MIAMI, FL--(Marketwire - September 17, 2010) - For many parents, preparing for the school year means stocking up on school supplies and purchasing a new wardrobe for their children. But with back-to-school coinciding with cold and flu season, parents should also focus on ways to protect their child's immune system by setting up regular bedtimes and adding immunity supplements like Xigo to the daily routine.
Experts say the average child will catch six to 10 colds a year but there are proactive steps you can take to minmize your child's risk of becoming a bacteria magnet.
According to Karen Paris, physician assistant to medical director Dr. Fred Pescatore at New York City's Medicine 369, sleep is the easiest immune booster.
"Children need at least eight hours or more of sleep on school nights and teens really need a minimum of nine hours," says Paris. "Not having enough sleep can negatively affect your child's classroom performance but it can also severely suppress immune function, making your child more susceptible to colds, flu and viruses like mononucleosis."
Paris says the physical and emotional stress of going back to school can also deplete the body's natural defenses against bacteria and viruses, which is why supplementation is a smart strategy.
Xigo (pronounced chee-go) is a dietary supplement made up of three ingredients, beta-glucan, L-glutamine and lactoferrin, designed to work with the immune system to detect, defend and deter against bacteria and viruses that have the potential to cause sickness. Currently, a 140-person, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical study of the Xigo Maximum Immune Defense formula is underway to establish the product's effectiveness in the relief of symptoms from the common cold.
"Beta-glucan has immune-modulating components, which when needed, will activate the immune system to fight off bacteria and viruses. L-glutamine is an amino acid that activates the specific components of the immune system needed to fight off infections, while lactoferrin is found in mucus membranes of the intestinal and respiratory tract, and acts as a protective barrier against viruses and bacteria," says Paris. "Low levels of glutamine and lactoferrin correlate to lowered immunity."
For more tips on protecting your child's health this school year, go to: http://www.xigohealth.com and download a free copy of Paris' article, "7 Tips for a Healthy School Year." Xigo can be purchased at select natural health food stores and The Vitamin Shoppe.
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