If kids have poor diets, will their bodies have what it takes to battle H1N1?

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The H1N1 flu vaccine on a table before use. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

By Jason Overholt

Story Created: Oct 26, 2009 at 3:19 PM EST

Story Updated: Oct 26, 2009 at 3:27 PM EST

Many parents are trying to do everything they can to try and prevent their kids from catching the flu.

Carol Kline of Mishawaka has a Good Question: "If kids have poor diets, will their bodies have what it takes to battle the H1N1 flu?"

Four hours before the flu shot clinic even started, people lined up at Lake Michigan College Saturday in Benton Harbor. Many of them were parents determined to protect their children from H1N1.

“I left at 5:45 from my house, and I got here at 6 a.m., and it's important to protect my child,” Said Nanine Cvengros, a Berrien County mother.

Vaccination is the best protection. 1,500 people were vaccinated Saturday in Benton Harbor. But from hand sanitizer to changes at local Catholic Church services, so many are looking for anyway to avoid H1N1, but your diet may not be much of a factor.

“Well, of course we do want to endorse a good diet, but it doesn't seem to make a big difference what diet the child is taking,” Said Dr. Glen Davis, a pediatrician with the South Bend Clinic.

“If they have been exposed by a classmate or someone at home, this is probably the first time their immune system has seen that virus, so they are likely to develop H1N1 If they are adequately exposed,” said said Davis. “So their diet probably doesn't make a big difference.”

So the best advice remains getting your child vaccinated.

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