I’m one of those moms who mistrusts antibacterial hand sanitizer. Whether I’m at home or on the road, slathering noxious chemicals on my children’s skin just doesn’t strike me as a good long-term health strategy.

You can’t have a successful family vacation with sick kids, though. Here are the top five things you can do to keep kids healthy while traveling.

Wash hands well and often

When you’re exposed to germy armrests, tray tables, doorknobs and escalator handrails, the best defense is to channel your inner Lady Macbeth. Which is to say, wash your hands obsessively and make your kids do the same. And don’t just let them dampen their fingertips either. A good hand washing should last at least as long as one full round of the alphabet song.

Stay hydrated

Drinking lots of water is all well and good, but it’s actually dry nasal passages that make us more susceptible to cold viruses. If your kids will let you (a big if), keep their little noses more cold-resistant with saline spray. If you’re going somewhere very dry, such as a mountain resort, sleep with a humidifier on.

Be your own pharmacy

Packing any medicine your child has ever taken can give you a lot of peace of mind when traveling. I always bring pain reliever, allergy medicine, a thermometer, hydrocortisone cream, tweezers, saline spray, first aid cream, and lots and lots of bandages. If I’m going somewhere exotic, I prepare for stomach problems, pink eye and bacterial infections too. Better to have and not need it instead of the other way around.

Get vaccinated

Remember when the flu shot was always a shot? No more. Needle chickens everywhere (my entire family included) rejoiced when flu mist vaccines became widely available as an alternative to injections. It’s ridiculously easy to take care of this little errand too. We get ours at the grocery store, usually in October. You should too.

Eat right and sleep enough

There may be no scientific evidence showing that little immune systems get compromised by too much ice cream and not enough sleep, but it makes sense. Stress is bad for health and nothing stresses a family out more than missing much-needed shuteye. By all means treat yourself to some fun foods on your trip, but don’t completely forget about nutrition either.