Toddler Times
10 Green and Natural Cold Remedies
We have hit cold and flu season at our house. My kids’ noses are running like a faucet, they are waking up in the middle of the night with coughing fits, and I had to keep my daughter home from school for two days last week because she had a fever. Yuck!
Having sick kids is definitely no fun.
The other thing that is not fun is trying to figure out the best ways to help your child recover from their illness as quickly, and safely, as possible. Many of the cold and flu medicines out there are not approved for children under four, and they may also contain unsafe ingredients. Of course, most colds and flu just need to run their course, but there are some natural and homemade remedies that you can safely use to help ease your toddler’s discomfort, and hopefully help them, and you, get the rest you need.
Here are 10 green and natural cold remedies that we use in our house:
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8 Comments
Melinda J. commented on Nov 09 11 at 11:12 pmGreat ideas! Thank you for including essential oils in your suggestions. I love the Young Living brand’s “Thieves” blend of essential oils, which includes eucalyptus. You can put it on the bottom of your foot or on the side of the foot. You can gargle with it. You can diffuse it into the air regularly. I’ve had Thieves in my house for 1 1/2 yrs and last winter, we only had 1 cold, and it wasn’t too bad. I don’t sell Thieves, but I think it’s worth mentioning here. Thanks!
Dawn Babcock Papple commented on Nov 10 11 at 8:36 amThe socks thing is a bad idea. The rest are awesome. You do not want to artificially break a fever. Fevers are the body’s defense mechanism. Likewise, you do not want to avert bloodflow. The reason bloodflow goes to a sick area in the first place is to deliver white blood cells. I really really really implore you to take that one down or at least add a disclaimer to it. That is a dangerous suggestion and could make a child very sick
Jenny commented on Nov 10 11 at 8:49 amWow, thanks for this! :)
Sarah commented on Nov 10 11 at 11:02 amWhen I was younger, I remember waking up with tickle cough and they would go on forever waking the house up. They were so bad I would begin to gag and be sick.
I had a very old doctor that my mom took me to and she always said ice chips. They worked for me and have worked for my kids also. After a few minutes of sucking and swallowing ice, coughing gone. Hope this helps:)
Amy commented on Nov 10 11 at 3:10 pmOne warning about Eucalyptus Oil. We too love that stuff but it is SUPER strong and actually poisonous. I put a capful (equivalent to about a teaspoon) into my congested daughter’s bath and she was screaming ow ow ow because it burnt her skin. After I read that it should never be applied directly to skin – oops! It’s a wonder drug, but make sure you read the label!
Emily commented on Nov 10 11 at 8:21 pm@Dawn, Thanks for your concern. I’m wondering if you have any sources that state that the wet sock treatment is dangerous? Everything I found when I was reading about it seemed to point to it as an effective treatment. I realize that fevers are a bodies way of dealing with sickness, but doctors certainly recommend doing other things, like giving Tylenol, to break a fever, and I’m not sure that this treatment would cause problems by simply helping to bring down a fever. If you have a source, I would love to read it. Thanks!
~Emily
Emily commented on Nov 10 11 at 8:22 pm@Sarah, Thanks so much for the suggestion! I’ll have to try that next time. I love simple, easy, and inexpensive solutions like that!
Candace commented on Nov 10 11 at 11:44 pmWhenever I use an essential oil I only use a few drops at a time, especially with the stronger ones, like Eucalyptus. I can imagine a whole teaspoon would be CRAZY strong!
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