If you have been reading my blog for a while, you probably know that I am a teacher. Although I am working at home right now, I am jealous of all of the teachers setting up their classrooms, preparing items for students and going shopping for supplies. Of course, along with those items, many teachers are gearing up for items to keep their rooms as germ free as possible. The reality is that each and every year that I was teaching I was usually sick by the end of September.
These days cleaning at home and school is crucial to help keep illness away from children and teachers (no less everyone at home). When I was asked to participate in a MyBlogSpark for Back to School with Seventh Generation I immediately signed up. They sent me the Back-to-School kit that I am also giving away below. We use their products at home and I know a lot of teacher friends that do as well. Here are some tips from Seventh Generation to assist you to stay healthy and germ-free.
With nearly 22 million school days lost each year due to the common cold and flu (CDC) and as many as 2.7 million bacterial found per square inch on common school surfaces (NSF International), it´s no wonder that 82 percent of parents with kids in grades K-5 fret about the germs in their children´s classrooms (according to a survey conducted by Seventh Generation).
This school year, Seventh Generation is sharing tips from best-selling author and pediatrician, Dr. Alan Greene, to help parents protect their child´s health during back-to-school season. Dr. Greene suggests taking the following precautions:
Optimize the immune system
- Reap the benefits of probiotics like those found in yogurt. A recent study showed that children who received enough probiotics daily throughout the cold and flu season had a significant reduction in the number of illnesses they had and, when they did get sick, the symptoms were both milder and didn’t last as long.
- Be sure your child is getting plenty of vitamin D from the sun, from food, or from a supplement.
- Build a strong foundation. Good food, good sleep, and good physical activity all help the immune system to flourish.
Be wise about reducing unnecessary exposure to harmful germs
- Teach children the key times to clean their hands in the classroom. The most important times include after sneezing, coughing or using the restroom, upon leaving "high-risk" places (recess, naptime, play stations) and before meals or snacks.
- Sixty percent of teachers surveyed said that they request that parents donate disinfecting wipes to the classroom. Seventh Generation´s disinfecting wipes kill 99.99% of germs* naturally using the active ingredient thyme, a component of thyme oil which is derived from the herb thyme.
- Stress the importance of not touching their eyes, nose or mouth. Germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth.
- Demonstrate to your children how to cover their mouth and nose for every cough and sneeze. This simple maneuver has spectacular results in decreasing the spread of viruses and bacteria floating about the room, waiting to be inhaled.
*Refer to disinfecting product labels for full details
Giveaway:
Thanks to MyBlogSpark and Seventh Generation, one lucky winner will receive the following Seventh Generation Back to School Kit like the complimentary one I received.
The Seventh Generation "Back-to-School" kit includes a Seventh Generation backback, two canisters of Seventh Generation disinfecting wipes (one for home and one to donate to your child’s classroom), disinfecting multi-surface spray cleaner, facial tissue and paper towels.
Rules for Giveaway:
- MAIN RULE – Share a tip for keeping your kids healthy and germ-free.
The following Bonus Entries may also be done. Please be sure to leave separate comments for each that you complete below to make sure you get the right number of entries.
- 1 Bonus Entry – How do you keep your household clean during the school year?
- 1 Bonus Entry – Tweet the following about the giveaway (May be done once a day): Help to fight nasty germs! Enter to #win a Back-To-School Kit from @TheAngelForever and @SeventhGen http://bit.ly/c3DKMZ #myblogspark
- 1 Bonus Entry – Subscribe to my RSS feed (or let me know if you already are) in a separate comment.
- 1 Bonus Entry – Leave a comment on any of my non-giveaway posts from the month of August/September. Leave a comment here to let me know which one. This Bonus entry may be done only twice per person.
- 3 Bonus Entries – Add my blog button to your website and leave a link with the location. Be sure to give yourself 3 comments for credit.
- 5 Bonus Entries – Write a post on your blog linking to my blog about the giveaway. Be sure to leave 5 comments about this to get credit for all of your extra entries.
To enter, please follow the rules above within the comment section. Contest starts today September 2 and ends at 10:59 EST on September 16, 2010. You do not have to be a blogger to enter, but must leave a valid e-mail address for me to contact you for mailing address once the giveaway is over. I will select the winner using random.org and contact you via e-mail. You will have 48 hours to claim the prize. If there is no response, another winner will be selected. Open to U.S. and Canada residents only.
Disclosure: I wrote this review as part of a MyBlogSpark campaign for Seventh Generation. My family received the complimentary Back-to-School kit and another will be provided to a winner of the giveaway. All opinons are my own and no other compensation has been given. As previously stated, we have been buying Seventh Generation products with our own money for many years.
