Natural Medicine for Children
By Anne Salazar, RH (AHG)
The majority of children are born healthy, and hard-wired to remain healthy. We have, as a culture, lost faith in these facts. Due to this lack of confidence we have over-burdened our medical community with our inability to handle common childhood illnesses. It is my hope, as a practitioner of natural health, to help bring back some basic knowledge and tools to families, so that they can once again feel empowered to help their children (and themselves) grow up to be naturally healthy. The best case scenario is prevention, and that is very do-able!
The large scope of possible childhood health challenges cannot be handled in one article. But I hope to address some main concerns. If you desire more information, you can always take a more comprehensive class. I teach this topic, and we have one coming up at Remedy at the end of this month (sign up!). And of course you can always come in and speak with us or schedule a consult for more personalized help.
First and foremost, above and beyond herbal medicine, diet and lifestyle are absolutely KEY to maintaining health in our children. We must get back in touch with eating whole, organically grown (as local as possible) unprocessed foods. And we must get back into the rhythm of eating seasonally and locally. Along with this natural rhythm, we cannot forget the importance of activity, balanced with rest. Our culture is over-stressed, and our children are no exception. We create an unnecessary burden on the body, when we do not eat and rest properly. This can have a huge impact on immunity, proper growth, and general well-being. Our modern lifestyle has thrown us off balance. Therefor it is not a coincidence chronic issues, are on the rise in our children.(1)
Although certain factions would have you believe that herbal medicine is dangerous, particularly for children, nothing could be further from the truth. Human beings have used plant medicine since ancient times for all health issues, for all age ranges.(2)
What is most important to know:
1) Dosing ranges: children are smaller, so need smaller doses. Like adults, during acute issues you will need to dose more frequently (just use a lower dose).
2) Keep in mind that infants have an underdeveloped digestive system so there are caveats until they are a year old. Certain well made lines such as Wish Garden (which we carry) will give appropriate ages and dosing for babies and children on their bottles.
3) Obviously avoid toxic plants (which applies to all of us!). But be reassured that you cannot find these on retail shelves.
Congestion/Colds
First, it's important to rule out allergies; environmental, food, etc. Common food allergies these days in children are from dairy and soy. My personal belief is that this is in part due to the over-processing and genetic altering of these foods. When you couple this with an insufficient microbiome(gut health) we find ourselves with challenges. Our children are also becoming overly sensitive to environmental elements. No coincidence that our world is becoming progressively polluted. A favorite natural anti-histamine at Remedy is D-Hist Jr.
For congestion it is helpful to use either essential oils, or the herbs themselves, of peppermint and/or eucalyptus in bath water. You can also massage the sinus areas with a few drops of essential oil(s) blended in a teaspoon of carrier oil (like almond). In addition, a tea of peppermint and/or sage, or fresh ginger, lemons, and honey can be very helpful.
For infants (and everyone else) it can be helpful to use saline solutions that you can gently spray in nasal passages.
Common colds can be easily treated with herbal medicine. For instance Congestion Rescue by Wishgarden or Echinacea. You can dose every few hours in order to get it handled.
There are also some great, very effective and safe, natural cough products. Its best to allow the child to cough during the day, to move the congestion out. But, sometimes, its important to give them something that minimizes the cough to help them sleep. There are some simple and safe, anti-tussive (herbal) products that can give relief at night, in order to get a restful and healing night’s sleep.
For prevention:
Certainly, the best thing you can do is to prevent infection, repeated infections, etc. But children will get sick because they need to exercise their immune “muscles”. They just don’t have to get very sick, or repeatedly sick.
● Astragalus given directly, or cooked in foods, is a great way to keep the immune system strong and healthy(4). It is mostly for prevention, to be used regularly during vulnerable times to keep immunity bolstered (think being in school, travel, etc). Daily Immune by Wish Garden is the perfect item to have on hand!
● Elderberry has some very helpful anti-viral properties(5). Taken on a regular basis, it can prevent infection, and can be used to treat an acute viral infection. Tasty!
● Oscillococcinum is a powerful homeopathic remedy for flu prevention. I used to give my kids (and myself) this during flu season; half a vial once a week. It was our ‘flu shot’.
● A healthy microbiome is absolutely required for immune health. Giving children a quality probiotic will go a long way in keeping them healthy (body, brain, mood, etc).
Let me add here that a healthy gut microbiome is key to maintaining balance for all of these issues.(3) Even though probiotics are not technically plants, they are a living organism, and are VITAL for immunity and support in all areas of health. We offer excellent quality probiotics for children. Please come in and talk about what is appropriate for your child.
Flu/Fevers
It's important to know that fevers are our body’s very natural and effective way to fight infection (8). By allowing a fever to do its work, we are allowing the body to heal more quickly. Every child has their own threshold for what constitutes an out of control fever. It's important to watch the child, to check for signs of lethargy. This is a good article to read for further information.
There are many remedies that will help relieve some of the discomfort of fever, while still allowing it to do its job:
● Echinacea is an easy and effective herb(6). It not only will lower a high fever, it will also assist the body in fighting the infection. It can also be used for colds.
● Drink teas of chamomile, lemon balm, and catnip. Essential oils (or strong teas) of chamomile, lavender, and peppermint in bath water; or use a compress of the same on forehead, back, chest, and feet.
● Catnip is particularly effective and comes in formulas (orally) for children often labeled for stomach issues. They work great for allowing for body relaxation during a fever, to mitigate discomfort.
Stomach Flu
To help with nausea, vomiting, and stomach cramps, the herbs peppermint, chamomile, ginger, and cinnamon can be quite helpful. And, of course, re-hydrate! Best to not use commercial sports drinks, as they are full of ingredients that are not helpful. You can make your own re-hydration drinks with water, fresh lemon juice, agave syrup or honey, and a pinch of sea salt. Or you can use a quality powdered electrolyte product.
Another great way to treat children who are vomiting and can’t keep anything down is to give them oral Colloidal Silver. They can hold it under their tongues and let it absorb in the mouth. This way, it cannot be thrown up, and the silver will act as a natural antibiotic and will shorten the duration of the infection. Again, adding some mint to the picture will help calm down the tummy.
Ear Infection
It's best to handle these both inside and out. Using a good herbal ear oil of mullein, garlic, St. John’s Wort, can handle the pain, inflammation, and infection. But it's also important to support the body’s immune defense by giving echinacea internally (7).
Sometimes we feel overwhelmed when our little ones are sick. And we sometimes don’t trust our own instincts and knowledge. At these times, it is important to seek help. And there are natural ways to assist the innate processes of our bodies through ‘alternative’ protocols. Chiropractic can be very helpful with ear infections, for instance. And pediatric acupuncturist/herbalists can come in very handy, when we feel like we cannot handle these situations ourselves, or need some direction.
There are many excellent books on the topic of natural healing and children (Herbs for Children's Health by Rosemary Gladstar). If you can read ahead and bookmark the challenges that may come up, you will be better prepared to handle late night issues. And there are plenty of folks who want to help, and share what they know. For instance, here at Remedy we have excellent, natural products, and well-trained staff to help you. Please do not rely on social media for your advice. It is often driven by marketing, profit, and trends, and can come from unreliable sources.
Trust yourself and your children to know how to heal. You will be surprised how well you can do, with a little information and a few tools.
Remedy Community Class: Herbs for Children with Clinical Herbalist Anne Salazar
Saturday, August 23rd
4PM - 6PM
References
1. Chad Z. Allergies in children. Paediatr Child Health. 2001 Oct;6(8):555-66. doi: 10.1093/pch/6.8.555. PMID: 20084126; PMCID: PMC2805592.
2. Petrovska BB. Historical review of medicinal plants' usage. Pharmacogn Rev. 2012 Jan;6(11):1-5. doi:
10.4103/0973-7847.95849. PMID: 22654398; PMCID: PMC3358962. 3. Gaufin T, Tobin NH, Aldrovandi GM. The importance of the microbiome in pediatrics and pediatric infectious diseases. Curr Opin Pediatr. 2018 Feb;30(1):117-124. doi:
10.1097/MOP.0000000000000576. PMID: 29206649; PMCID: PMC6588283.
4. Zheng Y, Ren W, Zhang L, Zhang Y, Liu D, Liu Y. A Review of the Pharmacological Action of Astragalus Polysaccharide. Front Pharmacol. 2020 Mar 24;11:349. doi:
10.3389/fphar.2020.00349. PMID: 32265719; PMCID:
PMC7105737.
5. Mocanu ML, Amariei S. Elderberries-A Source of Bioactive Compounds with Antiviral Action. Plants (Basel). 2022 Mar 10;11(6):740. doi:
10.3390/plants11060740. PMID: 35336621; PMCID: PMC8948669.
6. Hudson J, Vimalanathan S. Echinacea—A Source of Potent Antivirals for Respiratory Virus Infections.
Pharmaceuticals (Basel). 2011 Jul 13;4(7):1019–31. doi: 10.3390/ph4071019. PMCID: PMC4058675.
7. Ogal M, Johnston SL, Klein P, Schoop R. Echinacea reduces antibiotic usage in children through respiratory tract infection prevention: a randomized, blinded, controlled clinical trial. Eur J Med Res. 2021 Apr 8;26(1):33. doi: 10.1186/s40001-021-00499-6. PMID: 33832544; PMCID: PMC8028575.
8. Williams LK, Peterson EL, Ownby DR, Johnson CC. The relationship between early fever and allergic sensitization at age 6 to 7 years. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2004 Feb;113(2):291-6. doi: 10.1016/j.jaci.2003.11.010. PMID: 14767444.