Back to School: A Beacon family physician’s guide to sleep, nutrition and staying healthy

Back to School: A Beacon family physician's guide to sleep, nutrition and staying healthy

School is back in session or just around the corner across Michiana and getting your kids ready starts with more than a new backpack and school supplies. Dr. Jason Marker, Clinic Director at Beacon Medical Group E. Blair Warner Family Medicine Center in South Bend, joined WVPE Healthcare Headlines to share his advice for parents - as both a physician and a dad.

Dr. Marker talks about resetting sleep schedules after the summer routine, explains why family mealtime matters more than you'd think and provides simple hygiene habits worth reinforcing before the first bell rings. He also covers back-to-school physicals and vaccines, how to help kids handle the mental adjustment of a new school year and why this is a good time for parents to check in on their own health, too.

Q: Schools are opening back up, scattered all over the place. What's the biggest single habit families should be resetting to get their kids ready for school?

Dr. Marker: "I'd say this as a doctor and as a dad, getting back into a regular sleep schedule has got to be the top thing on my list. Sometimes over the summer, sleep schedules get a little bit crazy. But back in school, having that routine of getting up at the same time and getting to bed at about the same time really helps kids think more clearly, get ready for the day and just roll with the changes of the day a little more effectively."

Q: And we all know they won't fight you on it - it should be easy, right?

Dr. Marker: "There will probably be some struggles there, especially because during the summer, sometimes bedtimes get a little bit later, a little bit crazier. And, you know, those elementary school kids probably need nine to 12 hours at night. And even in the middle school and high school ages, eight to 10 hours is really what the brain needs for optimal functioning. That may not be what they were getting earlier in August, but it's a goal that you want to be moving them to as you get closer to the first day of school."

Q: Back to school means practices and all these other activities going on, and mealtime kind of slides. Why are regular times for families to sit down so important?

Dr. Marker: "Number one is you want to be feeding your body good quality things so you can be a productive student. Often, the student athletes I take care of take that really seriously. But if a student is not in sports, they need to think about their academic performance the same way that you might think about their athletic performance. Also, that time spent with family is really, really valuable. If you can sit down even just a few times a week as a family for a meal, communication that happens there. Discussions about what's happening at school are really important for the development of those young people as they become adults."

Q: Some things, of course, during the summer may slide a little bit - things like hand washing. What are some things that parents should be reinforcing for kids to make sure that they stay healthy?

Dr. Marker: "The more people we're around, the more exposures we have to infectious illnesses. And so that's where the hand washing becomes important. And whether you're doing hand hygiene with actual hand washing or you're using a hand sanitizer of some sort, remind kids as they head off to school that this is an important part of keeping themselves healthy so they can be in school, so they can study well, so they can get to sports practice is an important thing to do.

Throwing a little handheld hand sanitizer into their backpack on their way out the door on the first day is a nice reminder, clipping it on their backpack, make it a visible thing, a reminder for them to do that. Before and after meals, certainly, but if they're around people who've been ill, keep those hands nice and clean. And keep your hands off your face. Even if there's germs on your hand, if they're not coming in through your mouth, nose or eyes, you're not going to get sick."

Q: This is a time when families are catching up on things like physicals and immunizations, and with all of the news coming out right now, that can be very confusing. What should parents be double checking now?

Dr. Marker: "This is a great time of year for a checkup with your primary care doctor, a chance to talk about any vaccines that may be due. Some kids who were up to date last year are not up to date this year. There are age-based recommendations that change over time. And it's a good chance to touch base with your doctor about what those vaccines are and whether you're going to get those today or some other time and have that kind of a rich discussion with your primary care team.

"Also, it's a great time to get that bit of examination in there. Visual changes - maybe your vision was OK last year, but it's not this year. That's going to be an important part of your academic performance in schools, make sure that you're seeing well. So it's a good chance to do a little bit of some examination, talk about things about vaccines. Hopefully there will be conversations about safety issues and taking care of yourself and some of these other issues we've already been talking about."

Q: What else should parents be checking on their kids mentally as they start back to school?

Dr. Marker: "The start of a new school year is the start of a lot of new things - new schedules, new teachers, new expectations, sometimes new friends. Things are going to be different this year than they were last year, even for a child who's in the same school often. Ask questions after school each day. 'How did it go' is a good start to the conversation, but also questions like, Are you meeting some new people? How's that new teacher in the school going? Do you think that's going to be a good relationship? Are there new things that you're excited about doing in school this year, new extracurriculars or new athletic activities? These are all new things that, as a parent, if you can normalize as part of going to school each year, then it becomes a normal part of the nighttime conversation after a day in school."

Q: Dr. Marker, is there anything you can think of that we've missed or you want to add?

Dr. Marker: "I think those are all great questions that we should be communicating with our school-age students, but also for parents - realize this is also a change for you. And maybe this is the time of year when, now the kids are back to school, that you refocus on your own health care, a chance for you to see your own primary care doctor, get up to date on vaccines that you may be behind on, and focus on yourself a little bit without some of the day-to-day things that fill up our busy times during the summer. So use this as an opportunity for you as well."

Q: Well, you know, they say on an airplane, put your mask on first.

Dr. Marker: "Exactly. Good chance for all of us to push the reset button and start a new year well."