Kindergarten, it seems the sniffy noses and coughs have increased in our house. I am keeping fingers and toes crossed that whatever cold and flu bugs come our way, they are mild ones, if any!

Triaminic has set up a National Flu and Cold Tracker which lets you know where the flu is hitting the hardest. Kind of cool. Our area is at the moderate level right now. They have also provided lots of useful tips for preventing the flu, and sick day guidelines as well, like helping you determine when and if your child should stay home from school (something I have had trouble with many times!).

Here's one tip they share:

Make sure your children get enough sleep. Too little sleep can make kids feel run-down and lower their immunity. Yet a National Sleep Foundation poll found that most children need 1 to 3 more hours of sleep than they're getting every night. How much should they be getting? Experts recommend 11 to 13 hours a night for preschoolers and kindergartners and 10 to 11 hours for school-aged children. How to make sure they get it: Establish an earlier-bedtime routine, because early awakenings for school or day care can cut short the sleep kids need.

Triaminic also has important dosaging updates on their site--

At Triaminic, we care about your child's safety more than anything.

That's why we wanted to provide you with the latest information on over-the-counter children's cough and cold products. The makers of these medicines are voluntarily changing the product labeling to read "Do not use for children under age 4". For products containing antihistamines, labeling will include the instructions "do not use for the purpose of making your child sleepy." These labeling changes are being made in consultation with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and out of an abundance of caution to help avoid unintentional consumer misuse of these products.
Triaminic^® products are safe and effective when used as directed and have been used to relieve children's cough and cold symptoms for more than 50 years. We care about your children's safety and want to assure you that you can continue to use Triaminic^® products as directed for your children age 4 and older.
Our focus is on re-labeling our Triaminic^® products to clearly reflect the new directions to help guide parents and caregivers on the safe and appropriate use of these products. In the meantime, it's possible that some products on store shelves may still have dosing information for children under 4. During this transition period, please follow these dosing instructions:

Directions

Children under 4 years	Do not use
Children 4 - under 12 years	Follow dosing instructions on package

Contact the poison control or medical center if you suspect your child has overdosed or taken medicine on his own.
If you have general questions about Triaminic^® products, contact the Triaminic Clinic at 1-800-KIDS-987.

Since Triaminic is a medicine, you should always check with your pediatrician before giving to your child.

You can save $1.50 0n Triaminic by printing the coupon on their site.

WIN A Triaminic Prize Pack. Each Prize Pack consists of four 14 ct boxes of Triaminic Thin Strips

THREE WINNERS WILL BE CHOSEN. Each will receive a prize pack.


To Enter (mandatory entry) Leave a comment with your best tip for fighting the flu at your house.Please include valid email address )

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Open to U.S. residents.
Giveaway ends Jam. 31st
Winners will be chosen using Random.Org
Winners will have 3 days to confirm or new winner will be drawn.

Triaminic sent me free samples of the product. All opinions expressed are my own. Prize packages will be sent directly from Triaminic. Please check with your pediatrician before administering any medicine to your child. This is not a recommendation from me personally for Triaminic.

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Tips For Fighting The Flu This Season

Getting ready for the holidays also means getting ready for the Cold and Flu Season. I read an interesting article on our immune systems, and how we should be focusing our attentions on building up ours and our kids systems to help fight the flu.

Studies show that sugar and processed foods lower our defenses, basically depressing the immune system. There is a direct link between the amount of these foods that kids eat and child their health.

So we know the drill--sodas, candy, sugary sweets, ice cream and chips are not good choices for our kids. But there are more foods that some may think are "healthy" but actually are not. Yogurts, drinkable yogurts, juices, soy ice cream, fruit rollups, and many frozen treats actually hide sugar and refined ingredients. Even though snacks like these may be labeled healthy, they may not be. We need to carefully check out ingredient labels and watch out for things like corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup or “HFCS,” brown rice syrup, fructose, sucrose, barleymalt and the obvious, sugar.

Getting fresh fruits and veggies into kids may be a challenge, but it is crucial we find creative ways to do so. They need the vitamins from these foods more than ever during cold and flu season.

Sleep is another factor in strengthing in our immune systems. Deep sleep allows for the body to do some serious recharging of our immune systems, so for kids to be the most resiliant, they need their 8-10 hours of sleep.

Avoid having kids use antibacterial soap when washing their hands. Washing with good old hot water and soap is actually better (and cheaper!). Bacteria is everywhere, and immune systems actually need bacteria to be stronger and resilient. So while it is important to wash hands frequently during flu season, killing off the germs on hands with antibacterial products is futile and weakens your child’s- and the world’s- future ability to confront germs.