You can be prepared to tackle cold and flu germs this year with these helpful tips from the Mayo Clinic and our safe and natural homeopathic medicines.

- Wash your hands. Frequent hand washing is the simplest and most effective way to prevent illness. Remind your child to wash his hands before eating and after using the toilet, blowing his nose, or playing outside. Soap up for as long as it takes to sing the “Happy Birthday” song.

- Use hand sanitizer. Give your child alcohol-based sanitizer to keep at his desk and use before eating snacks or lunch or after using shared classroom objects. You can also donate disinfecting wipes to the classroom for general use.

- Cover your mouth and nose when you cough or sneeze. Give your child a pack of tissues to keep in his desk, and encourage him to sneeze or cough into a tissue or the crook of his elbow, and then wash his hands or use hand sanitizer.

- Don’t share water bottles, food or other personal items. Here’s a simple rule for your children to remember: If you put the item in your mouth, keep it to yourself!

And don’t forget—eat a healthy diet, get plenty of sleep, and be prepared by keeping homeopathic cough, cold and flu medicines on-hand at all times. Children’s Oscillo (flu-like symptoms), Children’s Chestal (coughs), and Children’s Coldcalm Pellets (cold symptoms) are safe, natural medicines that work best at the first sign of symptoms. Available at select major retailers and local natural product stores nationwide, you can use our store locator to find the nearest store that carries our products. Visit our new Children’s Oscillo and Children’s Chestal websites for product information, healthy living tips, coupons, and social media links, and have a great first day of school!

Camilia is a one-product solution for painful gums and irritability caused by teething. It’s benzocaine-free and does not contain preservatives, flavors, dyes, sugar or artificial sweeteners. Doses of Camilia are easy to administer to children one month of age and older, and there’s no risk of overmedicating or numbing your baby’s gag reflex.

Stay up-to-date on special offers and Camilia coupons by visiting our Camilia Facebook page or following us on Twitter. And coming soon! Camilia teething medicine will soon be available at Walgreens and CVS – let us know when you see it on your store shelf! Use our store locator to find the retailer nearest you that carries Camilia.

We want to give a sincere shout out from the entire Boiron team to all of the bloggers, marketing professionals and fellow vendors who took the time to stop by our booth to learn a little bit about us and to share their success stories with our products. Your energy and enthusiasm was infectious! Kudos to you!

Whitmore has worked as a set medic for over 15 years. During that time, he’s worked with the casts of several popular films, including “The Social Network,” “The Hangover,” “Rush Hour 3,” “The Benchwarmers” and “The Longest Yard.” In the past, he’s had great success using Boiron products on several famous actors such as Jackie Chan, Adam Sandler and Burt Reynolds.

Whitmore was the production medic on the 2005 film, “The Longest Yard,” starring Sandler, Reynolds and Chris Rock. “This movie involved full contact football. I used Boiron’s Arnicare Cream on several cast members, including Sandler, Brian Bosworth and Michael Irvin, and in each case, they had great results. Arnicare Cream quickly became the treatment of choice for the cast and crew,” says Whitmore. “Colds and flu always spread through a movie’s crew, and ‘The Longest Yard’ was no exception. I carry Boiron’s Oscillo and Coldcalm in my kit and use it all the time—Oscillo is the Cadillac of flu medications that everyone requests! I introduced Sandler to Oscillo on the set of ‘Spanglish,’ and he used it with success. Reynolds found that the Coldcalm really worked wonders.”

In 2007, Jackie Chan recognized Whitmore’s hard work on the set of “Rush Hour 3.” “[An] important job on any film production is that of the medic. Whitmore is the man to see when you have a headache, indigestion, a cut, or any other ache or pain. He took me on a tour of his traveling pharmacy and showed me a dazzling assortment of medications, sprays, creams and bandages,” including, of course, some Boiron medicines.

And on the set of Whitmore’s most recent project, “Bad Teacher” (2011), even the sound mixer was impressed with Coldcalm, saying that it worked as advertised and thanking Whitmore for having it on his cart.

While Whitmore’s job may not be as glamorous as the people that he treats, he is definitely a well-respected man on any film or TV set. Cast and crew members rely on Whitmore to keep them healthy, and he does just that—with some help from Boiron!

A Child Grows in Brooklyn Baby Expo will showcase top resources for Brooklyn parents and provide a space where they can interact with other parents and children, exhibitors and experts. Parents can shop for gear, clothes and furniture, while getting pampered with manicures and blow-outs. Hands-on activities include testing carriers and learning CPR, how to make baby food, and how to install a car seat. There are also mini-workshops on setting good sleep habits, school zoning, and how to select a doula and/or nanny. Activities for babies and children include Tummy Time, Baby Yoga, first lock cuts, haircuts, food tastings and more.

The first 250 registered attendees will receive eco-bags filled with fabulous goodies, including Boiron’s Camilia teething medicine. Throughout the day, parents will have the chance to win raffle prizes valued at $75-$650. Bloggers attending the event will receive a box of Arnicare Gel, and everyone who attends “The Expectant Parents Guide to Brooklyn” session (held from 3-3:45 p.m.) will receive their own box of Oscillococcinum.

When: Sunday, March 13, 2011

Time: 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Where: Toren, 150 Myrtle Ave., Brooklyn 11201

Cost: $35/ticket, or 2 for $60

Register: To register for the event, click here.

About A Child Grows in Brooklyn

Karen Connell started the blog A Child Grows in Brooklyn in 2006 as a place for her and her friends to share information about services in Brooklyn. In four years, it’s grown to 140,000 page views a year. Karen writes about news and services, activities, events, resources, “best of Brooklyn,” “top of the shop,” product reviews and more. The best Brooklyn pediatricians, moms and dads, parent coaches, nutritionists and doulas have continued to share their knowledge on the blog, and together they’ve made it a virtual “home” for Brooklyn parents.

The hash tag for the Baby Expo is #BKBABYEXPO. Follow Twitter conversations on @buzzingbloggers and @achildgrows.

Our Arnicare is a proud sponsor of the 4^th Annual Red Top Rumble being held this upcoming weekend in Cartersville, Ga. Organized by the Georgia Ultrarunning & Trailrunning Society (GUTS), the Red Top Rumble is an 11.5-mile trail run through Red Top Mountain State Park. This year’s race, being held on Sunday, February 6, reached its maximum capacity of 300 runners in just 24 hours! GUTS is also offering a 1-mile Kids Trail Trot on Sunday.  This is the third year we have sponsored this running event.

All trail run participants will receive a t-shirt and goodie bag, including their own tube of Arnicare Cream, perfect for relieving their sore muscles after this tough run. Race attendees will also have the chance to win one of 12 Boiron cough, cold and flu value packs. Each pack contains Oscillococcinum, Chestal and Coldcalm—essentials for staying healthy during cold and flu season so you don’t miss a run.

Red Top Mountain State Park is a popular park on the 12,000-acre Lake Allatoona in northwest Georgia, and a portion of the race’s proceeds will go to support the Friends of Red Top Mountain State Park. The funds will help furnish the Mountain Cove Discovery Room, a new family-friendly activity center inside the park featuring exhibits about the site’s rich mining history, as well as local wildlife education. The Discovery Room’s grand opening will be held later this month.

Check back with us in the coming weeks for race photos and insights from runners participating in the event.

Rachel Harris appears on Wednesdays at 10 a.m. on “Your Life A to Z” with beauty, health and parenting tips. Dr. Ramsey, a naturopathic medical doctor, appears on the show on Tuesdays, and runs the Center for Natural Healing in Paradise Valley, AZ.