It may be a new year, but it's still cold and flu season here in the United States. Here in Florida, the season started in October which is a few months earlier than usual, and will continue until May. As a mom, I have learned some must-haves for my medicine cabinet that I have found to ease the length and severity of any sicknesses my family might contract. It's particularly important, since I still have young children, to choose natural alternatives for healing whenever possible. Hopefully, this information can help other families who are struggling this season with being sick.
For Fever
Our favorite thing to use for fever is a product called Be Koool Soft Gel Sheets. These are perfect for when your child is feverish and you're not sure if you should administer a fever reducing medication. I actually discovered these when my 5 year old son had a stomach bug. I bought them as a desperate attempt to get him to stop vomiting. I placed one of the gel pads on the back of his neck and luckily it cooled him down enough so that he could rest. Each gel pad has a backing that, when removed, exposes a sticky surface so that it stays where ever you apply it. The pads are also the perfect size for small foreheads. The coolness lasts for up to 8 hours as well. It's a lovely, medicine free approach to reducing fever and is particularly handy when your child develops a fever at night.
Sore Throats
Several years ago most of the over the counter cold and cough medications for children were removed from the market. It came down to parents overdosing their small children unintentionally. Alternatives had to be found to at least provide some relief of suffering from the symptoms of a sickness while tiny immune systems could fight the big battle. I was so relieved when our pediatrician suggested administering a teaspoon of raw honey to our 4 year old who was suffering from the croup. If you've ever had a child with the croup, you know it is one of the scariest things ever because they develop a seal like bark when coughing. It sounds far worse than it actually is, thankfully, and raw honey soothes the throat enough to relax the muscles. The other plus to honey, is that it's one of natures antibiotics.
Your best bet is to seek out local raw honey from a farmer you trust. You might be shocked by the price of it, but trust me, it's worth it's weight in gold. Local honey is the bees knees because it's made from pollen found in your surrounding area. This helps support your immune system and as a result a teaspoon a day has been found to alleviate seasonal allergies. Honey of any kind is not recommended for children under 2 years of age.
Chest Congestion
Chest congestion can be absolutely miserable and really difficult to get rid of in kids. For children, 8 and up, I have used Stinging Nettle tea with great results. Nettle is one of those wonderful things that nature gives us that does an amazing job of eliminating mucus in the body. As an asthmatic, nettle has literally been a lifesaver for me. I will say it has a unique flavor, but the results are so worth it. I use nettle by combining a teaspoon of the loose dried leaf in a tea ball with a cup of hot water. Let it steep for 3 minutes and drink it down. You do have to take care with nettle, it is a diuretic so it's not recommended for pregnant women. I drink a cup in the morning and a cup at night, but for children one cup a day should suffice. The brand I use is Frontier Organics and it can be found on Amazon.
Upset Stomach
Ginger is my go to for tummy troubles. When I was a kid my dad would get a bottle of ginger ale for us to drink and it was always so soothing. I'm not a huge fan of giving the kids sugary drinks though, so I go for the real root. Most grocery stores these days carry raw ginger root in the produce section. Look for a young root. Bigger is not better because the larger ones are are older and tend to be woody. Peel the root and the grate about a half teaspoon into a cup and pour boiling water over it. Let this steep for 5 minutes. Ginger has a bit of a spicy kick to it, so I like to add a little honey to tame it for the younger palate.
Preventative Measures
Of course, the best thing you can do for your family is to help them build up their immune systems which will help them stay healthy and fight off potential sicknesses from the get go. There are several ways to do this, most importantly of which is a healthy real food diet. Cutting out excess sugars, trans fats, and processed foods goes a long way to building an immune system that can kick some serious viral butt. There are also foods that we increase during the cold and flu season to help boost our systems. Garlic, turmeric, and cinnamon are essential in our cooking.
Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.
Hippocrates
Another very important item to have on hand is Four Thieves Oil. If you've never had any experience with essential oils it might seem a little overwhelming. Really though, they are very simple to use with a few common sense precautions. Essential oils are extremely power and certain ones even rival pharmaceuticals in power and effectiveness. However, just because they are derived from plants does not mean they are safe for everyone and should be used sparingly in ever case. Four Thieves Oil is an especially powerful blend of essential oils and the combination itself has been in use since the black plague. In fact, the name Four Thieves oils comes from the combined oils being worn by a group of four thieves who were able to rob the bodies of black plague victims without contracting the plague themselves. There are a few variations on what the combination can be but it's generally cinnamon, clove, rosemary, and eucalyptus essential oils.
For applying Four Thieves Oil, I use 1 drop mixed with a 1/4 teaspoon of carrier oil applied to the bottom of each foot on children 3 and under. On older children I apply 1 drop neat to each foot. Neat simply means no carrier oil is used. The reason it's applied to the feet is that is generally the quickest way to getting circulating throughout the system. More is not better with essential oils because everything that goes into the body gets circulated through the liver and applying more just means the liver has to work harder to balance the system. I personally like the Frontier Organics brand of essential oils. Plant Therapy is also a very good brand though and I have spoken on many occasions with the company regarding where they source their oils from and am happy with their responsible approach.
Hoping you enjoyed learning how we combat the sicknesses throughout the year. I plan to do more posts regarding natural living as it is near and dear to my heart!!