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Home › Articles › Toddler Health › Dr. Mother Nature

Dr. Mother Nature

Natural Healing for Kids

By Crystal Patriarche

Pages:  1  2  3  

(Rodale Press, 2001), says natural remedies are vital for children's health. "Almost all medications have the potential for side effects," he says. "Natural healing, when used properly, has little chance of causing side effects."

Dr. Stengler says parents should seek advice from holistic or naturopathic doctors and have a balanced reference book for proper usage and dosage of herbs and natural healing therapies to use with children. He also encourages parents to discuss the integration of herbal medicine and conventional medicine with their family doctor. He says some herbs are toxic, and side effects can occur when they are not used properly.

Both Drs. Stengler and Schwaiger agree that when a child has a high fever, is not responding to natural treatments or becomes sluggish and unresponsive, parents should seek immediate medical treatment. "An important thing to remember when contemplating a visit to a licensed naturopathic physician is that we are trained in making conventional diagnosis and have the capability to prescribe medications when appropriate," says Dr. Schwaiger. "We use the same diagnostic laboratory methods to identify the problem. We are more than just doctors who hand out herbs. A combination of nutrition and natural medicine help balance the systems of the body so you are treating the cause of the ailment not just temporarily getting rid of the symptoms."

Healing Naturally

Earaches or ear infections
Use a yellow onion wrapped in light cloth and hold to the ear. The onion helps reduce swelling and promotes circulation. Garlic oil drops also help. Warm the garlic oil by holding it under warm water and then apply two warm drops in the ear.

Stomachaches
Ginger (in tea form or capsules) helps reduce motion sickness and nausea. Peppermint tea relieves both stomachaches and headaches.

Common cold
Use herbal teas like chamomile or chop up garlic into the child's mashed potatoes. Garlic is known for its antiviral and antibacterial properties.

Fever
For fevers less than 103 degrees F, run cool water over a pair of cotton socks. Ring them out and put on child's feet. Cover wet socks with a dry pair of wool socks and leave on child to reduce fever.

Splinters
A ripened banana peel is rich in enzymes that help draw out splinters. Apply the pulp side of the banana peel to the skin and keep in place with a piece of tape. Leave on overnight. The next day the splinter should be ready to pull out.

Burns/scrapes
Apply a thin coat of honey to affected area and cover with gauze pad.


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