My 10 month old was sick this past week, running a fever of 102-103. Before this past year, I would have immediately turned to Tylenol and/or Ibuprofen to keep their fever around the 99-100 mark. But, I’ve done a lot of research into letting a fever run it’s course and how fever reducers can cause febrile seizures and prolong your child’s (or your own) illness and decided to treat his fever naturally. Unless your child is acting lethargic (more than you think they should while running a fever), refusing to eat or drink, or your mommy instinct is telling you something is wrong, a fever under 104 is usually nothing to worry about. So, I listened to my gut, fed him as much as he would eat, and offered him water every 10 minutes. I monitored his nursing, eating, drinking and the number of wet diapers he had to make sure he was getting enough fluids so there was no danger of him getting dehydrated. I fed him soup and foods high in fat and protein so that his body would have plenty of nutrients to use to fight the virus in his system. I applied essential oils to his feet and back and diffused them in the house (Only do this when you know what you’re doing.). And, of course, there was lots of prayer 🙂 His fever was gone by the 3rd day.
Now that you know what I did and plan to do in the future, I’ll let you know where I learned to do what I did. Here’s the posts that influenced my decision to forego the fever reducers-
5 Ways to Treat a Fever Naturally
This post written by Mommypotamus gives 5 natural remedies to treat a fever. I didn’t use any of these, but was considering using the egg white or garlic paste method if his fever didn’t drop by a certain time. Thankfully, his fever dropped a degree in an hour and I just let it run it’s course with the aid of essential oils.
Why I Don’t Reduce a Fever and What I Do Instead
This post was written by Wellness Mama and she tells you what she does when her children run a fever. I did the homemade soup, gave him a small dose of elderberry syrup, and added coconut oil to some of the foods I fed him.
Lemon Socks for a Fever
This post was written by Holistic Squid and she shares with you how she treated her 5 year olds fever with lemon socks.
A Detox Bath for Your Child’s Next Fever
Modern Alternative Mama shares a recipe for a detox bath in this post. I didn’t use this one either but ginger will be a medicine cabinet staple in the future.
How to Treat Kid’s Fevers Naturally With Essential Oils
Here’s a post, written by Meagan Visser author of Treating Fevers Naturally: A Parents Guide to Keeping Their Cool While Managing Fevers in Children, with 3 DIY essential oil recipes for treating your child’s fever. Since the FDA allows essential oil companies to label their products as 100% pure, even when they’re sometimes only around 5%, I suggest going with Young Living, the only essential oil company I trust.
Even with all the reading and research I’ve done on the subject, it still scares me for my kids to run high fevers. So, these blog posts written by other moms in the natural health care world really helped keep me calm.
Each woman gives information on what fevers are, why your child gets a fever, how to treat them, when to seek medical attention, and how a fever means that your child’s immune system is working to fight off the bug in their system. So, next time your child is running a fever, try one of the natural remedies in any one of these posts before reaching for the fever reducers. You may be surprised.
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor. The information in this post is not to be treated as professional medical advice.
Chamomile Creek 