Medicine today 

Correct hardening of small children. How to temper a child at home

The best way to protect a child from illness is to carry out timely and competent prevention. Hardening is considered to be one of the best preventive methods. However, you should not rush headlong into extreme procedures, parents need to take into account various factors, such as the state of health of the baby, the features of his immunity, his age. The well-known children's doctor Yevgeny Komarovsky often tells parents how to correctly approach the issues of hardening toddlers, children of preschool and school age.


What it is

Hardening of children is a set of measures for the impact on the child's body of various natural factors, such as sunlight, water, air, and so on. Often it is based on contrast (a decrease and increase in the ambient temperature in relation to the child's body temperature, an increase and increase in atmospheric pressure. The goal is to bring the body into "combat readiness", impact.


Doctors have long proven that systematic hardening improves cell composition, all organs and systems begin to function more harmoniously and better. Sleep and appetite improve, blood circulation is normalized, metabolic processes, adaptive mechanisms are improved faster, the nervous system is strengthened. This method of prevention was also known to the healers of Ancient Greece and Rome.


Medicine knows many ways of hardening. The simplest and most affordable at home are wiping and dousing, contrast showers, sunbathing, playing sports and walking in the fresh air. A relatively long stay in ice water (the so-called winter swimming) is not recommended for children, they are better suited to the contrasting alternation of warm and cool water.


You can harden the child as a whole or practice local procedures- hardening of the throat, for example (for this there is a well-known and delicious way - ice cream). It is important that the therapy is constant, because after a long break, the effect of hardening is minimized, and then it is completely lost.



The opinion of Dr. Komarovsky

Evgeny Komarovsky, like many of his colleagues, believes that all children are born with great immune capabilities and abilities. And the first years of a new person's life are connected, alas, with the fact that the people who love them the most - the parents - do everything possible and impossible to destroy these innate abilities to adapt to the world around them. To do this, they do not do anything supernatural, it is enough to create greenhouse conditions for the baby, dress it warmly, monitor the sterility of the food that the baby eats, close the windows and doors tightly, and often give the child various medications.

And here is the actual issue of Dr. Komarovsky's program dedicated to children's hardening.

As a result, you will get a child who will often and strongly be ill with all imaginable and inconceivable diseases, the first place among them, definitely, will be taken by colds and viral infections.


Evgeny Olegovich is sure that children should be hardened from birth. The main thing is to do this every day, without missing a single procedure, and to approach hardening for reasons of rationality. If mom and dad thought and decided that they want to temper their child, they should start by consulting a pediatrician. The specialist will examine the baby, prescribe laboratory tests if necessary, and give his verdict whether this particular child can be tempered, and which of the known methods is better to choose.


When hardening is undesirable


Newborn

For a baby who has just been born, ordinary rituals are quite suitable as hardening - morning exercises, dressing for a walk, evening bathing. If the pediatrician permits, you can gradually start pouring the baby's legs, first with cool water, and then with cold water. The duration of the procedures should be gradually increased. It is not necessary to practice contrast baths, but walks should become an obligatory attribute of every baby's day, Evgeny Komarovsky recommends walking with him regardless of weather conditions and the time of year.


Washing is the very first hardening. It is advisable to acquaint the baby with water on the first day after discharge from the hospital, the main thing is that the water temperature is not lower than 28 degrees. It can be lowered by 2-3 degrees every three months, not more often.


You can douse a child from birth, observing the temperature regime, which we have already described above. This should be done once a day, after bathing. First, the heels are carefully poured, then the legs, arms, stomach and smoothly move to the back of the head of the crumbs.


From six months, the baby can be wiped off with water using a special flannel mitt. At first - only arms and legs, then you can wipe the back, and last of all - the chest and tummy.

Sunbathing is very useful for babies, because under the influence of ultraviolet radiation, vitamin D is produced, which the body needs to prevent rickets from developing. The main thing is to dose the crumbs' exposure to the sun, to avoid prolonged exposure to direct rays on the baby's skin.



Children from 3 years of age and older

It's never too late to harden, Evgeny Komarovsky is convinced. Therefore, it is possible for a child to begin such procedures at any age, if the parents did not practice it in infancy. The approach is still the same, however, starting from the age of three, you can use a contrast shower, and from the age of 4, you can douse the child with cold water on the street, however, without fanaticism. From the age of three, a child can be allowed in the summer on a warm day to be in the fresh air for quite a long time in only panties. A systematic visit to the pool is useful.


  • Conditions (water temperature, for example) should be changed only gradually. A sharp jump can negatively affect the well-being of the child.
  • It is advisable to carry out the procedures in a playful way, so that the baby perceives what is happening as a fun activity and wants to temper.
  • If the child begins to inadequately perceive the next increase or decrease in the temperature of the water and air, he cries and is capricious, the procedure should be stopped, and the next day, return to the previous temperature level.
  • When dousing and rubbing, you should cover the genitals of boys in order to prevent temperature changes in the genital area, as this can subsequently negatively affect reproductive function.
  • In no case should you overfeed your child. He should eat when he wants it himself, and not when "the time has come," according to mom and dad. A healthy baby is always a little hungry, moderately thin and very mobile, says Komarovsky. These three words should become guidelines for caring parents.
  • One of the most important factors in his hardening system, Evgeny Komarovsky considers the creation of normal conditions in the house where the child lives. Regular ventilation is needed at any time of the year, especially if the baby is sick. The air temperature in the room should not exceed 18-20 degrees, humidity - 40-60%.
  • The child should not be wrapped up; he should always be dressed according to the weather. The way you dress yourself. Thermoregulation of a small body can be disrupted by the fact that an overly loving mother or grandmother has dressed the little one for a walk in 2-3 blouses and a pair of jackets on top. Sweating is a sure way to get colds.
  • Parents should be guided by the child's reaction to hardening. The temperature of water and air are purely individual factors, for some they will be higher, for others they will be lower, it all depends on how comfortable the baby will feel during the procedures.


Komarovsky always emphasizes that hardening is not a treatment, and cold douches cannot relieve a child of sinusitis or chronic bronchitis. It is designed to increase immunity, even in frequently ill children, but it does not protect 100% against infection with influenza or ARVI. Even a hardened child can get sick. But, firstly, his chances of catching an infection are somewhat lower, and, secondly, he will endure the disease faster and easier than his unhardened peers, whom his parents raise in greenhouse conditions.


At birth, the child finds himself in a new habitat. Nature has endowed the baby with many different adaptive and protective mechanisms in order for him to survive and begin to develop in this environment. For example, a child has thermoregulatory mechanisms that prevent overheating and hypothermia. By buffing a child, creating hothouse conditions for him, we “deprive them of work” of these mechanisms. Having become unnecessary, they can gradually atrophy, and then even a light breeze will pose a threat to the child - a child who turns out to be defenseless can easily get sick.

The body's endurance and its resistance to changing environmental conditions increase under the influence of HARDENING - air, water, diffused sunlight: the child increases immunity to various diseases, improves thermoregulation mechanisms; hardening contributes to the correct metabolism, has a positive effect on the physical development of the child, on the adaptation of his body to new living conditions. Hardening is the leading method of increasing the resistance of the child's body.

However, in order to obtain a positive effect from hardening, a number of GENERAL RULES must be observed:

Systematic use of hardening procedures throughout the year without interruption

Breaks in hardening lead to a weakening of the adaptive mechanisms that are formed under the influence of hardening procedures. Even in adults, 3-4 weeks after the termination of the hardening procedures, the developed resistance to the effects of cold is sharply weakened. In children in the 1st year of life, the disappearance of the adaptation effect occurs in an even shorter time - after 5-7 days. As conditions change depending on the season, the procedures should be varied without completely canceling them. For example, an outdoor shower in winter can be replaced by dousing your feet.

It is possible to ensure the systematic conduct of hardening procedures throughout the year only if they are firmly included in the daily routine of the child and are combined with the usual activities carried out at different times of the day (washing, walking, sleeping, playing, taking a hygienic bath, etc.) .).

A gradual increase in the strength of the irritating effect

Hardening is based on the body's ability to gradually adapt to unusual conditions. Resistance to cold temperatures must be developed consistently but continuously. The transition from weaker hardening procedures to stronger ones (by lowering the temperature of the air, water and increasing the duration of the procedure) should be carried out gradually. This is especially important for young children and weakened children (premature babies, suffering from hypotrophy, rickets, exudative diathesis or other allergic diseases).

Taking into account the age and individual characteristics of the child

With any hardening measures, it is necessary to take into account the age and state of health of the child and the individual characteristics of his body. With age, the load should be gradually increased. The weaker the child, the more careful one must approach the hardening procedures, but it is imperative to harden him! If the child nevertheless falls ill, consult a doctor whether it is possible to continue at least some procedures with a reduced force of influence; if this cannot be done, you will have to start all over again upon recovery.

Carrying out hardening procedures against the background of a positive mood of the child

Any hardening event should be carried out after creating a good mood for the child. Crying, anxiety or fear of hardening procedures should not be allowed. If by the time the procedure is performed, the child is upset about something, crying, it is better to postpone the procedure to another time or completely cancel it: it will no longer be possible to get a positive effect from this procedure.

Compliance with the temperature regime of the skin

During hardening, be sure to check the condition of the child's skin: the procedure can be carried out only if his nose and limbs are warm. If the child is cold and already has vasoconstriction, it will not be possible to develop a positive reaction to hardening, you can get only the opposite effect. Overheating is also harmful: it increases the moisture content of the skin, which changes its thermal conductivity, as a result of which even moderate exposure to cool water or air can lead to significant hypothermia of the child's body.

Air hardening

Method I - airing the room. Air hardening starts with this. The best way of airing is through, it can be arranged in the absence of the child. A hardening factor when airing a room is to lower the temperature by 1-2 ° C. In autumn and winter, it is necessary to ventilate the room 4-5 times a day for 10-15 minutes. In summer, the window should be open, the optimum air temperature in the room where the baby is located is + 20-22 C. Studies have shown that at a higher temperature in the room, the growth and development of the child is delayed.

Method II - a walk, including sleeping in the air. It is advisable to spend as much time as possible in the open air. In summer outside the city, it is advisable to eat, sleep, gymnastics, and take games to the fresh air. It is good to go for a walk at any time of the year, just remember that you need to dress for the weather. Don't wrap your child up! Children from 2-3 weeks of age in the cold season at an air temperature of at least -5 ° C should be taken outside. The duration of the first procedure is 10 minutes, then the walking time should be increased to 1.5-2 hours and walk twice a day. In the warm season, walks with the child should be daily, 2-3 times a day, between feedings for 2-2.5 hours.

In the first 1.5 years of a child's life, a daytime nap in the air is recommended. At the same time, fast falling asleep, restful sleep, even breathing, pink complexion, absence of sweat, warm limbs upon waking indicate that the child is dressed correctly, that is, is in a state of thermal comfort. When cooled or overheated, the child sleeps restlessly. Cyanosis of the face, cold nose, cold extremities are indicators of sudden cooling. A sweaty forehead and damp skin indicate that the baby is hot.

Method III - air baths. Under the influence of air baths, oxygen absorption increases, the conditions of heat exchange change significantly, the state of the child's nervous system improves - he becomes calmer, eats and sleeps better.

For children of the 1st year of life, air baths begin with swaddling. It is useful to leave the baby undressed for a while at every swaddling and changing clothes. You should take your time to undress and dress your child. The air temperature during the air bath should gradually decrease to + 18-20 ° C. The air bath time should be gradually increased, and from the age of one month, the air bath should be combined with massage and gymnastics.

During the second half of the year - 2 times a day for 15 minutes, daily increasing the duration of the bath by 2 minutes.

During and after the air bath, the child should look cheerful, he should be in a good mood. Make sure that the children do not cry during this time and have the opportunity to move. Do not miss the signs of hypothermia: when "goose bumps" appear, you need to dress the child, stop the air bath, and further reduce its duration. It is always necessary to pay attention to the child's sleep and appetite: their violation can be a sign of the adverse effects of an air bath.

In summer, air baths can be combined with sun baths.

Sun hardening

It must be remembered that the sun's rays are powerful. For young children, exposure to direct sunlight, as well as sunbathing, is not indicated. Hardening should be started in diffused sunlight. The child is better placed in the so-called "lace shade". First, he should be dressed in a shirt made of light light fabric at an air temperature of + 22-24 ° C. In the middle of wakefulness, the child should be undressed and left naked for several minutes, gradually increasing the hardening time to 10 minutes. A panama hat needs to be put on the baby's head. It is useful that at this time he moves freely in the arena, on the playground, playing with toys.

With good general condition, if the child tolerates being in the lacy shade of trees, you can also expose him to direct sunlight, at first for half a minute, and then gradually increase the time in the sun to 5 minutes. This procedure must be performed in the morning (before 10-11 hours) or in the evening (after 17). Care must be taken to ensure that the child does not overheat. In case of reddening of the face, the appearance of irritability, excitability, it is necessary to take him out of the lacy shade of trees or from under the direct rays of the sun into the shade and give him cooled boiled water. If a child is weakened by diseases, hardening by the sun's rays should be carried out very carefully, under the supervision of an adult who is constantly nearby, it is also necessary to periodically consult with the attending physician or exercise therapy doctor, who allow and dose the procedure.

Water hardening

One of the most effective natural hardening agents is water. People who are not too familiar with the methods of hardening are often amazed by the fact that washing and showering, familiar to us from childhood, can serve not only hygienic, but also health-improving purposes, but this is exactly the case. With a competent organization of water procedures, a correctly selected temperature regime, a gradual increase in the time of exposure to cool water, the habitual performance of uncomplicated actions of the morning and evening toilet can have an unexpectedly strong healing effect.

Hardening procedures are extremely useful for children in the first year of life, but with two caveats. Firstly, there can be no question of any hardening until the end of the postpartum adaptation period (i.e. up to 1 month), when the child's body, which has experienced significant stress during the transition from intrauterine existence to life in the external world, adapts to new things for it. conditions. Secondly, before starting to carry out hardening procedures with your child, it is imperative to consult a doctor.

For children of the first year of life, water hardening procedures can be local (washing, rubbing) and general (hygienic baths, rubbing and dousing, and sometimes a shower). At the same time, for hardening, you can use both daily hygiene procedures - washing your hands before eating, washing your feet before going to bed, regular bathing, and various games with water. The effect of water hardening is based on a gradual decrease in water temperature and an increase in the duration of the procedure.

You can start hardening with the usual washing of the child. At the same time, the initial water temperature should be close to the temperature of the skin of the open parts of the child's body - approximately + 28-26 ° С.

Rubdown should be a further stage of water hardening. You can start with water with a temperature of + 34 ° C and gradually (by 0.5-1 ° per day) reduce the temperature to + 26-23 ° C over 10-15 days.

The rubdown is carried out as follows: with a terry cloth mitten moistened in water or a terry towel folded several times, quickly wipe the child with quick movements: the first week - only the upper half of the body (see photo 1), and after a week - the whole body (see photo 2). The directions of movement when rubbing should be as follows: the child's hands should be wiped from the fingers to the shoulders, the chest in a clockwise circular motion, the back - from the middle of the spine to the sides, the legs - from the feet up to the pelvis, the stomach in a clockwise direction, buttocks - without moving them apart ... Each movement is repeated 2-4 times.

Along with rubbing with ordinary cool water, rubbing with a solution of sea salt (1 teaspoon per 1 glass of water) is useful.

The method of hardening proposed by Swedish doctors has proven itself well: a terry towel is moistened with "sea water" (1 tablespoon of sea salt per 1 liter of water, water temperature is + 22 ° C) and the child (starting from 6 months) after sleep is lowered by 2-3 seconds on a towel; the child "jumps", "dances" (see photo 3). Without wiping your feet, they move on to other elements of the toilet. After 2 weeks, if the child feels well, you can increase the load: the child is lowered for 2-3 seconds on a damp towel, which is previously placed in a plastic bag and placed in the refrigerator.

After wet wiping, it is necessary to rub the child's skin until it turns pink and dress him.

Attention: those areas of the skin that are subjected to rubbing and subsequent rubbing must be absolutely healthy - if there is diaper rash on the skin, any rashes, etc., this procedure should be postponed.

After 2-4 weeks of systematic rubdowns, you can proceed to dousing with water (it is better to discuss the temperature regime with your doctor). It is necessary to start dousing with the legs, then the buttocks are attached to them, then the chest and abdomen and finish by dousing the left and right shoulder (see photo 4). This procedure can be started from 9-12 months (and even earlier for more hardened children).

From local douches, douches are recommended primarily on the feet (see photo 5). Such procedures have not only local, but also a general effect on the body, and this is due, in particular, to the fact that cooling the feet is one of the possible ways to stimulate the activity of the adrenal glands, which play an important role in the adaptation of the body to adverse conditions and in the functioning of the immune system. person. The hardening effect of this procedure can be due to either a gradual (1 ° per day) decrease in temperature, or the use of contrast dousing. In the latter case, the legs are first doused with warm water (+ 36 ° C), then cold (+ 24-20 ° C), and at the end again with warm water (+ 36 ° C). This method is recommended for children who are often ill or suffer from allergic reactions, since they have a tendency to spasm of capillaries (small vessels).

Foot baths ("stomping" in water) are very useful. You can start them with a temperature of + 35 ° C. This procedure is carried out as follows: water is poured into the bathtub slightly above the level of the ankles. The child should walk on the water (with or without your help) 5-6 times. Then pour water 2-3 ° C colder (see photo 6). After the bath, they wipe the child's feet and put him to bed (you don't have to wipe your feet).

Attention: do not douche your feet with cold water or "stomp" in the water if your child has cold feet! The temperature of the skin of the feet should be several degrees higher than the temperature of the water.

This hardening option is also possible: general dousing with cool (+ 28-22 ° C) water after a hygienic bath.

A powerful means of hardening is a shower (see photo 7), as a rule, they resort to it when the child is already one and a half years old, however, the exercise therapy doctor can prescribe it earlier for some reason (often a shower is prescribed for sluggish children, especially with poor appetite).

And in conclusion of the article, we want to remind you that water hardening does not cancel other types of hardening (air, sun) - airing, walking, sleeping in the air, which we described in detail in the previous issue, should be carried out regardless of water hardening procedures.

Hardening is an increase in the body's resistance to adverse environmental influences. Seasoned children are not afraid of hypothermia, changes in air temperature, and the influence of the wind. Their incidence is sharply reduced.

> Comparative efficacy of water and air

Hardening can be carried out in various ways, including air or water treatments. Water has a stronger effect on the body than air. So, the effect of water with a temperature of about 26 degrees is equivalent to the effect of air with a temperature of about 5 degrees

> How does a cold occur?

> What gives?

If the child is accustomed to cold, then the reaction of the vessels changes, up to the opposite: under the influence of cold, the vessels of a hardened person first narrow, and then sharply expand. At what point of hardening does such a change in the reaction of the vessels occur - after a month, six months or a week? This is individual for each child.

To achieve the greatest hardening effect, constant exposure and a gradual (not abrupt!) Increase in its intensity are required. If you stop at the same intensity of the load, for example, water the child constantly with water of the same temperature without lowering it, or carry out procedures rarely (several times a month), then there will be no effect from such hardening.

The most difficult task is to establish the first load for the baby. It should not be weak, because then it is not effective; it should not be excessively strong (stressful), since it is known that stress suppresses the immune system, and we are faced with the opposite task - to strengthen it.

> What is immunity?

What is immunity and what is its role in the body? The human immune system "recognizes" all harmful and foreign substances entering the body, and creates protection against viruses and bacteria, prevents the development of cancer cells. This system begins to form mainly at the stage of intrauterine development and finishes its formation approximately in the first year of the baby's life. If a child is breastfed, then through the mother's milk he receives protective substances, and thus strengthens his own not quite perfect immunity. It is worse if the baby is deprived of mother's milk: he is sick more often and more severely. Such children especially need tempering.

> Congenital and acquired immunity disorders

There are congenital and acquired immunity disorders. At the first, a child may be born with a congenital disorder of the entire immune system or its partial defeat. Such children are constantly sick from birth. In the first months of life, they must be examined in specialized clinics. In the second case, the child is born healthy, but later on, illness, mental trauma, any stress can cause damage to the immune system.

> Late breastfeeding weakens the immune system!

It is believed that a newborn is stressed when he is torn away from his mother immediately after childbirth, with late attachment to the breast. As a result of this, the child grows up with a low level of immunity, depressed, incapable of an active full-fledged life and in an adult state is more susceptible to diseases of civilization: cancer, heart attack, hypertension, etc.

> Immunity and stress

What changes occur in the body under stress? One of the world's largest physiologists, Hans Selye, showed that whatever the stress is caused, whatever its cause, the body's response to it is always the same. It is expressed in the fact that at first all the forces of the body are mobilized in order to survive, including immunity, and over time, the second phase begins - the phase of exhaustion (it is even called the phase of damage). In this phase, all the body's defenses are depleted, and against this background, many different diseases appear.

> Be careful with winter swimming and "sniffing"!

I observed similar reactions in children sometimes when swimming and especially often during so-called "diving". These reactions were expressed in the fact that the children were either very restless (screaming day and night) or, conversely, were passive (poorly or weakly in contact with others). The state of their digestive system was especially striking. It seems that stress primarily reduced enzyme production, which led to the following symptoms: bloating, intestinal dysfunction (constipation or diarrhea), and as a result, poor weight gain. Thus, there was a simultaneous defeat of the nervous and digestive systems. I cannot say that such disorders are found in all children who have undergone winter swimming and "diving", but among my patients such facts could not fail to stop my attention.

The immunological laboratory of the Moscow Institute of Pediatrics and Pediatric Surgery, under the leadership of Dr. D.V. Stephanie, began cooperation with a group that worked according to the "Healthy Family" club system and practiced winter swimming for children. Laboratory staff examined several children and found that some of them had deteriorating immunity indicators. Apparently, winter swimming was a powerful stress factor for these children. Unfortunately, it was not possible to find out exactly what characteristics of the children predetermined the deterioration. After receiving the first results, the group stopped working with the laboratory.

> The doctrine of stress by I.A. Arshavsky

In addition to stress reactions, the body's reactions to weaker stimuli have been studied. It turns out that if the stimulus is not strong, not stressful, then with constant exposure and a gradual increase in its strength, immunity increases and all systems improve, which determine the good resistance of the organism to harmful factors. The scientist physiologist IA Arshavsky defines this reaction as "physiological stress" as opposed to damaging "pathological stress". Based on the research of the laboratory of I.A. Arshavsky, the body at the moment of birth copes well with the temperature drop. Throughout the prenatal period, the child develops at the temperature of the human body (about 37 degrees), and at the time of birth he finds himself in an environment where the temperature hardly exceeds 20-22 degrees. Undoubtedly, this ability is worth training in him further. And we often begin to wrap up the child.

> Tight swaddling is harmful!

It is useful to know that a newborn is able to maintain body temperature by increasing muscle tone. See how he bends his legs, pulls the arms to the body. Increasing muscle tone in a newborn is a beneficial compensatory response. That is why tight swaddling and all exercises that reduce flexor tone in a newborn are harmful. Taking these capabilities of the newborn into account, the hardening system is being built, which I would like to offer you.

> Hardening of babies can be started from birth

Hardening can be started already in the first days after the birth of the child. You just need to first show the child to the doctor. If the baby is healthy and the doctor does not find any signs of damage to the nervous system in him, if he sucks well and constantly gains weight, then calmly start hardening.

So the child was born. If the childbirth went well and the child is healthy, if in the first 4-5 days he lost no more than 200 g in weight, and if there is an increase in weight in the following days, then already on the 6-7th day, after being examined by a doctor, you can offer different hardening options.

> Three options for hardening children

The first option is hardening. We bathe the child at a normal human body temperature of 36.6 degrees. He is pleasant and good, he relaxes, he feels good. At this time, we prepare the first pouring for him in a jug or other vessel ten degrees colder, i.e. about 26-degree water. We take the child out of the bath, hold him back up in the palm of our hand and first pour over his heels, and then pour cool water down the spine to the head. Then, without wiping, we get wet and wrap up in a simple and flannel diaper. After 10-15 minutes, we begin to put it on. Every three days we lower the pouring temperature by one degree and reach the temperature of the water in the tap. Children usually tolerate this procedure well. At first, from surprise, they may scream, but after warming up in diapers, they quickly calm down, suck well and fall asleep calmly.

The second option for hardening children. During the baby's toilet (several times a day), wash the buttocks and legs with warm water. At the same time, we try to keep the feet warm. Then we quickly wash them with cold tap water. Then, in the same way, without wiping, we wrap the child in warm diapers.

> Only a warm child should be poured with cold water!

Hardening is only effective when a warm child is poured over with cold water. I remember how I observed the hardening of children "according to instructions" in the nursery, where I worked in the first years of my medical practice. The children were brought from a walk and immediately watered their legs, then, in accordance with the instructions, the water temperature was gradually reduced after a certain number of days. However, the children were constantly ill. What was the matter? No one paid attention to the fact that after a walk, especially in winter, almost all the children had cold feet, so they were doused with almost warm water.

> How to start hardening a child over a year old?

What if the child is over a year old, and you still have not tempered him? You can start hardening at any age. A contrast shower is suitable for this, for example. First, you put the baby or, better, stand with him yourself under warm water, warm up well. If the child requires hot water, let it be hot. First, warm up your child's feet, palms, and back. First of all - the collar area of ​​the back. Then you say to the kid: "Well, let's stand with you in the rain." Pour cold water over your feet, palms and very quickly - the collar area and - again under a hot shower. Then again a short cold drenching. And so at least three times. Always start with warming and end with a cold douche. If you have time, do up to seven contrast temperature changes. After the procedure, before dressing, do not dry the child, but wrap it up for a few minutes.

> The child should not be afraid!

This procedure is exciting, so it is better to do it in the morning or after school, at about 6-7 pm, but not immediately before bed. Try to make your child enjoyable. Do not scare him, do not insist if the child is afraid so as not to turn all this into a stressful situation. In this case, contrasting douches are best done in the form of a game.

The proposed procedure can also be used in kindergarten. Three or four basins with hot water and the same amount with cold water are placed. And children run from one basin to another. The principle of temperature contrast must be observed here: first hot, then cold water.

The third option for hardening children. The child bathes in the bath in the evening. Let him sit in the bathtub for as long as he wants, with toys. Let it warm in warm water. Children usually enjoy relaxing and taking a bath. Or let him bask in the shower as much as he wants. And then tell him: "Let's arrange a cold rain or run through the puddles." And here such play situations are possible: either you open cold water, and he substitutes his heels and palms (enough for the first time, and on the following days try to pour cold water over the back), or, if the child is afraid of exposure to a cold shower, then you can first put a basin of cold water and say: "Come on, let's run through the puddles with you!" And now from a warm bath - into a cold basin (or "in the rain"), and then - again into the bath. Add more lukewarm water if the bath is cold. And - again in the cold. And so at least three times. After the last cold exposure, wrap the child in a sheet and a blanket in the same way, hold him, not wiping, but soaking the water, then put him in night clothes and put him in bed. For a better hardening effect, the procedure should be gradually changed by increasing the time of cold exposure. Subsequently, the child himself begins to demand more cold douches, and often refuses hot water altogether.

> Contrast procedures should not be interrupted even during illness!

So, it is better to start with contrast procedures. They should not be interrupted even during the baby's illness, as they contribute to a speedy recovery. I know a wonderful mother. She began to temper the baby from birth. He was very rarely ill. Once she called me and asked what to do with the child: he had a slight fever, a runny nose. She wanted to make contrasting douches, but he refuses them and requires only cold ones. This means that the load for him was already insufficient. Children begin to feel this and take the initiative themselves. In this case, my mother and I decided to do as the child asks. The boy recovered quickly enough and subsequently, in case of illness, he poured cold water on himself.

I believe that for successful hardening, one should not dwell on contrasts alone. For some children, the following option can be offered: before the child wakes up, cold water is poured into the bath in advance. As soon as the child wakes up, he is out of bed, warm, dipped into the bath, then wrapped in a sheet, immediately gets dressed and proceeds to the rest of the hygiene procedures.

With contrast procedures, blood flow in the nasopharyngeal region is significantly improved. Therefore, with the proliferation of adenoids and chronic tonsillitis, contrast procedures are shown in combination with nutrition, which is recommended in previous conversations.

> Running in the snow

If the child is accustomed to pouring cold water on his feet, then in winter you can enhance the hardening effect by running barefoot in the snow. You need to run only in places where the snow is clear, while there should be earth under the snow, but not concrete or an asphalt path. Naturally, one should not stand in the snow on the balcony. What is the best way to carry out this procedure? The child should be dressed so that the shoes can be easily removed and put on. It is better to wear, for example, a tracksuit, woolen socks and felt boots.

So you go outside. Run a little first - the child will warm up. If your baby is reddened, you can be sure that his feet are not cold. Then you can take off your boots and stand on the snow, at first, literally for seconds. Then quickly wipe your feet off the snow with a cloth and put on your shoes starting with the foot you put on the snow first. And again run around in felt boots. The duration of standing in the snow is very short at first, then it can increase.

> Why does the cold effect on the feet harden?

Why does the child stop getting sick after such procedures? The following happens: the vessels of the feet, under the influence of the cold, narrow and the vessels of the nasopharyngeal region necessarily narrow at the same time. If a person is not hardened, an acute respiratory disease occurs (the virus is introduced into the cells of the nasopharyngeal region). And in a hardened person, on the contrary, in response to cold, first there is a narrowing, and then a sharp expansion of the small vessels of the feet and, reflexively, of the vessels of the upper respiratory tract. I am sure that this procedure will give you great pleasure. Especially if you will do it with the whole family. You don't have to do it every day. You can do it twice a week, but with pleasure, with joy. Do not be surprised that after a while, looking at the falling snow, you will feel a great desire to go outside and stand in the snow. Especially if you're in trouble or feeling unwell.

> About sunbathing

At the beginning of the conversation, I deliberately did not mention another hardening factor - sunbathing. Previously, sun and air baths were widely used to harden children. Now, after Chernobyl and the possible increase in radiation in many areas, sunbathing needs to be treated more carefully. But still, in the summer it is necessary to undress the children as much as possible, leaving only the head covered.

> Water procedures in nature

It is very good to give the opportunity to run barefoot, especially in the morning. Walking barefoot in the dew has a remarkable hardening effect. As much as possible, allow your child to run on the water on the river, on the lake, on the pond. No need to sunbathe on purpose; it is better to undress the baby, and let him run, getting in the shade, then in the sun. On the river, do not make him swim right away. Children love to play on the sand near the water, they themselves go into the water, stand in it. Let them show their desire to bathe. Then they are not afraid of water and swim with pleasure.

You can pour water on children right on the street. It is good to put a bath with cold water (preferably from a well) in the sun early in the morning, then in the afternoon, before lunch, let the baby splash in it, and then pour cold water on him, wrap him in diapers and take him home. For young children suffering from rickets, it is good to make a sandbox and arrange it so that it is in the sun early in the morning, and later, when the child goes outside, in the shade. It is very beneficial for the child to sit and play in the warm sand in the shade. Sleeping in the garden in summer is good for all young children, but not in the bright sun, but in the lacy shade of trees.

> About the benefits of the bath

In conclusion of our conversation, I would like to invite your family to make regular visits to the bathhouse. Bath is a wonderful hardening and healing procedure. The bath is very good for severe diathesis, allergic diseases of the respiratory system. Contraindications for the bath - high-grade hypertension or hypotension, severe kidney damage, nervous system, especially increased intracranial pressure, heart disease.

> When can I go to the bath for the first time?

The first time you can take your baby to the bathhouse at 7-8 months. There are two options for the bath: dry (Finnish) and steam room (Russian). Determine what you tolerate best and stick to your choice. Children tend to tolerate the steam room better.

> How to proceed in and after the steam room?

If you decide to go to the steam room of a Russian bath, prepare two or three basins of cold water in advance. Put thick woolen hats on your head and your baby's and bring it into the steam room. The child must be dry. It is better to bring it in when there are few people there, because noise and screaming generally have a bad effect on children. You shouldn't climb the shelves the first time. And in general, it is not necessary to lead him upstairs by force. Maybe after a few times, he himself will rise higher. If you have a baby, then take your time: if he screams or is frightened, immediately leave the steam room. Coming out of there, you must immediately pour over both the child and yourself with cold water from the prepared basins. Then wrap it in a sheet and rest. Give him a drink: rosehip decoction, compote, water with berries, etc. Repeat the procedure three times. Only then can the child be washed.

A visit to the bathhouse should be a joy for the little one. Communicate with him as much as possible while on holiday. Do not force him to go to the steam room, do not frighten him - only then you will achieve the effect of this procedure.

> Use every opportunity to harden your child!

It is possible to temper a city child well both in summer and in winter. Use all the possibilities for this, including winter and summer trips to the forest, to the river, and fishing. The more the baby communicates with nature, the calmer and healthier he will feel.

A baby's health depends on those who take care of him, the conditions in which he lives, heredity, how he eats and, most importantly, how strong he is. All this is the responsibility of adults. Everyone knows that the correct tempering of the child is one of the main tasks of every caregiver. This is one of the components of correct development.

What is the use

Strengthening your immune system isn't easy. This takes time and patience. If the methods of hardening the child are chosen precisely, nothing threatens his health, and the result from the exercises performed will be good.

How to make your workouts as useful as possible

It is worth starting exercises as early as possible. The positive effect of the habit is manifested in the following:

  1. Good immunity. The body of a hardened person is not so susceptible to colds. A healthy toddler almost does not react to temperature changes and is practically protected from seasonal diseases;
  2. Prevention of varicose veins;
  3. Good condition of the skin, it is less susceptible to weathering, peeling;
  4. Normalization of the work of all organs and systems, including the nervous, digestive, endocrine, vascular and so on;
  5. There are no problems with feeling unwell. A seasoned person is simply not familiar with such a feeling as feeling unwell;
  6. And most importantly, regular exercise is a great alternative to all kinds of medications that are prescribed to increase the body's defenses.

At what age is it necessary to start hardening and is it not dangerous

Some pediatricians are sure that training for children is no longer dangerous for the 10th day of their life. But there are those doctors who recommend waiting a couple of months until the baby gets stronger. After all, the newborn is in a stressful state. Especially when he appeared in the cold season. And most importantly, all decisions can only be made after consulting a pediatrician.

Every parent must remember that the process of cooling a small person is much faster. And if he is sick, then after the procedure his health condition may deteriorate sharply, which will require immediate treatment and thereby weaken the child's body even more.

In this regard, a person must get stronger and gain strength in order to develop his immunity.

Where to start hardening a child


  1. The first rule is a visit to a doctor, a consultation with a pediatrician. With him you need to decide whether it is possible to do rubdowns, whether the baby has contraindications for this. And also with a pediatrician, you need to find the best way;
  2. The second step is choosing the method and time for the sessions. It should be remembered here that the effectiveness of the results obtained depends on the correctly chosen method and time of its implementation. If you spend them at different times, not systematically, but whenever you like, then this type of hardening will only ruin the baby's health;
  3. Determination of the degree of load that should be carried out, incrementally. It is clear that pouring icy water over a person and thinking that this is how he will become healthy is stupid. The load on the body should be gradual. At first, it is just a couple of minutes to air the heels of the legs, then 4 minutes, then you need to open the legs to the knees. First, for 2 minutes, then for 4 minutes, and so on until the baby is ready for complete nudity;
  4. Before starting the procedures, you need to take into account the mood of the ward himself. It is undesirable to start classes when the "recovering person" is not in the mood, when something bothers him, he is crying or wants to sleep. The whole process should evoke positive emotions. Therefore, it is better to conduct it in a playful way, involving both mom and dad, and brother and sister in the procedure. And in any case, do not conduct a session when he is sick;
  5. Never start pouring cold water on your child. The cooler the water, the more stress for the little man. To begin with - airing the room, air baths, sleeping with a window ajar, and so on;
  6. To carry out in conjunction with other activities: proper nutrition, adherence to the regime, walks, moderate physical activity, a clear mode of play and sleep.
  7. Most parents find cold, cold water, and air beneficial. But this is not the case.
  8. The most sensitive area is the feet. The palms of the hands and face are constantly open. Therefore, it is extremely difficult to influence through them.

How to start hardening a child, and what not to do


  1. In no case should you start with extreme methods;
  2. Conduct a lesson in a room with a draft;
  3. Get carried away for a long time. That is, you should not carry out procedures lasting more than 20-25 minutes;
  4. Temper the baby when he has a cold or has deviations from the norm of health;
  5. Use force during procedures;
  6. Avoid freezing and hypothermia.

Contraindications:

  1. The presence of an infectious, viral disease;
  2. Respiratory diseases, skin diseases.
  3. Features of the nervous and cardiovascular system.

How are training sessions for preschool children?

The good effect of the procedures performed depends on the age. If at the age of 14 it is quite acceptable to suddenly pour water over it, then this method can negatively affect a preschooler, both on physical health and on his psycho-emotional state. At best, you will have to treat fear, and at worst, pneumonia.

Carrying out should be careful, with a gradual increase in load. Therefore, hardening of often ill children begins with small portions, which are gradually increased.

How to start

It is worth starting with the usual ventilation of the room.

In the summer, you can open the window and not close it throughout the day. True, the main thing here is to prevent a draft. In the winter season, for airing, it is enough to open the window for 20-25 minutes, and also take care of the absence of drafts. Before airing the room, you need to do wet cleaning. Thus, the room is refreshed, the air in the room is humidified.

  • Provide your baby with fresh air sleep.
Sleep in the fresh air: in a wheelchair on the street, on the balcony, where the sleeper can be from 15 minutes to one hour in the fresh air.
  • Air baths.
Air bath is a special type of workout that can be started on the 5-10th birthday. For this, it must be taken into account that air baths do not mean lying naked for several minutes. This is a gradual set of exercises where it is necessary to ensure the temperature in the room is 21-22 degrees for newborns, and at least 20 degrees for older children. Begin to open the feet for 2-3 minutes, then open the legs to the knees, at least 2-3 minutes, then the time of air exercises can be extended to 5 minutes, then to 7, to 10 minutes, and so on, up to half an hour.

A gradual decrease in temperature when bathing your baby

Water procedures are carried out according to the same principle. In this case, the temperature of water must be reduced gradually, by one degree. And to start the procedure at a temperature of thirty-six degrees. First, the arms are dipped, then the legs, then they are dipped into the water to the waist. Moreover, each new load should last 2-3 minutes, slowly increasing the duration to 10.


How to help someone who is often sick

Parents doubt the effectiveness of hardening children with weak immunity. But in vain.

Before arguing that low temperatures will further weaken the crumbs, it is worth noting that the reason for their pain is that:

  1. Mom, constantly fearing that the child will catch a cold, wraps him up, not taking into account the fact that during the game, especially on the street, the baby sweats. His clothes get wet, he gets cold and gets cold. And if this has already happened, the adult must immediately return from the walk and change the child into dry or slightly warmed up clothes;
  2. Parents should be wary of using the extreme method. It is more dangerous for weakened children than useful. Soft short-term procedures should not become hard and long-lasting - this is the main rule for people of all ages.
The hardening procedure is best done in conjunction with physical activity, in the form of charging, playing, showing an example for yourself. This will cheer up the crumbs, and will dispose to the procedures. That is, cool baths for a child will cease to be torture, and this is the main thing.

As you know, there is no universal medicine, and it is impossible to protect your child 100% even from such a seemingly not serious illness as a cold. But there are ways to help the body mobilize its protective potential. One of these methods of increasing the child's resistance to infectious agents is hardening.

The essence of the hardening procedure is to prepare the body for the effects of low temperatures. In an ordinary untrained person, during cooling, a reflex narrowing of the blood vessels of both the skin and the nasal mucosa occurs, which reduces the air temperature in the nasal cavity by 2 ° C. From such a "cold snap" the functions of protective cells are disrupted, the supply of antibodies decreases, which increases the risk of developing infections. Hardening just trains the reaction of blood vessels to hypothermia. In hardened people, when cooled, the air temperature in the nasal cavity drops by only 0.3-0.5 ° C.

But this, of course, does not mean that you urgently need to wipe yourself off with snow or dive into the hole. Contrary to popular belief, when hardening, it is not so much low temperatures that are important as the contrast of exposure, as well as repetition. It should also be remembered that the maximum duration of cold exposure to a child should not exceed 10-20 minutes and the exposure temperature must be reduced gradually.

If you approach the hardening of a child seriously and thoroughly, then you need to start from the first weeks of life. During this period, there will be enough air baths during swaddling, gymnastics, before swimming. Leave the baby to lie down naked for a few minutes, and gradually reduce the temperature in the room from 22 to 18 ° C. If by 4-6 months your baby can comfortably take air baths of this temperature, you can assume that you have not worked in vain. If you want more effect, you can add water to the air procedures. To do this, after bathing in the bathtub, pour water on the child with a temperature 2-4 ° C lower than the water in the bathtub. You can start with a temperature of 32-34 ° C, lowering it every 3 days by 2-3 ° C. At this rate, you can reach 18 ° C in a month, and a baby does not need it below. Just do not forget to thoroughly rub the baby with a towel after hardening procedures.

Swimming of infants in the pool hardens not so much by itself (the water temperature in it usually does not fall below 26 ° C), but in combination with air baths before and after the pool.

To harden a child in the second year of life, you can add daily washing of feet with cool water to douche after a bath (2-3 times a week). Treatments begin with a water temperature of 27-28 ° C, reducing it every 1-2 days by 2-3 ° C to a final temperature of 15 ° C (slightly colder than room temperature). A contrast shower also has a good hardening effect: changing the effect of warm (up to 40 ° C) for 30-40 seconds and cold (14-15 ° C) water - extending its effect from 15-20 seconds to 30 seconds.

A preschool child can also be tempered with contrasting air baths. To do this, in the child's bedroom, before waking up, you need to cool the air to 14-15 ° C, and after he wakes up, play tag with him, running from a room with cool air to a warmer room.

The bathhouse is an ideal place for hardening with contrasting temperatures. For young children, 90 ° C in the sauna is quite enough, the duration of stay in it can be gradually increased to 10 minutes. If you prefer a Russian bath, then the temperature in the child's steam room should be reduced to 60 ° C and, with an exposure of 2-3 minutes, raised to 80 ° C for 6-8 minutes. In one visit, it will be enough for a child to take a steam bath 2-3 times, and in between to take a shower or swim in a pool with a water temperature of about 25 ° C.

But with winter swimming and walking barefoot in the snow, you need to be extremely careful. It must be remembered that a child, having a large body surface area relative to its mass, cools much faster than an adult. The duration of such hard hardening procedures should not be allowed for more than 40-60 seconds. And you don't need to go too far with the temperature. When dousing with cold water, it is enough to bring the water temperature to 8 to 8-10 ° C, although you can stop at 12-14 ° C.

Hardening after a mild ARI can be resumed (or started) after 7-10 days, in case of a disease with a temperature reaction of more than 4 days, in 2 weeks, and after a 10-day fever, in 3-4 weeks.

When hardening, first of all, you need a measure - in no case overdo it. It is unacceptable to bring cold effects to unpleasant ones. And the point here is not that from such hardening he will get sick, but that it is impossible to allow the formation of a negative attitude of the child to hardening. Any hardening procedure should evoke positive emotions; it should not be forced. There will be no effect from such procedures.