Looking for ideas on how to stop siblings from passing a virus back and forth

[Mommyintraining2]

We're going on 12 weeks now with three little ones (ages 16 months to five years) passing this virus with the accompanying cough back and forth. I have been doing all I can think of. The only thing I haven't been super diligent on is keeping them from sharing sippy cups (and toothbrushes when they get left around). I'm running out of ideas other than shipping them out to different families until they each get better...just a joke!

How do parents with lots of kids ever get rid of these things???

[sbgrace]

That's going to be hard. I'd think it would naturally die off though in time as it went through each person so I'd be wondering if you've had a series of different viruses maybe?

Sanitize (boiling water) or (ideally) replace those toothbrushes. Replace again when whomever gets well. I put all our toothbrushes high up so kids can't grab the wrong when when someone is sick here. Keep cups high up and only at specified times too. Frequent handwashing. But I really think as long as you don't pick up something new this should play itself out.

[tanyalynn]

I'd also tend to think it's something new--I've had times, DS's first two fall/winter seasons, when he was constantly sick, we had back-to-back-to-back illnesses for almost 4 months.

For us, coughs can linger a bit--a different cold will come 'round, but the cough was just the lingering one from three illnesses ago, yk? Maybe getting a bit worse with new sinus drainage, but not really a new cough.

One plus side is that I a) found a lot of things that help minimize colds, and b) for us, I found that we had some nutritional things to work on, I think low vitamin D was a biggie for us (but rather long-term to fix, not just a week or two).

[Tilia]

I just have one DC but she goes to daycare so she is frequently sick. I have found a few things that help:

gummy Vitamin D3
gummy Vitamin C
Vicks vaporub on the feet, covered with socks overnight
lots of broth based soups, plus lots of garlic
Queen Helene batherapy flu bath

You could spray the toothbrushes with peroxide then rinse them out to disinfect them.

[sbgrace]

I forgot about D3. Adequate levels of vitamin D in the body raise resistance to viruses. So supplement everyone with D3. Kids over one can have 2000 IU per day. Adults can have up to 9000 IU per day. Ideally you find out 25(OH) D levels for everyone and dose until you get in the 50's then maintain at 1000 IU per 25 pounds. But right now in your circumstance I'd dose everyone high. Probiotics can increase the immune system response as well.