Ask The Expert: What are Some Back-to-School Health Tips?

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In every issue of the ‘hood Magazine, we ask local experts questions that are helpful for our community! This Ask the Expert was printed in the July/August 2025 Issue of ‘hood. Check out the full digital issue at the link! 

Question: What are Some Back-to-School Health Tips?   

Immunizations

It is very common for children and adults to be anxious about getting vaccines for a number of reasons. Keep in mind that all recommended childhood vaccinations are monitored for safety on a continuous basis. 

• For children less than 1 year of age, apply topical agent such as lidocaine or tetracaine gel 30-60 minutes before injection or consider breast/bottle feeding OR allowing for pacifier use while injection occurring.
• For children age 1 year and older – use above in addition to distraction with toy, video.
• For children of all ages: ok to give acetaminophen or ibuprofen to children AFTER vaccine administration if pain, fever occurs (see specific dosing on product labels as these are weight based). 

If you experience symptoms such as muscle aches, injection site soreness, or fever with fatigue, this IS common and suggests your body is responding appropriately to the vaccine as the goal is to imitate an actual infection. As always, feel free to ask your physician if the symptoms you are experiencing are acceptable. 

Healthy routines

It is important to introduce healthy behavior habits as soon as a child becomes more independent and able to make choices. Limiting screen time to only required educational use is key in encouraging healthy, in person peer-to-peer interactions, as well as focusing on honing other skills that will be integral to setting up good coping mechanisms for future stress reduction such as physical activity, creativity in the form of the arts.

It is important for the whole family to practice habits together for example putting phones up during sit down meal time AND at bedtime, walking the dogs together every night, and substituting sugared or high calorie beverages for sparkling or flavored waters (maybe let the kids choose the flavor?). Consider implementing changes in healthy eating slowly and keep track of new changes and good progress/goals on a colorful calendar that everyone in the family can add to. See CDC.org website for some great ideas! – cdc.gov/nutrition/features/healthy-eating-tips.html. 

Vision and hearing screening recommendations

Ensuring your child is healthy means making sure they are able to see and hear to the best of their ability. Newborn exams include vision screening and every follow up exam will continue to monitor for any changes to eye movement, function, and anatomy.

Formal testing should be done at least once from ages 3 to 5, however should your primary care provider see changes before then, your child may be referred to a specialist for specific testing in order to provide early intervention. Hearing screening should begin at 1 and 3 months of age with early intervention at 6 months of age for those who do not pass their screening. 

Managing ADHD

Prolonged attention to one topic is difficult whether you are a child or an adult. The diagnosis of ADHD can magnify this difficulty for some, and having a consistent strategy for coping during the school year is key to success and long term management. While stimulant medications have been proven to be effective, they are not recommended for children younger than age 6.

Other medications can be helpful however regardless of medication use, close work with a counselor by both child and his/her parent (guardian) is very important, especially in the early stages of diagnosis. If stimulants are used, consider using only during the school day with breaks during the weekend or vacation times.

Keep in mind the timing of doses as well as it can cause some difficulty sleeping which can further make attention worse throughout the day. And do NOT underestimate the power of healthy routines; consider non-pharmacologic therapies to help keep focus such as daily meditation, guided yoga, using a journal to write down thoughts or keeping a daily schedule.