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Thanks Annpan, I didn't know actually.

Well I never got round to any of it yesterday, as she seemed fine after her siesta, and hasn´t puked since and no snot

However......now I´m really queasy and can´t even look at food! And to top that LO is still a little off her food and just wants to be BF.......I´m exhausted. Today is definitely one of those "surrender" days.....the jungle book is on a loop!

When it comes to fevers I, personally, have no faith in the homeopathic route, but by the same token I dislike administering children's paracetamol preparations willy-nilly. Not because of the paracetamol, mind you, but all the other muck - benzoates, sorbitol and my personal should-be-banned-from-the-house, aspartamine.

I do like the approach of using food as medicine, though. For mild fevers (99 or lower) I try to get the children (if they have an appitite) to eat plenty of foods rich in salicylates: oranges and red fruits, tomatoes and red peppers.

Salicylate drugs such as aspirin have a powerful fever-lowering effect, and while children should NEVER be given aspirin where a fever might be related to infection by a virus (so, in practice, never at all, since this cannot be easily diagnosed at home) because of the risk of Reyes syndrome developing, plant salicylates being somewhat different chemically do not carry this risk.

I confess that actual research investigating this approach is mixed, though if you trawl around the internet using "salicylates health benefits" there is some interesting stuff out there. But I figure that anything that increases the amount of fruit & veg the children eat has to be a good thing.

I agree about the ginger though. Fantastic for nausea.

RiffRaff, have you ever tried willo bark tea? not sure about it's use for children as I'm not sure how close the salicylates in it are to chemical salicylic acid; but I was happily surprised.

*has just chucked the Medinol away*

Fortunately, wee man is so rarely ill the stuff would go past its expiry date before we got a couple of spoonfuls in him!

my son, when smaller, was ill so often that infant paracetomol (boots own) and neurofen were our best friends. and possibly life savers. I think there is a time and a place when you dont worry about the colouring, and just get that temperature down to safe levels. We would always go for the one that did not say 'no added sugar' - cos i would rather he had more sugar and less sweeteners. Would be good if they made it without nasty extra chems

because he ran such high temps (104 sort of thing) we used to try lots of other methods to get the temp down too.. including, lots of drinks, wearing less clothes.. the dreaded sponge bath, and our all time favourite.. running around carrying him, in the garden at night. Running around cos it was so cold, to keep me warm! - and he could cool off.
Now he is a big lump of a teenager, we use 'grown up' meds.

despite being breastfed, ds2 has no immune to speak of. He is prone to chest infections and is in all likelihood asthmatic, but being a tot they won't diagnose it, but it is obvious. Ds1 is asthmatic, dh is asthmatic and all three have dreadful eczema. Anyway. We seem to be constantly pouring calpol or medised down his throat, and I said to the doc that I feel terrible, that he seems to constantly be on medication of some sort, and he said it is not uncommon for children around the year mark to spend about 6 months on calpol. i said "Does it a) do anything and b) do any harm, no to b) and a half-shrug to a). ds2 has to take ventolin, and to be honest the panci that ensues when he is fighting for breath means I would feed him pureed wotsits (see other topic) if I thought it would stop him stressing! (But I am a BAAAD mother!)

circlecross wrote:despite being breastfed, ds2 has no immune to speak of. He is prone to chest infections and is in all likelihood asthmatic, but being a tot they won't diagnose it, but it is obvious. Ds1 is asthmatic, dh is asthmatic and all three have dreadful eczema. Anyway. We seem to be constantly pouring calpol or medised down his throat, and I said to the doc that I feel terrible, that he seems to constantly be on medication of some sort, and he said it is not uncommon for children around the year mark to spend about 6 months on calpol. i said "Does it a) do anything and b) do any harm, no to b) and a half-shrug to a). ds2 has to take ventolin, and to be honest the panci that ensues when he is fighting for breath means I would feed him pureed wotsits (see other topic) if I thought it would stop him stressing! (But I am a BAAAD mother!)

That sounds so horrid for all of them, big hugs!

Have you thought about seeing a naturopath or a herbalist? I know what your doctor said, but you have to remember that it is a certain mindset, that doesn´t take into account long term effects or regard the body as a whole - I have a friend who is a doctor and all his kids we´re so over-medicated, calpol at the merest sniffle, gaviscon in every bottle (just in case) - they are still very sickly kids.

If they still have eczema and asthma despite your docs best efforts, there would be no harm in trying.....my Dad has had incredible success with his psoriasis - after 20 years putting on the prescription cream with no success, it cleared up within 6 weeks after seeing a chinese herbalist.

Good luck.

mrsflibble wrote:RiffRaff, have you ever tried willo bark tea? not sure about it's use for children as I'm not sure how close the salicylates in it are to chemical salicylic acid; but I was happily surprised.

I think willow bark tea is magnificant! Gentle and with long-lasting effect. But very difficult to obtain in France.

The main active principle in willow bark tea is something called salicin. The action of this is very similar to aspirin, and I recall that willow bark prepartions are not recomended for children for the same reason - Reyes' syndrome. Asprin was originally made from plant salicin.

That said, the causes for Reyes' syndrome remain under review. Although the condition was associated with aspirin being administered there has never been a demonstration of a causal link, and there are heretics who think that an otherwise very useful medicament was unjustly vilified. It's not my field, though.

dh would not be adverse to trying something alternative - he ALMOST had acupuncture on his eyes at bgg, but being dh had to buy a pie or something but he is less keen to "try" something on the boys. I think I would have to look hard at the options, as although I HATE the thought of the boys being on medication for the rest of their lives, I want them to be able to breathe!

I do hate being bulldozed into it, and do often take my lead from dh where asthma is concerned, as he has had it all his life, and I feel I know little about it, although I seem to spot when the boys' breathing is "funny" before him.

That's not really an answer, but I don't know that I have one!

circlecross - there is every chance that this is a phase of childhood that will be grown out of. My son suffered terribly with ear infections. constantly bursting ear drums... lots of pain and fever.. it just kept on coming.. he would get a cold, get better,, then the ear infection began, the he would get better, but immune system beaten... get another cold.. and so on.

but.. touch wood an all that, he is lots better now. -I realise asthma is a different deal, but it is exasperated by illness. so hang tight.. might not be the rest of his life!

JohnM was in and out of hospital all his young life with asthma... he hasn't had an attack in 9 or 10 years (since 17/18) and he doesn't keep any medication in the house for it... He has no problems whatsoever, seems he grew out of it.

It isn't necesarily forever.

fingers crossed - I mean this earth mother stuff, bfing and organic gloop and they inherit the feeble dad genes??? What about the strapping healthy mom genes?
Anyway, I would love to believe they will grow out of it, but after seeing dh's dad strapped to his very own ventilator in the house, colours my assumptions
It doesn't stop them living life large however, in fact it's them NEVER stopping that can aggravate the condition at times, as sometimes they go into hyperdrive because the adrenalin is surging becoz they are short of breath. Little stoopids

I sympathise My 3rd has been in an d out of hospital since she was 3 weeks old, We have had sooooooo many chest infections I have lost count she is almost certainly astmatic and they are assessing her for cystic Fybrosis although the 1st test went wrong and she got and electric burn. MISERABLE We have seen a homeopath but I did wonder what planet she was on and the treatment suggested made no differnce!

They rarely get sickness bugs but thanks to a mummy who 'had to go to work on Friday' and sent her child to my rainbows group we have all had it. They have vomited between them in every room in the house, I have no bedding left clean and Now I think I have it!!!! How to I make that ginger stuff someone was talking about? Ginger biscuits were a god send while I was pregnant and I recon worth a go!

although I do sympathise, that did raise a smile. My house seems to smell of wee all the time, as ds1 is such a heavy wetter in the night that the bed is constantly airing, and is toilet training, with limited aim success!

Ds2 has wee'd on the carpet a couple of times, but it is the fug of the upstairs that greets you when you come through the door.
When ds1 was about 18 months he was a puker, we tried to leave him at night to settle himself, but he would cry until he threw up. I'm not sure the stains EVER came out of the carpet! Ds2 had a tummy bug a month or so ago. We went to a wildlife park and ds1 threw up on me in the car on the way there, ds2 threw up on me in the service station on the way home, and then threw up on me again IN OUR BED later that evening.