Have a Fever? That's GOOD!

Back to school season also means sicky season!  Coughs, sniffles, sore throats, and fevers abound.

Do you or your child have a fever?  GOOD!  That means your body is working correctly!  So many people have been taught to fear a fever... and reach for the Tylenol as soon as baby's temp is above 98.6.  Nevermind the fact that every now and then Tylenol gets recalled for various reasons.

A fever is the body's defense against illness.  It's natural and means your body is WORKING to eliminate those germs that are trying to take over your body!  Dr.Mercola has a great article about fevers HERE .  The article recommends not messing with a fever until it goes above 102.  (I personally wait until above 103, but that rarely happens).  This of course applies to normally healthy kids... not kids with past medical issues, which would of course would change how you deal with things.

I've heard a few moms swear by peppermint oil applied to the back of the neck to help bring a fever down.  (I haven't tried it yet because my kids haven't had a high enough fever to warrant intervention...)  Definitely something that can't hurt to try!  And definitely something that won't be on the news next week being recalled because who-knows-what was accidentally mixed in.

Take care of those sweet babies with plenty of water, rest, hugs and kisses! 

Healing Sore Throats

A few days ago, Kaydence started getting a sore throat. While on a softball trip recently, my hubby and sister were around a girl on the team with strep. My sister was coming down with it too, so I was worried Kaydence might be coming down with strep!

So what do I do? Ask my dad, who knows everything about natural health!

He brought me some grapefruit seed extract. I was to mix 20 drops with some grape juice, and have Kaydence gargle it, then swallow.

So it took FOREVER to get her to finally do it, but once she did, she was all better!

And no having to go to the doctor for strep! :)

You can also mix the GSE with water for a nose flushing, if you have a sinus infection. If you just get a bottle of GSE, it has lots of things you can use it for listed on the bottle!

Natural Health- Ear Infections

We don't do doctors. It would take a super long drawn out explanation WHY, but maybe you'll get it figured out over the course of whatever blogs I happen to write on natural health. ;)

The only thing we would go to the doctor for is a broken bone, or serious burn or cut (stitches). But pretty much anything medicine, I deem useless in the conventional medicine world. Thanks to my dad, who is very into natural health/healing, I have learned some good things!!

Today I will tell you what I know about ear infections. :)

First of all, antibiotics are BAD when overused, which happens A LOT in little children with recurrent ear infections! You can Google yourself the problems associated with too much antibiotic use, which include allergies, asthma, overgrowth of yeast, and overall bad immune system. Antibiotics kill the bad bacteria, but also kill the GOOD bacteria! I highly recommend giving your child probiotics if they have EVER taken antibiotics. Probiotics come in powdered form or flavored chewy form for the kiddos. :)

Ear infections are commonly caused by an allergy, usually cow's milk. (I'll write another blog soon on how BAD cow's milk is!) So you can try an elimination diet. A nursing baby can get dairy through your milk, so beware. It's also in many formulas. And if your child is chugging down the cow's milk after 1 year of age, I'll bet he'll be getting some ear infections!

So how to cure it?? A couple drops of garlic oil in the infected ear will do the trick. (And I just go ahead and do the other ear just to be safe!) DO NOT heat the oil though, that can cause burns. Do this every night before bed until your baby is all better (it usually only takes one or two nights). Oregano oil works too, but you cannot drop that directly in the ear. Put a couple drops on a cotton ball, twist the cotton ball up, put into the ear, and tape on overnight. You can get garlic oil and oregano oil at your health food store.

If the ear infection is truly a draining problem, a chiropractor can help. :)