Now that fall has officially begun and flu season approaches, families are being reminded to take simple steps to help prevent the spread of illness.<\/p>\n
Dr. Ashok Chhetri, a medical health officer with the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA), says a variety of viruses can circulate among children throughout the year, with young children often experiencing several colds as their immune systems continue to develop.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe common cold is a term that can be caused by a wide variety of viruses,\u201d Chhetri said.<\/p>\n
Illnesses commonly seen among school and daycare populations include norovirus, strep throat, hand, foot and mouth disease and pink eye.<\/p>\n
Chhetri reminds families to reinforce basic hygiene habits with children.<\/p>\n
\u201cHandwashing is a very simple thing, but it\u2019s a very powerful thing,\u201d he said, adding that children should wash their hands before eating and at other appropriate times.<\/p>\n
Children should also be taught to cough or sneeze into their elbows rather than their hands, while avoiding sharing personal items such as water bottles, cups, hats and hairbrushes.<\/p>\n
At home, Chhetri recommends regularly wiping down high-touch surfaces and making sure children are getting enough sleep.<\/p>\n
\u201cSleep is a very powerful medicine,\u201d he said. \u201cA well-rested immune system can handle lots of exposure better.\u201d<\/p>\n
Knowing when to stay home<\/p>\n
Parents may also be wondering when a child should stay home from school.<\/p>\n
Chhetri says children with a fever or those who are too unwell to participate in their normal activities should remain home.<\/p>\n
For children with a fever, he recommends they be fever-free without medication for 24 hours before returning to school.<\/p>\n
Children experiencing vomiting or diarrhea should stay home until their symptoms have resolved and they are back to eating and drinking normally.<\/p>\n
A runny nose on its own, without a fever, generally does not mean a child needs to stay home.<\/p>\n
Some illnesses have more specific exclusion periods. For measles, for example, children should generally remain out of school for four days after the rash appears.<\/p>\n
Immunizations remain important<\/p>\n
As flu season approaches, families are encouraged to make sure their children’s routine vaccinations are up to date.<\/p>\n
Chhetri says measles vaccination is not required for children to attend school in Saskatchewan, but strongly encourages families to ensure children receive their recommended doses.<\/p>\n
The measles, mumps, rubella and varicella vaccine is given beginning at one year of age, followed by a second dose.<\/p>\n
Chhetri points to Saskatchewan’s measles outbreak last year as a reminder of the importance of immunization.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have seen over 130 cases of measles in Saskatchewan last year,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He says more than 90 per cent of the cases were among unvaccinated people, while more than half involved school-aged children.<\/p>\n
\u201cMeasles, mumps and rubella vaccines are really, really safe,\u201d Chhetri said. \u201cThese vaccines are going to protect you and others from getting this.\u201d<\/p>\n
While many people recover from measles, Chhetri says the disease can cause serious complications, including long-term neurological problems and, in some cases, death.<\/p>\n
Routine immunizations are also provided through the school system. Grade 6 students receive vaccines for hepatitis B and HPV, while Grade 8 students receive Tdap, which protects against tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis, or whooping cough, as well as meningococcal disease.<\/p>\n
Related Stories:<\/p>\n
Flu vaccines important as temperatures drop<\/p>\n
Flu season typically begins in November and lasts until March, however, it can fluctuate. The SHA’s Fall Immunization Program will begin in the coming weeks.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Influenza vaccine is recommended annually for everyone six months and older, with the vaccine typically becoming available in September and October.<\/p>\n
Chhetri says Saskatchewan had a difficult flu season last year, with more than 8,000 laboratory-reported cases. Only about 22 per cent of Saskatchewan residents received a flu vaccine last season.<\/p>\n
\u201cI particularly encourage the flu vaccine, which is recommended annually for everyone six months and older,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
While it is impossible to predict exactly what the upcoming flu season will look like, Chhetri says vaccination remains an important tool for reducing the spread and severity of influenza.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
A version of this article was originally published on Sept. 2, 2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Now that fall has officially begun and flu season approaches, families are being reminded to take simple steps…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":912682,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[49,48,84],"class_list":["post-912681","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/912681","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=912681"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/912681\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/912682"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=912681"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=912681"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=912681"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}