Dec
5
Filed Under Health & Medicine
With cold and flu season upon us, parents are probably wondering what they can do for their children now that it’s practically illegal to give them over the counter cold medicine.
Over the counter cold medicines carry a bevy of side effects and dangers to young childen under two, and new studies show that even younger ages over two may not be safe. I hate having a cold and am miserable when I don’t have the tools to medicate myself. I can’t imagine being a baby or toddler and feeling like that. So I sought out to seek an alternative. I came across a couple of products that are safe for younger babies, but work just as well for children alike.
Hylands C-Plus Cold Tablets – This is by far my favorite product. I’m a huge fan of all Hylands products. They’re effective and safe. This one is no exception. This is great for relieving congestion and the river of snot that seem to leak out of toddler noses. I try to keep the nose wiping to a minimum, especially in the winter when your face tends to get more chapped from the cold dry air. I was skeptical of this product at first, but I swear by it now and have a few bottles to keep at home and to take for travel. It definitely helps keep the nose dribble congestion at bay so that my son can continue to feel more like himself, which is to say, very busy and active. And the best part is that there’s no drowsy medicine head side effect.
Hylands Cough Syrup with Honey – Remember those Luden’s Honey Lemon cough drops your parents used to give you as kids? They were more like candy, than cough drops, but there’s a reason why honey lemon is such a popular cough drop flavor, because a spoonful of honey and lemon actually does ease coughing. You can easily make your own remedy of honey lemon cough syrup, but this is another thing that I keep on hand for travelling. Because this contains honey, we advise that you should avoid giving this to children under the age of one year.
These two remedies have definitely helped get my son through some nasty colds with no ill side effects, which makes feel good knowing that I can help ease his discomfort without the use of chemicals.
There are other things you can do to help with cold and flu season:
- Keep a humidifier on hand. Warm or cool mist, depending on the time of year. I prefer warm mist, which seems to be more effective (and is great during the winter months). You can add a little bit of Eucalyptus oil to the water for a vaporizing effect.
- Shea butter for dry chapped skin. Even when my son is well, I keep a shea butter based balm on his night stand (I love love LOVE Mambino Organics Oh Baby! Belly Butter for this. It works well for itchy pregnant bellies, but it’s also great for chapped skin, especially noses and other tough areas like knuckles. My son loves it because it smells great, so there’s no fight over putting it on his face and it helps heal almost instantly). The shea butter has great healing properties and is more of a balm than a lotion, so there’s minimal mess.
- Wash hands as frequently as you can with warm water and soap. I’m not a parent that worries too much about germs. But during cold season, I keep a naturally derived antibacterial with me, as we tend to frequent indoor places, like our local YMCA and Gymboree, which harbor germs and coughing kids. When you’re out and about, even baby wipes are better in a pinch than nothing at all. Steer clear of harsh antibacterial soaps and hand sanitizers. They kill germs, but they also make germs more resistant to being killed. Some good natural alternatives are Clean George or CleanWell.
Have a tip that will help make cold and flu season easier? Contact us.
Related articles:
- Kids and Cold Medicines Don’t Mix
- Babies R Us Taking Returns on Bottles with BPA
- SafeMama Review: Mambino Organics
