How to strengthen your baby’s immune system
After birth, the baby’s immune system has to deal with viruses, bacteria and other germs that are still foreign to it. Babies’ immature body defenses have not yet formed antibodies against these pathogens. Nevertheless, newborns are not defenceless against them. This is because the so-called nest protection is strengthened by the mother’s antibodies, which enter the child’s body via the placental barrier during pregnancy.
Although these antibodies are broken down over time, they strengthen the baby’s defenses until then. And nest protection can be extended, e.g. through breastfeeding. Sufficient sleep and fresh air also strengthen the immune system, even in babies.
Why breast milk strengthens the immune system
In addition, breast milk contains the ideal mix of all the important nutrients, vitamins and trace elements that your baby needs. Breast milk also contains bioactive components. All these substances promote the healthy growth of the child and the development of a strong immune system.
It is particularly important to start breastfeeding immediately after birth. Although the mammary glands do not yet produce creamy white breast milk, they do produce yellowish colostrum. Every drop of this is incredibly precious for the newborn! Colostrum not only contains all the important nutritious ingredients in high concentrations, but is also crucial for the baby’s defense against infection:
- Up to two thirds of the cells in colostrum are white blood cells (leukocytes). They form antibodies that neutralize bacteria and viruses.
- Colostrum contains prebiotic components that support the growth of beneficial bacteria in the child’s body. You can read more about this in the article Prebiotics.
Not only early breastfeeding strengthens your child’s immune system, but also prolonged breastfeeding. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends breastfeeding for two years or longer in addition to complementary foods. This is because the composition of breast milk adapts to the child’s needs over time. For example, it contains more antibodies and white blood cells if the mother or child is infected with a pathogen.
Prolonged breastfeeding also protects children against lower respiratory tract infections, ear infections, diarrhea, type 1 diabetes and obesity. Researchers even suggest that prolonged breastfeeding could reduce the risk of cancers such as acute lymphoblastic leukemia and Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Other tips for boosting your baby’s immune system
In addition to breastfeeding, there are many other ways you can naturally boost your baby’s immune system in the first year of life:
- Dry heating air makes the mucous membranes more susceptible to pathogens. Ensure a good indoor climate and air the room regularly. Leave the room with your baby while you air the room to prevent them catching a cold.
- Walking with a baby is also unproblematic in winter. Fresh air is good for your child – and for you!
- Whether probiotics help to strengthen the immune system in infants has not yet been sufficiently proven, even if there are indications of a possible benefit. Always seek advice on this from your pediatrician!
Vitamin D prophylaxis
Sunlight is not enough for babies to produce sufficient vitamin D. For this reason, they are given an appropriate preparation in the first 12 to 18 months of life to prevent rickets and strengthen bone health. There are indications that the administration of vitamin D also has a positive effect on the immune system. However, these effects have not yet been sufficiently proven.
Strengthening the immune system in toddlers: how it works
What is good for babies also strengthens the immune system of younger and older children – and a lot more besides: exercise in the fresh air, social contacts, a healthy and varied diet, sufficient sleep and vaccinations against measles, mumps and the like ensure a strong immune system.
Don’t overdo hygiene
To strengthen children’s immune systems, they should not be exposed to excessive hygiene. According to experts, our modern hygienic way of life means that the variety of germs in the environment and in the human body is decreasing. The resulting imbalance in the microbiome also changes the immune system and is therefore likely to promote the development of allergies and chronic inflammatory diseases.
It is therefore not advisable to protect children from germs with excessive cleanliness. Instead, a healthy balance in hygiene is important. Here are a few examples:
- If possible, children should not drink from the same bottle. Sharing a toy, on the other hand, is harmless.
- Constant hand washing and disinfecting are not necessary. However, children (and adults) should always wash their hands thoroughly after going to the toilet, using public transport and before eating.
Improper skin care is also unfavorable. It can disrupt the microbial barrier on the skin against pathogenic germs. For a healthy skin barrier, you should cleanse your child’s skin gently and use mild, pH-neutral products wherever possible.
Get out into nature
The right clothing
Make sure you wear the right clothing. In the cold season, your child should be dressed warmly, especially around the head, neck, abdomen and feet. This will help prevent colds or bladder infections. In summer, you should make sure your child is adequately protected from the sun.
Vitamin D
You can also boost your toddler’s immune system by letting them soak up sunlight outdoors. This is essential for vitamin D production and therefore also for an intact immune system. However, healthy children after their second birthday only need vitamin D supplements, such as those given to babies in the first 12 to 18 months of life, in special cases such as chronic gastrointestinal illnesses.
Contact with animals
Contact with other children
Children need children – not only from a social but also from an immunological point of view. For example, children with many siblings have a stronger immune system and fewer allergies.
The situation is similar for children who attend nurseries and kindergartens instead of being cared for mainly at home. Contact with other children can also strengthen your child’s immune system, as they get to know new germs and expand their immunological memory.
If the child is re-infected with a known pathogen, their immune system can react more effectively. So even if children often bring home one cold after another during their first three winters at nursery, their immune system will benefit in the long term. It makes no sense to isolate children from other people for fear of catching a cold.
In addition, it strengthens your child’s immune system if they feel comfortable, laugh a lot with others, play, sing, dance and cuddle.
Eat a varied diet and drink enough
A varied diet protects the microbiome in the gut. Offer your child mainly fresh fruit and vegetables as well as wholegrain products, fish and healthy fats. The immune-boosting nutrients, fiber and vitamins they contain are important for children to strengthen their immune system. This can contribute to healthy intestinal flora and boost the immune system.
Your child should also drink enough throughout the day (preferably still water or herbal tea) to prevent the mucous membranes from drying out. In winter, the need for fluids is even greater due to the cold and heated air. If the mucous membranes lack moisture, the removal of viruses and bacteria does not work as well – and you are more susceptible to infections.
Natural helpers for the immune system can be useful for adults but unsuitable for children: children under the age of one should not be given honey. Echinacea and dietary supplements, for example with zinc or vitamin C, should also only be given to children after consulting a doctor.
Prevent passive smoking
Avoid smoking around children. Nicotine is poison for the body, promotes cancer, impairs the function of cells and organs and weakens the immune system. Please also bear in mind that smoke settles in the home and in clothing.
Healthy sleep
To strengthen their immune system, children (just like adults) should get enough sleep. Sleep allows the body, and with it the immune system, to recover. This reduces the risk of infectious diseases.
Cold showers, sauna and Kneipp therapy
And: children should not be forced to do this, but should take part voluntarily. You can get your child excited about the sauna if you follow a few rules:
- Initially for a maximum of five minutes, on the lower bench and for a maximum of two sessions,
- Do not enter the sauna with cold feet,
- before cooling down with cold water, go out into the fresh air briefly and then start the cold pouring on the legs,
- drink plenty of fluids before and after your sauna session.
Children can also try out more moderate forms of Kneipp therapy to build up their immune system. For example, they can regularly walk barefoot, even for two to five minutes in wet grass or in the morning dew. The very brave can walk in the snow for a few seconds to a maximum of two minutes or dip their feet in a cold stream.
Afterwards, however, your feet need to be warmed up again. However, anyone who is cold or shivering should not take part in dew, water or snow treading! Cold showers are also possible, applied carefully and gently to the forearms and legs up to just above the knee.
Comply with vaccination recommendations
Certain infectious diseases can be very dangerous, especially for children (such as measles or mumps). Vaccinations are available against some of these diseases. They protect against the respective pathogens and in most cases can prevent an outbreak of the disease. Therefore, have your children regularly vaccinated in accordance with the recommendations of the Robert Koch Institute’s Standing Committee on Vaccination (STIKO).
Can parents suck the pacifier?
Dentists warn against parents putting their children’s pacifiers or spoons in their mouths to prevent the transmission of caries bacteria. In fact, parents’ oral flora could also have a positive influence on their children’s oral flora and serve as training to strengthen their immune system.
Studies show: If parents suck the pacifier more often, 18-month-old children are less likely to develop allergy-related eczema and asthma than infants whose parents never put the pacifier in their mouths and instead washed or boiled it.
Strengthening the immune system during pregnancy
- Eat a healthy diet,
- avoid stress,
- do not smoke and
- do not drink alcohol.
The vaccination status of the mother-to-be also plays a role: in order to strengthen the baby’s nest protection later on, it makes sense to take a look at the vaccination record as soon as you want to have children. Some vaccinations can also be caught up on during pregnancy.
However, a recent study was able to show that cuddling also has a positive influence on the child’s immune system: Immediate skin contact after a caesarean section, when the newborn is placed on the mother’s breast while still in the operating room, reduces possible adjustment difficulties for the baby and also ensures the transfer of healthy maternal germs.
