Adults who have been taking bath procedures for a long time were able to verify from their own experience their positive effects on the human body. Therefore, many parents teach their children to visit the steam room from childhood.
Children in a bathhouse are a common occurrence, since such a pastime is not only an excellent vacation for the whole family, but also a good way to strengthen the body.
Age for visiting the steam room
Every parent should understand that the child’s body works according to laws that are different from the work of the adult body. In children, metabolism is more intense, which means the body produces more heat. At the same time, the child’s body regulates body temperature poorly and reacts more strongly to its changes. That is, a child has a much greater chance of freezing or getting a heat stroke than an adult.
There are different opinions among experts about children's acceptance of couples procedures. For example, Dr. Komarovsky, a well-known pediatrician, believes that a bathhouse is contraindicated for children under two years of age. And from 2 to 7 years old - not advisable. And only from the age of 7 can we talk about the benefits of visiting a sauna or bathhouse for a child.
Another common opinion is that the age of the first visit to the bath depends on whether the child received hardening during fetal development.
At the same time, you can take children to the bathhouse from the age of:
- 3 months, if the mother actively resorted to hardening procedures before and during pregnancy;
- 8 months, if mother does not have such a habit.
In any case, the child’s reaction to being in the steam room depends on an important factor. If a small child reacts to a change in temperature with loud crying, you should not continue the procedure.
Regardless of age, it is advisable to consult a pediatrician before visiting the bathhouse. The child should be completely healthy at this time.
In addition, the baby must be prepared in advance for bath procedures:
- bathe in water at the right temperature;
- carry out activities for general hardening of the body;
- provide the child with daily exposure to fresh air;
- maintain a high level of humidity in the children's room.
The formation of local and general immunity depends on these and many other factors. A child with a strong immune system will more easily tolerate changes in temperature and humidity while in the steam room.
What is better - a bathhouse or a sauna?
It is believed that the dry air of a Finnish sauna is easier to tolerate for adults, but high temperatures are undesirable for children. Therefore, it is better to accustom a child to a bath with visits to a traditional Russian steam room. At the same time, you should not overheat the room, and before bathing procedures it is advisable to thoroughly ventilate the steam room. In the steam room, it is necessary to maintain the temperature no higher than 50°C, monitoring it using thermometer readings.
Children over seven years old can visit the sauna with their parents, independently choosing the time they spend in it, but the period of adaptation to high temperatures should also not be forgotten.
Introducing a child to the bathhouse: where to start
A few weeks before visiting the bathhouse (or earlier), start carrying out hardening activities with the help of:
- air procedures;
- warming massage;
- dousing with cold water.
Expert opinion
Lovkachev Boris Petrovich
Bath master who knows everything about steaming
Prepare bath items for your baby in advance, as well as plenty of fluids to restore water balance. It is better to eat light food at least an hour before the procedures. To reduce the temperature difference, you can give your child warm tea 5-10 minutes before going to the steam room.
It is better to start visiting steam rooms with a sauna. The air in them is characterized by high temperature and low humidity - no more than 10-12%. A child will be able to tolerate hot air more easily than dry air.
The air temperature in a sauna usually ranges from 60 to 85 degrees Celsius. It is recommended to make your first visits to the sauna at low temperatures, gradually increasing the temperature of the thermometer.
Don't stop at visiting the sauna. The bathhouse is much more useful. For example, moist air helps cleanse the respiratory system of mucus and is a good prevention of acute respiratory infections. Therefore, the sauna is more of an intermediate stage before getting acquainted with the bathhouse.
The first visit to the bathhouse for babies under one year old should not exceed 2-3 minutes. Gradually this figure can be increased to 10-15 minutes. Beyond this time, staying in the steam room is not recommended until the child reaches the age of 3 years.
After the procedure, rinse your baby with warm water so that the temperature decreases gradually, and wrap him in a dry towel. You can wear warm pajamas.
From the point of view of modern man
In the modern world, the situation has changed dramatically. Children's games in the fresh air have become a rarity. Who among today’s children will remember such amusements as “Cossack robbers”, “baker”, “knockout” and others, which a student of the harsh 50s can easily name you a couple of dozen. The current social environment has been successfully replaced by the tablet. It replaces not only real friends and comrades, but also a game of football on the nearest playground.
Physical inactivity, oxygen starvation and weakened immunity have become a real scourge of the modern child. Perhaps, in this case, the sauna for children will become a kind of lifesaver? Let's not rush, it's not that simple.
Air temperature in a bathhouse with children
Elevated air temperatures in the bathhouse are dangerous for children, because heat exchange in their bodies has not yet been adjusted.
Therefore, if you decide to steam your child, it is recommended to maintain the following temperature:
- up to 50 degrees if the baby is less than two years old;
- up to 60 degrees in 2-3 years;
- up to 65 degrees at 4-7 years;
- up to 70 degrees at 8-12 years old;
- up to 80 degrees at 13 years and older.
The higher the temperature in the steam room, the less time the child can stay in it. If the temperature has risen to 65 degrees, you can make two passes of 5 minutes each with children under 8 years old or 10 minutes each if your child is older than this age.
Between sessions, take a long period of rest so that the body has time to restore its temperature in comfortable conditions. Provide your child with plenty of fluids at room temperature.
What to do if your child overheats
The most important thing for parents is not to leave their children in the bathhouse unattended, and to constantly monitor their appearance and well-being. Bathing procedures must be stopped immediately if you notice at least one of the following signs:
- the child’s face suddenly turns pale or red;
- the baby’s nasolabial triangle has acquired a bluish tint;
- the child’s arms and legs became cold;
- the child has nausea or vomiting;
- the baby becomes lethargic or complains of dizziness.
All these changes indicate overheating of the body, so in such cases it is important to promptly take the baby out into the fresh air or into a cool room, put a cold compress from a damp towel on his forehead, pour cold water on his arms and legs, provide the child with peace and, if necessary, seek help to the pediatrician.
To prevent possible injury, do not allow children to:
- run and jump, because the floor may be slippery;
- independently open taps with hot and cold water;
- climb onto high shelves;
- turn on heating devices;
- open windows and doors to the room.
If you follow all these rules, the bathhouse will only benefit your children. And the ideal place to go to a Russian bathhouse with children in Lipetsk is the Vereshchaginskaya Bathhouse, which will appeal to both adults and children! It's clean, safe and fun.
Rules for visiting the bathhouse with children
General rules for visiting health bath treatments with children:
- Sit on the lowest benches. Warm air masses always rise upward, which means that closer to the floor the air temperature is lowest.
- In order for bath procedures to have a truly strengthening effect on health, they must be carried out regularly, but more than once a week.
- The child must always be under adult supervision. Monitor the baby’s well-being and the color of the skin (in case of heatstroke, they may turn red). At the slightest discomfort, it is better to complete the procedures.
- After completing the procedures, it is necessary to minimize the temperature difference. Leave the steam room slowly; you can pour warm water over the child. It is better to avoid cold water and contrast showers.
- There should be no drafts in the room.
- Use a special headdress. It must be put on dry hair in advance.
- Bath procedures should not be performed on an empty stomach, but heavy meals should also be postponed. Optimally, light food an hour before visiting the bathhouse. After leaving the steam room, you can give your child a light snack and plenty of drink. A full meal should be postponed and taken after a few hours.
Expert opinion
Lovkachev Boris Petrovich
Bath master who knows everything about steaming
If a child shows signs of heatstroke while visiting the bathhouse, it is necessary to take him out of the steam room into a cool room with an influx of fresh air and give him plenty of fluids. The first signs of heat stroke include weakness, lethargy, and profuse sweating.
In a more advanced stage, nausea and vomiting and redness of the facial skin begin. Monitor your child's condition carefully so that you can stop visiting the bathhouse in time. In between sessions, also replenish your body's fluid supply with plenty of warm drinks.
The benefits of a bath for a child
If the child does not have such health problems, then the bath, on the contrary, will benefit him. In addition, regular visits to the bathhouse have a positive effect on the child’s body:
- strengthens the immune system and strengthens the body;
- helps improve overall well-being;
- promotes speedy recovery after bronchitis and pneumonia;
- relieves frequent colds and chronic nasopharyngeal diseases;
- balances the emotional state;
- trains blood vessels, etc.
How to hover a baby
To carry out a wellness procedure, you can use a bath broom for massage. There is no need to warm it up too much, just sprinkle with hot water. Before touching the baby's skin, you can test the temperature of the broom with your hand.
An oak or linden broom is good for baby massage. An oak broom is an excellent prevention of diseases of the nervous system, and a linden broom is soft and fragrant. A birch broom is not recommended for use by children with diseases of the respiratory system.
Massage movements should be light. You can use smooth circular movements, as well as tapping. This type of massage is best done on the back and feet. The main thing is that the child enjoys it. It is better not to add oils for this procedure, or reduce their amount to a minimum. The pungent odor may be unpleasant for the baby.
Rules for using the steam room for young visitors
Such components of a pleasant holiday as children and a bath will never conflict with each other if you follow a number of rules, namely:
- A visit to the steam room can be done if the child, like the soldier, gets up from the table slightly hungry. Overeating, as well as taking thermal procedures on an empty stomach, do not bode well.
- Entering the steam room should be preceded by the body getting used to it, gradually entering into thermal tone in a warm dressing room. This is especially true in the cold season in frosty weather.
- The steam room should be sufficiently illuminated by natural or artificial light. Firstly, it protects the baby from negative feelings, emotions and manifestations, on the other hand, it allows you to constantly visually monitor his well-being. Do not forget that heat injury in children develops more quickly than in adults.
- A mandatory attribute of a children's bath set should be considered a bath cap made of soft, delicate felt and slippers - slippers made of hypoallergenic silicone, with sufficient friction properties to avoid falling on a slippery floor.
- Before entering the steam room, you need to rinse your baby under a warm shower. There is no need to use detergents. Let your skin pores open naturally.
- It is useful for small visitors to the bathhouse to have a foot massage before the thermal part of the program. This will balance blood circulation in the lower body.
- Do not forget that the most optimal body position in the steam room is horizontal. A medium-pile linen or cotton towel, the size of which should exceed the user's arm span by 30%, will allow children to sit comfortably on the shelf.
- A children's bath may well be limited to two visits, and the second, in duration, may overlap the first by 12 - 15%, but no more.
- The bathhouse, children, brooms should be associated, first of all, with the linden tree. The structure of its leaf is the most delicate and does not cause negative emotions, unlike the use of birch or oak. At an early age, the use of broom therapy should be completely abandoned.
- Salts and flavorings should be used with great care. There is a very large range of synthetic drugs on the modern market. They can be successfully replaced by a decoction of classical, generally applicable and well-known herbs.
A children's sauna should be based only on voluntary principles and the natural desire of the child to join this activity. Parental pressure, even if it is gentle, is not appropriate here. Everything has its time.
Contraindications for children visiting the bathhouse
Bath procedures are an excellent “training” of the immune system and prevention of acute respiratory infections. However, there are indications when a child is not recommended to visit the bathhouse.
Among them, the baby has:
- infectious diseases;
- epilepsy or other problems with the respiratory system;
- kidney or liver diseases;
- congenital heart disease, other diseases of the cardiovascular system;
- endocrine disorders;
- oncology;
- skin diseases, for example, psoriasis, eczema, purulent rashes.
In addition, at the time of placing the bath, the child must be completely healthy. Otherwise, changes in temperature and humidity can aggravate the disease and even lead to complications. An exception, as a rule, is a runny nose. After all, moist warm air helps remove mucus from the bronchi. However, before bath procedures you should definitely consult a pediatrician.
Preparing for your visit
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It is very important that the baby, whom parents take with them to the bathhouse or sauna, is prepared for this. A baby who is constantly wrapped up, not hardened and protected from any breeze may not tolerate this event well. Therefore, to the question whether a baby of any age can be washed in a bathhouse without preparation, there is only a negative answer.
Children are prepared like this:
- Familiarize yourself with temperature changes in advance, at home. This is not about taking the baby out of the stuffy bathroom into a ventilated bedroom after bathing. Is it dangerous. It is possible and necessary to give your child air baths more often.
Air bath
- After each bath, the baby is washed with slightly cool water. At first, a difference of a degree from the one in the bath is enough. Then gradually, by 0.5 degrees, the difference is increased.
If a mother wants to know whether the baby can go to the bathhouse, she should monitor his condition during the preparation procedures. If the baby tolerates them calmly, does not cry or be capricious, his lips do not turn blue, and he does not tremble, we can assume that he is ready.
At three years old, children can be taken with you without fear. But there may be other complications. The baby already thinks in his own way, forms his own picture of the world. The mother must remember: then the child can go to the bathhouse, but it is impossible to predict whether he will be afraid of it. The main rule here is not to force, otherwise it will form an attitude towards the procedure as something scary and unpleasant.
The best way out would be to start telling your baby a fairy tale a few days before the trip. It describes in a playful way what awaits him in the steam room, and that it is not scary at all. In the sauna itself, the parent must lead by example by going inside and sitting down on the shelf first. Surely, the child will decide to check what interesting things his mom or dad are doing - children tend to repeat after adults.
Questions and answers
How to avoid heatstroke in a child?
It is important to follow the temperature rules and time frames. You should not stay in the steam room for too long, and if the child shows signs of heatstroke, he should be taken out into the air and given water.
At what age can children go to the steam room?
Most pediatricians are of the opinion that going to the bathhouse is not recommended for children under 2-3 years of age.
How long can bath procedures last for children?
It is better to reduce your first experience of going to the bathhouse to 2-3 minutes, no more than 1-2 visits with long breaks. Gradually this figure can be increased to 10-15 minutes.
What accessories will be useful for a baby in the bath?
Like an adult, a child needs special shoes and a towel, as well as a hat. You need to put a hat on dry hair before entering the steam room.
Which broom to choose for baby massage?
Soft brooms, such as oak or linden, are perfect for this procedure.
When can children visit the steam room?
Is it possible for children to go to the bathhouse, are there any restrictions, and at what age can children be taken to the steam room? These are questions that interest many parents who have decided to harden their beloved child in this way.
If mothers actively used health procedures before and during pregnancy, then babies can be taken to the steam room from the age of 3 months. In this case, the babies received preliminary hardening of the body while in the womb: they were exposed to heat, changes in temperature conditions and had the experience of relaxation, which is associated with visiting a bathhouse.
A prepared newborn will be able to comfortably and safely endure all the conditions created for health procedures.
If the mother did not visit the bathhouse before the planned pregnancy, then hardening of the baby can be organized only from the 8th month of life.
Important! Before taking your child to the bathhouse, you should definitely consult a doctor - only healthy children can be taken there.
When a bath is contraindicated
If the child coughs and does not complain about his health, he can go to the bathhouse. Don't take risks when you notice weakness and atypical behavior. For a weakened body, even a short stay in a hot, humid room is an additional burden. If you complain of abdominal pain, nausea, dizziness, refrain from going to the steam room.
Warming procedures are contraindicated for high body temperature, severe runny nose, endocrine disorders, acute skin diseases, epilepsy, whooping cough, tuberculosis. Do not take your child to the steam room when changes in intracranial and blood pressure and cerebrovascular accidents are observed.
conclusions
Cough is a symptom that accompanies many childhood diseases. It is treated with medications, inhalations, and folk remedies. In the absence of contraindications, bath procedures can be beneficial, but such healing may be unsafe for the child’s body. Everyone's reactions to temperature and humidity conditions are different. Sudden changes can intensify the cough, worsen the condition, lead to loss of consciousness and malaise.
Treatment with steam and high temperatures is possible only when the first symptoms appear and there is a residual cough. Bath therapy is contraindicated for infants and one-year-old children. Don’t rush, the child’s body is not physiologically ready for serious temperature stress. In order to make sure that the bath is safe and admissible, and to eliminate risks and complications, consult your doctor.
If you are interested in similar articles, we recommend checking out our section on child care.
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