Boarding school can be an exciting and rewarding experience for many students, but it can also be a challenge to staying healthy and maintaining good habits. Especially during the winter, when various diseases can emerge and make a home in your body due to your weakened immune system. Well, love it or hate it, but you simply can’t ignore winter.
Eating healthy can be one of the most important aspects of staying healthy while living at a boarding school. There are certain activities and habits students can adopt to make the most of the beautiful season and its festive flair, by staying healthy and active so they can enjoy it to the fullest.
Below, we list the top 8 healthy habits students should practise to stay healthy and have the most satisfying experience possible while attending boarding school.
Table of Contents
Best tips on how to stay healthy at boarding school
1. Pack all your winter essentials
2. Maintain a healthy, hygienic environment
3. Eat healthy and nutritious food
4. Have a healthy sleep schedule
5. Exercise daily
6. Stay hydrated, moistened, and warm
7. Get enough vitamin D.
8. Get regular check-ups
1. Pack all your winter essentials
Some winters are pleasant, but some are harsher and far from being a winter wonderland. During winter boarding school sessions, especially in North India, where temperatures drop dramatically, students returning to school during this time period will need to know what essentials to bring. So that they feel prepared for the season and can brave the cold while enjoying their boarding school experience.
Here are a few must-haves to include in your packing list:
- Medicines, First Aid
- Down jackets and sweaters
- Body warmers, thermals, long-sleeve t-shirts
- Scarves, beanies, and hats
- Boots, gloves, and thick socks
- Moisturizers, sunscreens, and lip balms
- Heat packs, Thermos flask
2. Maintain a healthy, hygienic environment
Maintaining good personal hygiene at school is crucial to staying healthy, clean, and free from germs. Since low temperatures are ideal for bacteria and viruses to thrive, health problems can be caused by exposure to such harmful bacteria and parasites during the winter. So, keep yourself and your surroundings clean at all times.
Here are some tips on how to uphold personal hygiene among students
- Frequent hand washing is important.
- Wash fruits and vegetables in fresh, clean water, before eating
- Keep school bags clean
- Change socks and underwear daily
- Have your clothes washed in warm water or dry cleaned.
- Wear masks at crowded places or in classes (if you feel sick)
3. Eat healthy and nutritious food
Winter is the best time to enjoy food, and proper nutrition is where it should begin. A nutritious diet keeps students alert, active, and boosts their immunity to prevent them from catching an illness. But unlike at home, parents may not be there to prepare nutritious meals. Students may need to make their own culinary choices in school, as they work with “Best Nutritional analysis software“ to prepare balanced diets. Providing them with the advantage of knowing how many calories and energy they need to flourish in their studies and extracurricular activities, while identifying unhealthy habits that are likely to become pitfalls.
Include a balanced diet consisting of these to stay warm:
- Nuts and seeds, such as walnuts
- Dry fruits, such as almonds, cashews, and pistachios
- Fruits and vegetables
- Proteins (eggs, meat, and cheese)
- Cereals
- Honey
- Hot beverages (tea, coffee, milk)
4. Have a healthy sleep schedule
The shorter days and longer nights of winter can throw sleep patterns off. Especially in schools located in the northern part of India, such as boarding schools in Shimla, Dehradun, or Massoorie, for example. As cold weather is often accompanied by warm and heavy meals, having light and healthy dinners like soups will help you sleep better. A good night’s sleep of 8 hours can help you stay healthy, burn enough calories, regulate the stress hormone cortisol, and improve your immune system. Make sure it’s important to get enough of it.
Sleep well in the winter with these tips
- Eat lighter dinners
- Stay cool—but not cold—at night
- Keep your nasal passages moist
- Drink less water before going to bed
- Apply moisturisers
- Add an extra blanket and wear socks in chilly nights
- Insulate your sleeping area
5. Exercise daily
The academic rigour at a boarding school can lead to stress and internal pressure to perform. Perhaps after this, all you want to do is curl up in bed and appreciate your lazy morning routines. Finding practical ways to reduce stress is one of the most important health tips. Whether it is a half-hour gym session, yoga, running, or brisk walking, it is important to engage in some form of physical activity daily. It will strengthen your body and let you enjoy a mentally stimulating experience. Since our bodies are meant to be moved, stretched, and challenged, you may also miss the benefits of exercising or staying active, as it helps control our body temperature and boosts immunity.
Does winter leave you sluggish? Consider these ideas if you are in a boarding school:
- Getting up early in the morning is the first step
- Drink enough water (warm water)
- Start with a walk, take hikes, a run, then a sprint
- Explore the outdoors or practice indoor
- Discover your area of interest.
- Get creative with your exercise routines
- Join a sports team or gym for a more competitive environment
6. Stay hydrated, moistened, and warm
During the winter, when you don’t drink enough water and don’t stay warm and moist, chances are that you will be dehydrated, have dry, itchy skin, and chapped lips. While drinking 8 to 10 glasses of water a day sounds easy, in the winter it can be a little difficult. It is because you don’t feel as thirsty during these chilly months as in the summer. But besides keeping your body warm with extra layers of clothing or nourishing the skin with creams and sunscreens. Drinking enough water is also important to keep the cells healthy, flush out pollutants, and balance fluids in the body.
These habits will help you keep a healthy body during the winter:
- 8 to 10 glasses of water per day
- Use sun protection cream.
- Make it a daily habit to apply moisturizer.
- Consume foods that take longer to digest
- Always stay warm with extra layers of clothing
- Make use of home remedies, or “Dadi ke nuskhe”
7. Get enough vitamin D
Vitamin D is a nutrient we often forget. As in winter, it is difficult to get enough sun exposure, which is the best source of Vitamin D! This is much more important, because it cannot be added enough to the diet as a supplement. A lack of vitamin D can lead to bone deformities and bone pain. Therefore, in winters, try to spend at least one or two hours outside in the sun, may it be on the campus of your boarding school, or terrace during chilly months, to ensure that your body receives enough Vitamin D and nutrition from early sunlight.
Good food sources of vitamin D include
- Fish (Salmon, tuna, mackerel)
- Mushrooms
- Eggs and milk
8. Get regular check-ups
Staying away from necessary exposure to illnesses is an effective way to stay healthy year-round in a boarder’s life, but an invisible disease isn’t so easy to get rid of. The winter season could bring about respiratory, heart-related, or other health issues. You may experience joint pain, lowered heart rate, breathing trouble, or blood pressure issues. The best way to find the early signs of seasonal diseases is to get yourself checked on a regular basis. If you feel any symptoms of illness, let your teachers know instead of going to class or other school events. You can also visit the on-campus “Health Services Staff” for emergency situations, as all top boarding schools have medical facilities on campus to ensure their students get medical attention when needed.
Take these considerations into account to stay healthy:
- Make sure your health insurance policy covers regular health check-ups
- Visit the on-campus medical facility staff for regular health check-ups.
- Keep teachers and health services up to date about any prolonged illness or condition
- Always have emergency medicines with you, as prescribed by doctors
- Don’t try to medicate yourself or any other person in the boarding school
- Isolate yourself if you suspect COVID-19 symptoms
Enjoy your time at boarding school
Boarding schools can provide a great opportunity to develop healthy habits and enjoy all the benefits of communal living. with access to sports equipment, nutritious meals, and excellent facilities, and taking advantage of the resources. So, students can make the most of their time away from home and have a healthy lifestyle. With these tips in mind, boarding school life should be an enriching experience for students and beneficial for their health.
Check out Top Boarding School’s Health and Wellness Program – Featured listings on boarding schools of India Website
In this section, we will cover all the facilities available at the best residential schools listed on our website to help students find the best boarding school, with superb facilities, great food, and excellent health services.
Ganga International School, Delhi
GIS understands that the health of students is of paramount importance, and medical care is given a high priority in the school. The school has a fully equipped 8-bed infirmary with the provision of an independent isolation ward, and the team of medical personnel includes two experienced nurses.
(In addition, the school has a partnership with the nearby Maharaja Agrasen Hospital, Punjabi Bagh, New Delhi for any medical emergency).
With other top facilities, the school ensures
- All students undergo a full medical examination at the beginning and end of every term.
- Students are given regular health checks, and their medical records are kept up to date
- Parents are fully informed about their child’s health throughout the year
- Various medical camps are conducted for general physique, dental check-ups, vision, and hearing tests
- Experienced physicians, nurses, and other specialists are present on campus
- First aid is given to all minor injuries that happen within the school
- To accommodate students with a hygienic and well-maintained medical room and emergency transportation service
Tula’s International School, Dehradun
Tula’s prioritises good health. So that its students can succeed both physically and mentally, the school provides extensive support services. The school has a Wellness clinic with everything a student might need to stay healthy. If you need medical attention, whether physical or mental, there are the right people here who care about your well-being, so you don’t have to worry about anything other than being comfortable here.
All such cases are urgently transported to the nearby hospital, and the parents are informed. At the start of the school year, Tula’s strongly encourage all parents to notify the infirmary of their children’s specific health concerns.
ODM Public School, Bhubaneswar ODISHA
ODM Public School takes students’ well-being very seriously. For boys and girls, they have a fully equipped infirmary with dedicated male and female pharmacists. The in-house infirmary is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and is only staffed by qualified individuals. They have their own emergency transportation and ambulance service, as well as partnerships with top hospitals in the capital city of Bhubaneswar for times of emergency.
Discovery International School, Jaipur
DIS, PAOTA is mindful of ensuring student’s good health with appointing qualified and experienced medical care in a boarding school. The medical rooms are equipped with resources to keep students healthy and playful during the winter months by preventing nagging colds and coughs. Any time medical care is needed, a qualified and experienced female doctor and a registered nurse will take care of your child. In case of emergencies, the school’s ambulance is available for immediate evacuation to a nearby hospital in Jaipur.
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