EMXC General Health and Safety and Immunization Guidelines

Updated August 23, 2023

It is important to realize that in a group, illness (both major and minor) spreads rapidly in spite of everyone’s best efforts. Illness can become epidemic in a group setting and even more so in a group living situation. Rest and recovery is critical to athletic training. You are not helping yourself, and could be harmful to others, if you show up ill to train or compete. Please also remember that some athletes have asthma, and asthma attacks can be triggered by relatively mild upper respiratory infections (i.e. the “common cold”).

EMXC General Illness Policy

Do NOT travel to or show up for EMXC Youth practices or events or EMXC Juniors' team-house camps, Junior or Senior National trips, Eastern Cup Weekends, U16 or EHS Championship weekends, other team races or team practices with any of the following illnesses or symptoms:

  • Illness with fever (defined as >100.4 F by mouth). You must remain home until fever-free for at least 24 hours without the use of fever lowering agents such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen, and with improvement in all symptoms.

  • Vomiting or diarrhea. You must be able to eat and drink normally, be able to participate in all activities and be free of symptoms for 48 hours.

  • Coughs/ Colds. Use good judgment here. If you do not have a fever and your cough is mild, you may attend practice/events. If your cough is not mild, please consider staying home. Consider whether you will be able to participate fully in all activities - if you cannot please stay home.

  • Strep throat. You must be on antibiotics for 24 hours prior to returning to practice.

  • Pneumonia. If you were diagnosed with bacterial pneumonia, you must be on antibiotics for 24 hours prior to returning to practice.

EMXC Immunization Policy

  • The EMXC Health and Safety Committee strongly recommends that all EMXC athletes check with their primary care physician to ensure they are up to date with their routine childhood immunizations. If you are not sure if you are, ask your pediatrician.

  • The EMXC Health and Safety Committee strongly recommends that all EMXC athletes receive the annual influenza vaccine, and remain up to date with COVID-19 immunization.

  • This policy is subject to change and the Health and Safety Committee reserves the right to review an individual athlete's immunization record for completion.

General Tips on Illness Prevention

As illnesses can spread rapidly in a group setting, it is important to do what you can to prevent them---not just for your own health but for the health of your teammates. Part of being on a team is taking care of each other. Below are some important ways to do this.

  • Sleep! 8 hours is the recommended, minimum, overnight sleep duration for teenagers. 10 hours is the recommended, minimum, overnight sleep duration for school-aged children through age 12.

  • Fuel and hydrate properly. You are working and training hard - respect your body’s demands for calories and water.

  • Wash your hands, cover when you cough, and do not share water bottles! You know this.

  • Wear tick repellant. Lyme disease is endemic in the Northeastern United States. Applying tick repellant (DEET is the gold standard) to exposed skin when you are in wooded/ tall grassy areas is very effective. As is a daily, head to toe, tick check.