Promoting Health & Wellness
Health and wellness are an important part of life, especially for children with DD/ID who are at an increased risk for certain health conditions. Health and wellness are affected by behavior, barriers to health care, and genetics. Healthy lifestyles begin by creating good habits from the start.
Every family needs to find the best ways to implement a healthy lifestyle by eating healthy foods and engaging in fun exercises. Learning about health risks could also help with prevention and the initiation of timely treatments.
SUPPORTING HEALTH AND WELLNESS INTERVENTIONS AT HOME
Healthy Diet
Physical Activity
Sleep
Stress Management
A healthy diet consists of nutritious foods that support growth and development. Some choices for healthy foods may include:
- Whole fruits
- Variety of vegetables
- Low-fat or fat-free dairy products after age 2
- Note: children under 12 months should drink breast milk or formula, and children between 12 months and 2 should drink whole milk.
- Whole grains
- Protein, like beans, soy, seafood, lean meats, poultry, and unsalted nuts and seeds
- Drink plenty of water
External Resources:
- Start Simple with MyPlate, by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
- Nutrition Resources, by American Academy of Pediatrics
According to the CDC, children ages 3-5 should be active throughout the day and children ages 6-17 should have 60 minutes or more of moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity daily. There are so many ways to incorporate fun physical activities that will help your child reach the daily recommended amount of exercise.
Some examples include:
Some examples include:
- Swimming
- Dancing
- Playing sports
- Walking the dog
- Biking
External Resources:
- Fitness, by American Academy of Pediatrics
A healthy sleep routine includes: a bedtime routine, a consistent sleep schedule, sleeping through the night, and age-appropriate sleep duration (9-11 hours).
Strategies to improve your child’s sleep:
- Set up a sleep schedule
- Have a regular time for going to bed and waking up all year long
- Keep your child’s room quiet and dark
- Consider white noise or soft music
- No TV/electronics in the bedroom
- Maintain a comfortable room temperature and humidity
- Find comfortable bedding texture
Strategies to help your child better understand their sleep routine:
- Review what is expected, like falling asleep in their own bed
- Use a picture schedule or social story about their bedtime routine
- Ignore problem behavior, like requests to sleep in your bed or asking for a snack
Strategies to promote sleep safety:
- Put a lock, doorbell, or alarm on the child’s door, if your child walks during sleep or is at risk of running away at night
- Use a baby monitor or window guards to ensure your child’s safety while they sleep
External Resources:
- Sleep and Sleep Disorders, by CDC
- Healthy Sleeping Tips, by Special Olympics
Stress management can help prevent behavior difficulties in your child. Strategies to decrease stress are helpful in children who tend to be anxious, aggressive, get easily angry, and overreact during transitions or when asked to do a non-preferred activity.
Strategies to decrease stress include:
- Create a visual schedule made of pictures showing your child’s activities throughout the day. This will prepare them for transitions.
- Adjust expectations to your child’s developmental age.
- Use meditation, breathing exercises, or yoga
- Use techniques like deep breathing, counting, or taking a break
- Listen to calming music
- Perform a soothing activity
- Spending time with a dog, cat, or other pet
- Spending quality time with a parents, sibling, or friend
External Resources:
- Building Resilience in Children, by American Academy of Pediatrics
SUPPORTING HEALTH AND WELLNESS INTERVENTIONS IN THE COMMUNITY
Special Olympics Programs
One way to encourage physical activity and active play is by having your child participate in their local Special Olympics Program. Special Olympics has a number of programs for children of all ages that continue into adulthood.
Special Olympics provides children and adults with and without DD/ID with the opportunity to participate in various sports training and competitions. Being on a Special Olympics team has many added benefits outside of physical activity, including supporting leadership and teamwork skills, while developing friendships and connecting with the community.
One way to encourage physical activity and active play is by having your child participate in their local Special Olympics Program. Special Olympics has a number of programs for children of all ages that continue into adulthood.
Special Olympics provides children and adults with and without DD/ID with the opportunity to participate in various sports training and competitions. Being on a Special Olympics team has many added benefits outside of physical activity, including supporting leadership and teamwork skills, while developing friendships and connecting with the community.
Young Athletes (Ages 2-7)
Special Olympics Young Athletes is an early childhood play program for children with and without DD/ID, ages 2 to 7 years old. Young Athletes introduces basic sport skills, like running, kicking and throwing and offers families, teachers, caregivers, and people from the community the chance to share the joy of sports with all children.
Young Athletes provides children of all abilities the same opportunities to advance in core developmental milestones and supports development of a variety of skills, including motor, social, emotional and learning skills. Children learn how to play with others and develop important skills for learning. Children also learn to share, take turns and follow directions. These skills help children in family, community and school activities.
Young Athletes provides children of all abilities the same opportunities to advance in core developmental milestones and supports development of a variety of skills, including motor, social, emotional and learning skills. Children learn how to play with others and develop important skills for learning. Children also learn to share, take turns and follow directions. These skills help children in family, community and school activities.
Sports and Unified Sports (Ages 8+)
Special Olympics operates sports training and competition programs for people with DD/ID across almost 200 countries around the world. Children and adults, starting at age 8, can participate in Special Olympics’ sports programming in over 30 individual and team sports. Special Olympics athletes participate in regular training and compete in local, regional, national, or global competitions.
In addition to Special Olympics’ traditional sports, Special Olympics Unified Sports brings people with and without DD/ID together to train and compete on the same team. Unified Sports is inspired by principles of inclusion and the belief that training together and playing together is a quick path to friendship and understanding.
Special Olympics sport and Unified Sports are easy ways to incorporate regular exercise and physical activity into your child’s routine, while helping them improve in their self-confidence, teamwork and social skills.
In addition to Special Olympics’ traditional sports, Special Olympics Unified Sports brings people with and without DD/ID together to train and compete on the same team. Unified Sports is inspired by principles of inclusion and the belief that training together and playing together is a quick path to friendship and understanding.
Special Olympics sport and Unified Sports are easy ways to incorporate regular exercise and physical activity into your child’s routine, while helping them improve in their self-confidence, teamwork and social skills.
Strong Minds
Strong Minds is an interactive learning activity focused on developing adaptive coping skills. This program is a part of Special Olympics and supports your child’s emotional health and well-being. Through multiple activities which can be used at home or at school, individually or in a group, your child will learn how to cope with stress.
Special Olympics Resources:
Find Special Olympics Near You
Get in touch with us to volunteer, become an athlete, join a Unified Sports team, work as a coach and to learn about upcoming events.
Young Athletes
Special Olympics Young Athletes is an early childhood play program for children with and without intellectual disabilities, ages 2 to 7 years old.
Young Athletes at Home
Young Athletes offers families a collection of resources and activities for inclusive play at home.
Sports
Special Olympics offers 30-plus Olympic-style individual and team sports that provide meaningful training and competition opportunities for persons with intellectual disabilities.
Unified Sports
About 1.4 million people worldwide take part in Unified Sports, breaking down stereotypes about people with intellectual disabilities in a really fun way.
Strong Minds Activity Guide
Strong Minds is an interactive learning activity focused on developing adaptive coping skills. Competition provides a natural opportunity to develop active strategies for maintaining emotional wellness under stress, such as: thinking positive thoughts, releasing stress and connecting with others.
