What you need to know before leaving for winter sports
Dr. Valleteau de Moulliac,
Pediatric consultant for Laboratoires Sarbec
Your young child can absolutely accompany the family to winter sports, but certain precautions are necessary:
- Choose an altitude suitable for their age: between 4 months and 2 years old, they can easily handle 1800 m altitude, but up to 1 year old it is preferable not to exceed 1500 m because adapting to the lower pressure and reduced oxygen content in the air could be difficult (irritability, crying, trouble sleeping, etc.). Ask your doctor for advice, especially if your child has certain chronic illnesses. Before 4 months, avoid exceeding 1000 m.
- If you are using the car, take breaks during the drive up to the resort to avoid, among other things, ear problems. Also, be careful with cable cars and chairlifts, which sometimes ascend too abruptly.
- Of course, beware of the cold: Bring suitable clothing (which is increasingly effective) in sufficient quantity, as even after a night they may still be damp. Remember the hands, feet, and head, which are even more sensitive. But don’t forget that your baby, who does not engage in any physical activity, is even more exposed to the cold than others: avoid long walks. Your baby should be protected from the cold but not bundled up too tightly in their clothes. They must be able to breathe and move. If you take them out in a stroller, a wool blanket is not superfluous.
- Protect their skin from the cold by using products suitable for their age, not forgetting the face, lips, and hands… and reapply them often!
- But also from the sun because the rays at altitude and the reflection off the snow are even more harmful. Watch out for the eyes! Your infant should therefore wear sunglasses with CE standard type 3 or 4.
- Also beware of very dry air in chalets or apartments: a humidifier can be useful.
But above all, remember that it is only as your child approaches two years old, once they have mastered walking, that they will really be able to enjoy the joys of the snow.
