Children get sick. It's part of their natural development as the body learns to build its immune system. Yet, in our modern world filled with medications for anything and everything, we often forget that the body is designed to overcome immune challenges. Not only can it recover naturally in most cases, it will become stronger as the recuperation process will result in the creation of appropriate antibodies.
Many naturally inclined health professionals advise parents not to panic at the onset of a child’s illness, as illness should be expected to a certain degree. In most cases, parents should simply take the “wait and see” approach while trying to support their child as the body strives to heal naturally. One suggestion is to allow the child to try to fight off an illness on his/her own for about three days before taking more drastic measures. If after three days no improvement is noted or the illness is getting worse, a visit to a doctor is recommended. Of course, if the child exhibits very grave symptoms such as an extremely high fever over 103°F or is at serious risk of dehydration, a doctor should be consulted immediately.
Why Panicking Can Create Problems
The problem with overreacting to a child’s sickness is that it interferes with the body’s own healing mechanism. For example, if a child has a medium-grade fever and a parent decides to use medicine to bring down the fever, this will interfere with the body’s own means of fighting off microbes such as bacteria or viruses. The benefit of a fever is that the high internal temperature helps to destroy these pathogens.
In the majority of cases, fevers do not present a major risk for children. According to Dr. Thomm, a naturopathic doctor of the Bambu Clinic in Portland, Oregon, febrile seizures have statistically not been proven to be a real problem. And in his book,How To Raise A Healthy Child In Spite Of Your Doctor, the late pediatrician Robert Mendelsohn states that medications to lower fever are not only unnecessary but also counterproductive because they disable the body’s natural defense system.
Another way parental interference can be counterproductive is when a parent panics and unnecessarily takes their child to an emergency room. Many parents do not realize that taking their sick child into a hospital environment will more than likely expose the vulnerable child to even more microbes. Hospitals are some of the unhealthiest spaces and should be avoided unless absolutely necessary.
How Shoudl You Treat Vomiting?
First, ensure your sick child is getting adequate rest. The body needs lots of sleep and relaxation so that it can wage a good fight against the invading pathogens.
The next step is to replenish and maintain electrolytes that have been lost through vomiting and possible diarrhea because the loss of electrolytes can lead to dehydration. A simple technique for reducing vomiting is to stop all usual foods and beverages, and stick to the prescribed protocol below, which can be applied to children from the age of one onwards although slightly smaller than stated amounts can be given to children below two years of age.
Dissolve one teaspoon of table salt in half a glass of purified water, making sure you mix thoroughly. Give one-half to one tablespoon of the liquid to the child every 10 minutes. If necessary, the child can have another spoon of regular water following the salt water. In cases where the child will not drink the salt water alone, a small amount of sugar may be added to the water to improve the flavor.
After an hour of providing the liquid at regular 10-minute intervals and vomiting has ceased, a small amount of food can be offered. A teaspoon of mashed banana, grated apple, or cooked white rice can be given to the child every 10 minutes. Be careful not to exceed recommendations.
A common mistake parents make with a sick child is overfeeding or forcing too many liquids. Doing so can be detrimental as it can trigger further vomiting, which leads to further loss of electrolytes and fluids. Following the protocol suggested above will not provoke the body in an aggressive manner. It is perfectly fine for children to eat like this for a couple of days while recovering. In fact, overloading the body with too much food can slow down recovery because digestion will divert energy away from the immune response.
As parents, it is wise to become reacquainted with some of the more natural and effective ways that have traditionally been used to help children recover from illness. Medications do have their place but sometimes the most effective cure to our children’s health problems may be found in a little ancient wisdom.
