Kids' Health: Day Care and Colds

It's a fact of life: Day care will mean more sickness for most kids. Why? Young kids are a blank slate when it comes to their immunity to bugs. As a result, the moment they step out of your house (and into day care or, for that matter, any school), it's open season.

Here are some startling stats. Are you sitting down? The average number of viral infections that a young child gets per year is eight. Each of those illnesses lasts seven to 10 days, on average. And most of them occur between October and April.

That gives kids a grand total of 80 days of illness in a six-month period. Yep, that's an illness about every other week.

But you don't have to surrender your kid's health completely to these germs. Here are eight keys to keeping your toddler (and the rest of your family) from getting sick as often as he does now:

1. Wash your hands frequently.
2. Cover your coughs.
3. Wash your hands after using the bathroom.
4. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
5. Do not share drinks or food.
6. Kiss at your own risk.
7. Cook foods properly.
8. Clean kitchen counters/cutting boards.