Thursday, August 15, 2013

TYLER (KYTX) - It's almost time to get the kids ready for school,but are they prepared for the germs?

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say kids will be sick nearly a dozen times during the school year.

Those germs are spread easily between kids, especially younger students, from contact.

One of the germiest places: the water fountain because many kids get very close, or even touch the faucet, and they may not be cleaned as frequently as you might think.

It's nearly time for Seth and Ethan to put away the toy cars and head back to school.

"First year at big boy school. Have to buy uniforms and such. He's excited," says Jessica Loghry.

Loghry says her two boys are headed to kindergarten and pre-k, but being in daycare, they've been exposed to germs.

"He had scarlet fever, this one has had pink eye more than once. Both have caught every stomach virus that has gone around," says Loghry.

And that's exactly what doctors see when the bell rings too, an increase in kids getting sick within two weeks.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say elementary aged kids will be sick 8 to 12 times during one school year.

"I tell parents when kids start day care or kindergarten, never been exposed to other kids before, they can expect kids to get sick at least once a month for 3-4 months in school," says Catherine Giordano, a nurse practitioner with Trinity Clinic on South Broadway.

Giordano says most illnesses kids will get, like colds, the flu and stomach viruses, will be airborne or passed along through contact.

"See kids walking around with boogies hanging out of their noses, sometimes pick and touch the toys and touch each other and pass from one person to another," says Giordano.

Giordano says some of the germiest places can be desktops and even lunch trays, and the best thing to do, make sure your kids wash their hands.

"I have to keep them healthy. Have to eat a good diet, take their vitamins, get good sleep and I have to remind myself to keep myself healthy," says Loghry.

Surprisingly a lot of studies show school bathrooms are fairly clean because they're cleaned often.

But you should probably still wash your hands before you walk out of the door.

Doctors say if they have a fever, they need to stay home no matter what.

That will keep from spreading too many germs.

While elementary school kids get sick about a dozen times a year, older students are sick about half that.

And that trend can even go for new teachers who haven't been exposed.

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