Before starting school or kindergarten, children are exposed to a relatively limited variety and intensity of germs. Upon starting kindergarten/school, children quickly encounter numerous and diverse respiratory and gastrointestinal pathogens. This sudden increase in exposure leads to a significant rise in the frequency of infections, especially in the first months of school and during winter. Scientific research shows that when children start kindergarten or school, respiratory tract infections rapidly increase in the first months and then stabilize at a certain level, even if they decrease over time.
Starting kindergarten/school means the immune system simultaneously encounters numerous agents it has not encountered before. This situation can challenge the immune system's "training" process by exposing it to intense antigenic stimuli in a short period. Clinically, this can manifest as frequent upper respiratory tract infections, recurrent fevers, and increased healthcare visits. According to research, children attending kindergarten or daycare may experience 2 to 4 times more infections than their peers who are cared for at home.
The course of microorganisms that children bring home from school largely depends on the hygiene measures implemented at home. Therefore, ensuring air and surface disinfection within the home is crucial for alleviating the severity of illness and supporting the immune system's balanced strengthening.
During winter, homes are generally less ventilated due to the cold weather. When children return from school or kindergarten, they carry microorganisms, especially airborne viruses, into the home. These germs spread into the air through speaking, coughing, or breathing.
Inadequate air circulation and enclosed indoor conditions cause these microorganisms to remain suspended in the air and accumulate on surfaces. In this situation, the child spends the rest of the day and night in an environment where germs brought from outside are concentrated. Thus, airborne microorganisms multiply indoors, can easily spread to family members, and prolong the duration of the illness. Therefore, technologies that provide air and surface disinfection are of great importance to prevent the accumulation of germs in the home environment and limit the spread of airborne agents. These systems prevent microorganisms brought from outside from multiplying indoors, helping children recover from illnesses more mildly without overtaxing their immune systems.
Sterilisa Air: With its technology that filters and instantly destroys microorganisms in the air of enclosed spaces, it ensures that children are exposed to a lower microbial load during after-school hours and throughout the night, by keeping the indoor air continuously clean and disinfected even in poorly ventilated conditions during winter months.
Sterilisa Pro and Sterilisa Mini: Provide fast and effective surface disinfection in frequently touched areas such as toys, table surfaces, door handles, and remote controls.
When these two products are used together, the microbial density in the home environment is significantly reduced. This allows children's immune systems to continue strengthening by encountering germs in a controlled manner during this period, without being fatigued by overload. As a result, infections are milder, shorter-lasting, and children's immune systems develop in a balanced way.
Scientific Basis
Children's immune development is strengthened through gradual contact with microbes. However, excessive and sudden microbial load can lead to an overreaction of the immune system. Therefore, reducing the microbial density of the environment is beneficial for the "balanced training" of the immune system. Systems that provide air and surface disinfection in the home help maintain this balance.
References:
· Buonanno, G., Ricolfi, L., Morawska, L., & Stabile, L. (2022). Increasing ventilation reduces SARS-CoV-2 airborne transmission in schools: A retrospective cohort study in Italy's Marche region. Frontiers in public health, 10, 1087087.
· Schuez-Havupalo, L., Toivonen, L., Karppinen, S., Kaljonen, A., & Peltola, V. (2017). Daycare attendance and respiratory tract infections: a prospective birth cohort study. BMJ open, 7(9), e014635.
