One of the most important things any parent should know how to do is protect the health and safety of their children. One of the most important of these health and safety-related things is to prevent your children from getting malaria, especially if you live or travel in an area where it is prevalent. Malaria is a life-threatening disease caused by parasites that are transmitted to people through the bites of infected mosquitoes. It can be particularly serious for young children. This article provides a step-by-step guide on how you can approach the subject of malaria prevention with your children. It provides you with the right frames of reference to help them understand how to stay safe and the precautions they can take to prevent themselves from succumbing to the disease.
Understanding Malaria
However, before we dive into how and what to talk to your kids about preventing malaria, it is worth recalling what malaria is and how the infection is spread. Malaria is a parasitic disease caused by a single-celled microscopic parasite of the genus Plasmodium. It is transmitted to people through the bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes. Symptoms of malaria include fever, chills, and flu-like illness. If not diagnosed and treated promptly, malaria can be fatal.
Why It’s Important to Talk to Kids About Malaria Prevention
Teaching children about malaria prevention is crucial for several reasons:
- Awareness: children who recognize risk and who know how to prevent it are more likely to take protective measures.
- Empowerment: Knowledge empowers children to take responsibility for their health and safety.
- Prevention: children with an education are better at avoiding situations that can expose them to malaria.
Age-Appropriate Communication
How you talk to your kids about malaria prevention varies based on their age and specific understanding level. Here’s how you can adapt your explanation to each age group.
Young Children (Ages 3-7)
It’s something they need to know at this age, so keep the explanation as simple as you can and use the pictures to help:
- Storytelling – Create a simple story about a ‘hero’ who doesn’t get bitten by mosquitoes. Show that he or she sleeps under a mosquito net, and wears long sleeves and pants.
- Pictures of mosquitoes: Use the pictures provided and little drawings or toys to talk about these creatures and the risks they pose to people’s health. Don’t forget to have fun. Perhaps you could play a quiet game with your child while going through these pictures. It will be an opportunity to build their vocabulary.
Therefore by focusing on simple messages, that advocate obvious behavior such as wearing long sleeves, using mosquito nets, and avoiding areas where mosquitoes might be found, governments can significantly reduce the number of people infected by mosquito-borne illnesses.
Elementary School Children (Ages 8-12)
Children in this age group can handle more detailed information. Focus on the following:
- Malaria has three different forms: Plasmodum vivax, Plasmodum knowlesi, and Plasmodum falciparum. Malaria is spread by mosquitoes that bite humans and live in dirty water. After the mosquito bites someone, the child or anyone who gets bitten will feel worse and worse. They will eventually lose their appetite, start vomiting, and develop chills and a fever. This happens every day until three days pass. At this point, the symptoms disappear. After this process, the mosquito will come again to attack and spread the parasite all over again. Malaria is considered a plague because it comes and goes frequently. However, even if one day someone doesn’t get malaria, it will only strike someone else nearby.
- Talk about Prevention: Discuss direct prevention measures such as using insect repellant, sleeping under mosquito nets, and seeking shelter indoors when mosquitoes are most active.
- Interactive learning experience: Let them draw or re-enact scenarios in which they use repellents or hang their mosquito nets.
Teenagers (Ages 13 and Up)
Teenagers can handle even the most technical information, and will see the value of protecting against malaria Sanitise language to a more age-appropriate level: Teenagers are mature enough to handle even the most technical information and will see a serious topic as more relevant.
- More Detail: Explain how malaria works, why clearing it is important, and why it’s important to tackle malaria at a global level.
- Levels of responsibility: Encouraging users to be responsible, which includes using repellents, wearing suitable clothing, and knowing the symptoms.
- Encourage advocacy: Involve them in broader discussions about global health and the value of malaria control at the community and world levels.
Practical Tips for Malaria Prevention
After they learn the basics, show them what they can do not to get malaria:
Use Insect Repellent
Teach your children how to use insect repellent: apply as needed and according to label instructions (since these can vary by a child’s age). Tell them why it’s important to reapply as needed and make it a regular part of your prepping.
Sleep Under Mosquito Nets
Show them how to repair a mosquito net and encourage them to choose their own net design or net color, so the activity can be a fun one. Make it a learning moment by telling them that, at night when they are sleeping, mosquitoes may try to bite them. But they are safe because the net is there!
Wear Protective Clothing
Encourage your children to wear long-sleeved shirts, long pants, and socks in areas where they might be bitten by mosquitoes. Find light, comfortable, breathable clothing that’s appropriate for the climate.
Avoid Mosquito Breeding Sites
Teach them to stay clear of standing water (mosquitoes’ breeding sites). Get them involved in scouting and cleaning up potential mosquito-breeding sites (such as flower pots or gutters) around your home.
Creating a Malaria Prevention Routine
A good routine can help to reinforce habits learned for malaria prevention. A few simple ideas include:
- Daily reminders: Set a daily reminder or have your child set one on their smartphone to use spray repellent, wear protective clothing, and sleep under treated bed nets.
- Routine Check-Ins: Check in regularly with kids to make sure they are continuing to practice prevention, and address any concerns or answer questions.
- Positive reinforcement: Praise your children and reward them for following malaria prevention practices. By having an incentive to continue following the habits, they may be more likely to do so.
Addressing Concerns and Misconceptions
Children may express fears or misunderstandings about how malaria spreads and how it can be prevented. Be patient with these and correct them:
- Fear of Mosquitoes: If mosquitoes frighten your child, reinforce that repellents and nets will keep her protected and that mosquitoes are simply insects that can be easily avoided.
- Illness Understanding For Your Child: If your child is concerned about getting sick, tell them that malaria is preventable; the preventive measures you are taking are helping defend against the disease.
Involving the Whole Family
Involving the family will make prevention more successful. Make malaria prevention a family activity by:
- For example: Show People How To Do It: Demonstrate how to correctly apply repellents, use mosquito nets, and wear protective clothing. Children are more likely to behave in this way if parents do so, too.
- Family Conversations. Make it a regular habit to have family conversations on malaria prevention and try to learn from each other and share your experiences.
- Community Engagement: Join community activities designed to reduce the risk of malaria and educate other members about the importance of malaria prevention.
Resources for Further Learning
There is more you can read and do with your children to learn about preventing malaria:
- Educational Websites Resources available from organisations such as the WHO and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are very useful.
- Local Health Clinics: Contact local health clinics or organisations to find out about anti-malarial medicine, and to identify any other available resources in your community.
- Books and Guides: Look for child-themed, age-appropriate books and guides on malaria prevention. These can be a useful addition.
Knowing can prevent this. If you want to ensure your children don’t contract malaria, then you must ensure that they know everything they need to know about how to prevent malaria. Malaria can be prevented by teaching your children about the disease using age-appropriate language, and by taking preventative measures. Prevention is everybody’s business; by including malaria prevention in your daily activities you are playing your part to ensure that you create a healthy and safe environment for yourself, your family as well as for everyone.
By arming yourself and your children with early, ongoing education, you will protect them from the disease, and also imprint on them the habits that will help keep them healthy for the rest of their lives.
