Diarrhea (diarrhea) is the most common childhood ailment. Of the entire list of diseases, pediatricians put it in second place. Diarrhea is very dangerous for a child, as it signals not only an intestinal disorder. It is one of the symptoms of some diseases, including infectious diseases.
Causes of diarrhea in children
As a rule, diarrhea in a child is a defensive reaction of the body to harmful or toxic substances, which manifests itself in loose stools. The causes of diarrhea can be different. Among them:
- certain medications;
- psychosocial stress;
- eating tainted foods;
- food allergies;
- drinking contaminated water; - salmonella;
- some diseases (gastric catarrh, gastritis, etc.).
During the period when the child suffers from loose stools, his body loses a large amount of mineral s altsand water. That is why mothers should strive to help their baby as soon as possible. In this case, one should distinguish between short-term, relatively safe diarrhea, the duration of which does not exceed two days, as well as chronic, requiring urgent treatment.
When to sound the alarm?
If your child has loose stools, then to determine the disease, it is important to correlate the existing age norms with the frequency and quality of defecation. Take, for example, newborns and infants. In these babies, loose stools are absolutely normal and are not considered diarrhea. Newborn babies may have a bowel movement after every feed or even more than 10 times a day. But in the event that the baby shows symptoms of dehydration, parents should call a doctor.
Diarrhea in a one-year-old child is accompanied by the release of liquid, watery, unformed feces. At the same time, the daily number of bowel movements is more than 4 or 5 times.
Diarrhea in a child aged 2-3 years and older occurs with the release of liquefied feces. At the same time, the daily number of defecation acts increases to 5 or more times.
Diarrhea symptoms
The following manifestations of the disease will prompt parents that the child's body is infected with an infection:
- vomiting and nausea;
- headaches;- loose stools.
If a child suffers from diarrhea and vomiting, this can cause dehydration. This will worsen the condition of the internal organs, and in the absence of any action on the part of adults, it can lead toeven to death. That is why diarrhea in children should be prevented, and if it occurs, try to cure it as soon as possible.
How can I help my baby?
Today, many parents seek to treat diarrhea in children with folk remedies, because taking strong drugs threatens a small body with various side effects. Alternative medicine recipes are much safer, and the ingredients they contain are usually always at hand. However, here it is worth making sure. Before using folk remedies for diarrhea in children, it is best to consult with your local pediatrician. Only a doctor who knows the general he alth of the child will tell you the safest way out of this situation.
Recommendations from healers
What folk remedies for diarrhea are considered the most popular? Toddlers, starting from the age of one, are well helped:
- decoction of chamomile and mint;
- mixtures based on starch;
- rice water;
- tincture made from pomegranate peels; - grains of black pepper;
- decoction of burnet root;
- various herbs;
- homeopathic preparations.
All of the above folk remedies for diarrhea in children have been tested by more than one generation of parents.
Chamomile for diarrhea
Problems with the intestines often take the patient by surprise. Sometimes parents do not know what to do if their child has loose stools. In this case, traditional medicine recommends effective recipes for diarrhea, which containcommon chamomile. This plant not only binds, but also has an antiseptic and antibacterial effect on the body. In addition, chamomile relieves inflammation, cleanses the intestines and destroys the pathogenic microflora that causes diarrhea. However, parents should remember that if the symptoms of the disease do not disappear during the day when using drugs that contain this plant, then you should immediately seek help from a pediatrician.
What are folk remedies for diarrhea in children made from chamomile? It is, first of all, an infusion. To obtain it, you need to take dry chamomile flowers in the amount of two glasses and pour them with 1 liter of boiling water. It is necessary to insist the drug within an hour.
Chamomile decoction will also help eliminate the symptoms of diarrhea in a child. To prepare it, you need to take one glass of dried flowers of the plant and pour 500 g of boiling water over them. The resulting mixture is left in a water bath. The drug is boiled within 10-15 minutes. Then the broth is filtered, cooled and given to the baby during the day.
Good for diarrhea infusion, which contains mint and chamomile. To prepare it, take one teaspoon of the raw materials of two plants and fill them with 2 tbsp. boiling water. The resulting mixture should be infused for an hour. Next, the drug must be filtered and cooled.
In what dosages should chamomile remedies be given to children? Babies from six months to a year - one dessert spoon per meal. In this case, the amount of decoction or infusion is brought to 100 ml per day. Older kids (aged one to three years) can be given two tablespoons of the drug at a time. For such children, the daily dose can be increased to 200 ml. From diarrhea for children 3 years old - 6 years old, increase the amount of decoction or infusion drunk during the day. At this age, it should be between 300 and 400 ml.
For diarrhea in children (3 years and older), you can make a medicinal drink from chamomile flowers and onion peel. To get it, take a small handful of raw materials. Moreover, onion peel and chamomile flowers should be in a 1: 1 ratio. Then the raw material is poured with a glass of boiling water. The strained drug is given to the child in a volume of 40 ml 4-5 times during the day. This decoction is great for acute and chronic diarrhea.
To get rid of diarrhea, traditional medicine also recommends enemas. To carry out this procedure, you will need an infusion of chamomile.
Healing herbs
Many folk remedies for diarrhea in children include medicinal plants that have antibacterial, antimicrobial effects and contain a lot of tannins. Such drugs are most effective in eliminating the symptoms of diarrhea. Medicinal herbs can be bought at a pharmacy or prepared independently. Parents should remember that before giving a decoction or infusion of a medicinal plant, it is necessary to study the features of taking the drug and its contraindications. Seek medical advice if possible.
Which herb helps with diarrhea? Most often thisthe disease is treated with sage and wormwood, St. John's wort and burnet, black cuff and elderberry. If the child is a year old, what can be given for diarrhea? Almost all medicinal herbs are suitable for such babies, which it is still advisable to give only after consulting a doctor.
Pomegranate peels
What other folk remedies are there for diarrhea in children? Often, pomegranate peels are used to rid babies of diarrhea. As a rule, they are thrown away after cleaning the fetus, not suspecting how useful the resulting waste is. The dry, dense shell of the pomegranate, which has a red color, has a healing effect.
The next white layer needs to be cleaned, as there are no healing substances in it. According to scientists, pomegranate peel contains up to 30% tannins. This explains the high effectiveness of the use of this product in the fight against intestinal upset. Also, the red peel includes polyphenols in its composition. These are valuable plant pigments that are strong antioxidants. These substances are capable of exerting an overwhelming effect even on a dysentery bacillus.
Before using pomegranate peel to treat diarrhea in children, you should consult your doctor. This is important, since excessive passion for this herbal remedy can cause serious negative consequences in the body.
In order to prepare a medicinal preparation, it is necessary to thoroughly wash, dry and clean the fruit. Next, the peels are sent for drying, after removing the white layer from the bottom. Fromprepared raw materials prepare a healing decoction. To do this, take a teaspoon of crushed dry crusts and fill them with 1 tbsp. boiling water. The resulting mixture must be boiled for 15 minutes in a water bath. The prepared broth should stand for about 40 minutes. It is recommended to give the remedy to children 3 times a day, 0.5 tsp. before bringing the chair back to normal.
Rice congee
This traditional medicine is the most affordable and safe. At the same time, rice decoction from diarrhea is quite effective. The recipe for its preparation is quite simple, and the cereals from which it is prepared can always be found at home. The effectiveness of this drug is related to the ability of the product to envelop the intestines. This does not allow the gastric juice to irritate it. At the same time, intestinal motility improves and the correct formation of excrement begins. The astringent effect of rice water is due to its high starch content. When ingested, this substance absorbs excess fluid, which leads to a thickening of the masses contained in the intestines.
A decoction of rice cereal perfectly eliminates such a phenomenon as flatulence, and also prevents fermentation processes in the digestive tract. Especially relevant is the fact that this drug is nutritious for the body. After all, eating with diarrhea can only worsen the condition.
Rice congee is safe. That is why it is often given to those children in whom chemicals can provoke allergies.
Howmake rice water for diarrhea? Its recipe is simple. You just need to omit 2 tsp. pre-soaked rice in an enamel bowl in which 500 ml of water is already boiling. After that, the product is kept on fire for 50 minutes, stirring occasionally. The finished drug is left to cool to room temperature, and then it is filtered through a strainer or gauze. What dose of rice water should be given to a child? To eliminate the symptoms of diarrhea, you will need 50-100 ml of the drug three or four times during the day. Improvement of the patient's condition occurs within an hour after the first dose of the decoction. In between such treatment, it is recommended to give the child a little rice porridge. In this case, the small organism will recover much faster.
Using oak bark
The use of this drug allows you to solve the problem of diarrhea in a complex way. The fact is that the composition of the bark of this healing tree contains a large amount of tannins and astringents. These components are able to quickly strengthen the liquefied fecal mass in the intestines. In addition, oak bark contains a lot of organic acids and flavonoids, which not only stop diarrhea, but also improve the digestion process, eliminating gastrointestinal problems.
In addition, the natural remedy has an antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory effect. Its benefit lies in the creation of a special protective layer formed during the interaction of tannins with proteins. This layer prevents the appearance of any irritation in the digestive tract. Concerningthe use of a drug with oak bark allows not only to rid the child of diarrhea, but also to eliminate the problem that caused the disease.
For the preparation of medicinal raw materials, oaks are used, the age of which is in the range of 15-20 years. The bark is removed from the young shoots of such trees in early spring, when the leaves have not yet appeared. Ready-made raw materials can be purchased at a pharmacy. Oak bark for diarrhea should be used with extreme caution in small patients. How to take this drug? Like everyone else, that is, observing the dosage and rules of use. Otherwise, babies will suffer from such a side symptom as severe vomiting.
In the form of infusions, tinctures for alcohol and decoctions, oak bark can be used for diarrhea. How to take this healing gift of nature to children? Only in the form of enemas. To prepare them, you need to take 1 tbsp. oak bark and chamomile flowers, pour 1/2 liter of boiling water over them and place them in a thermos, leave for 30 minutes. The finished product is filtered, 10 drops of valerian are added to it, and a warm enema is made.
All folk remedies used normalize intestinal function, exclude dehydration, stabilize microflora, eliminate infection and carry out symptomatic treatment of the gastrointestinal tract.
