The importance of immunity

Made up of a network of cells, tissues and organs, our immune system defends us against germs and microorganisms.

Understanding how your child's immune system develops

• From young, your child’s immune system is like his muscles. It needs to be exercised in order to build strength
• When a child's immune system is strong and functioning properly, it produces antibodies that provide a natural defence against diseases.
• All children are exposed to pathogens such as bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites. The immune system allows your child's body to produce antibodies that kill those bad guys.
• While ensuring that good hygiene is always observed, do not be overly worried if your child is exposed to some germs. They are helping to build his immunity.

Allergies and the Immune System
The immune system protects the body from diseases.

• It fights germs like bacteria and viruses, but when there are allergies, it overreacts and tries to "fight" ordinary things like dust, grass or pollen. This causes the sneezing, itching, and other reactions.
• Common allergies may be triggered by certain plants, animals, foods, insect bites, etc.

Stimulate the Immune System
Medical experts believe that the immune system needs to be stimulated or challenged in order to develop properly.

• Don't lock your child indoors during the first few years of his life as his immune system is determining which environmental substances are friends and which are foes.

Breastfeeding and the Immune System

• Antibodies in a mother's breast milk provides a child with temporary immunity to diseases that mothers have been exposed to.
• This can help protect him against infection during the early years of childhood.

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Boosting the immune system against cold/flu

Colds and flu’s are a fact of life for kids. By six months, their temporary immunity would have waned, and children are then susceptible to more than 100 cold viruses. These germs are spread not through inhalation, but by picking them up on our hands and spreading them to our face where they can gain entry to our body.

Here are a few simple ways to boost your child’s immunity:

Prudent hand washing

• Don't keep sending him to the bathroom to wash his hands with antiseptic every time he pets the pet.
• Let him wash his hands with regular soap before meals, and with water at other times during the day, unless, of course, his hands are filthy.
• When you're out, carry disposable wipes with you for quick cleanups.

Serve more fruits and vegetables
Try to get your child to eat five servings of fruits and veggies a day. (A serving is about two tablespoons for toddlers, 1 cup for older kids).

• Foods your child should eat more of to increase his immunity include:
  • Fresh fruits
  • Vegetables, leafy greens
  • Whole grain wheat
  • Whole grain rice
  • Beans
  • Legumes
• Carrots, green beans, oranges, and strawberries - they all contain immunity-boosting phytonutrients such as vitamin C and carotenoids.
• Berries, especially blue berries, are rich in anti-oxidants and are excellent for increasing your child's immunity.
• Vitamin supplements, especially Vitamin C, also go a long way in improving your child's health.

Sleep
Consistent, adequate sleep is vitally important to overall health and well-functioning immune system of both adults and children.

• Studies on adults show that sleep deprivation can make you more susceptible to illness by reducing natural killer cells, immune system weapons that attack microbes and cancer cells.
• A newborn may need up to 18 hours of sleep a day, toddlers require 12 to 13 hours, and preschoolers need about 10 hours. If your child can't or won't take naps during the day, try to put her to bed earlier.

Exercise as a family
Research shows that exercise increases the number of natural killer cells in adults and regular activity can benefit kids in the same way.

• To get your children into a lifelong fitness habit, be a good role model.
• Exercise with them rather than just urge them to go outside and play.
• Fun family activities include walking, bike riding, badminton, basketball, and tennis.

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Be Well. Be Active.

Your children should get at least 60 minutes of physical activity most, preferably all, days of the week. For adults, it's at least 30 minutes. Try a few simple tips to keep your family strong and healthy.

Keep fit as a family
• Schedule a regular workout/activity time for your family.
• Schedule activities that everyone can do together, such as biking, inline skating or swimming.
• Go out and play with your children when you can. Do anything - play tag, play catch, ride a bike, swing, play basketball or join their outdoor games.

Fitness Means Fun!
• Keep family activities fun rather than competitive.
• Schedule birthday parties and events at skating rinks, parks, gymnasiums, supervised swimming pools and other activity-oriented places.

An active child achieves more
• Set up an indoor area where rolling, climbing, jumping and tumbling are allowed.
• Limit screen time (TV, games, etc) to no more than 2 hours a day.
• Team up with neighbours to form a family walking club or group activity/sport.

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Recommended vaccinations for children

Some parents may hesitate to have their child vaccinated because they're worried that the children will have serious reactions or may get the illness the vaccine is supposed to prevent. Fear not because components of vaccines are weakened or killed and in some cases, only parts of the microorganism are used, they are unlikely to cause any serious illness.

• Immunisation (vaccination) is a way of creating immunity to certain diseases by using small amounts of a killed or weakened microorganism that causes the particular disease.
• Microorganisms can be viruses, such as the measles virus, or they can be bacteria, such as pneumococcus.
• Vaccines stimulate the immune system to react as if there were a real infection. It fends off the "infection" and remembers the organism so that it can fight it quickly should it enter the body later.
• Some vaccines may cause mild reactions, such as soreness where the shot was given or fever, but serious reactions are rare.

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Recommended vaccinations at Government hospitals

Here is a schedule that is commonly followed by the Government hospitals in Malaysia. There may be variations amongst doctors, but you can safely follow this schedule, as it is the Expanded Programme of Immunisation (EPI) adopted by the Ministry of Health.

Ministry of Health Malaysia Immunsation Schedule
Birth	BCG, Hepatitis B (1)
1 month	Hepatitis B (2)
2 months	DPT (1), Hib (1)
3 months	DPT (2), IPV (1), Hib (2)
5 months	IPV (2), DPT (3), Hib (3), IPV (3)
6 months	Hepatitis B (3)
6 months (Sabah)	MMR
9 months (Sarawak)	JE (1)
10 months (Sarawak)	JE (2)
12 months	MMR (1)
18 months	DPT (B), Hib (B), IPV (B)
18 months (Sarawak)	JE (3)
4 – 5 years (Sarawak)	JE (4)
7 years	DPT (B), IPV / OPV (B), MMR (B)

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Recommended vaccinations at Private Practices

This Immunisation schedule is for other available vaccines that are readily available in private practices across Malaysia. The precise schedule for each vaccine is at the discretion of your child’s doctor, but typical ages are stated below:

6 – 24 weeks	Rotavirus
2 months – 5 years	Pneumococcal
6 months and older	Influenza (given every year)
9 months – 4 years	JE
1 year and older	Hepatitis A
1 year and older	Varicella chickenpox
2 years and older	Meningococcal
9 - 10 years and older	Human papillomavirus

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