Natural Remedies for Kids

My poor P'nut got a bit of a cold this trip... sniffles, cough, and all. And with school starting up, I'm sure many of you will have kids who are battling the same bugs.

When your child is sick it seems OK to reach right for the medicine cabinet; but it’s not always necessary. Here are five things that can help your child feel better that contain no chemicals, or artificial flavors or colors.

Sore throats: Lemon juice and honey - you can put both in tea or simply warm water, but it’s more effective to mix together 1 to 2 tablespoons of each, warm slightly, and allow your child to take it full force. Don’t forget that kids under a year of age cannot have honey though.

Tummy and head pain: Fill an old (but clean) sock with rice or barley. Fill it mostly, but for a child you shouldn’t fill it too full, you want it to be pliable. Add some dried lavender or mint, or some lavender essential oil. You can microwave the sock (not too hot) and place it over pained tummies or heads. It’s also great for muscle aches. For swelling or fever you can keep the same sock in the freezer.

Stress: Even kids get stressed. Some parents like to resort to Benadryl, thinking a good nights sleep will help, others resort to heavier meds. Kids sometimes can fight off anxiety and stress with no meds though. Blowing bubbles is perfect because the relaxing motion of breathing in and out, plus the breathing act itself can sooth stress. Building with plain old clay, not play-dough, but the harder to mold typical clay is useful for relieving stress. Lastly, you can let your child color a mandala - these have been used for elderly and cancer patients to relieve stress.

Tummy aches and motion sickness: Ginger - either in dried candy form, tincture (dissolved in water), or dried made into tea is useful for tummy upset. This works really well!!!

Nose bleeds: Put cayenne pepper on a tiny cloth and dap it around the nose. There’s actually science to back up pepper being a clotting method. It’s been noted that you should make sure your little one’s head is tilted upright, and pinch her nostrils together (one - three minutes). Then put a little pepper on a small slightly wet cloth or Q-tip and dab the inner nose (carefully - don’t go sticking things too far up a little nose). While I haven’t tried this, studies note that this doesn’t sting at all.

Of course if you’re having a medical emergency, or even treatment doubts, always call your child’s health care provider before applying treatment.