Fever In Children And Babies – What To Do And Home Remedies To Use

Is your child or baby suffering from a fever? Learn about the possible causes and what home treatments and natural remedies you could use to bring his or her temperature down.

According to the Seattle’s Children Hospital, your child has a fever when his or her:

• Rectal, Ear or Temporal Artery (TA) temperature is 100.4° F (38.0° C) or higher
• Oral or Pacifier temperature is 100° F (37.8° C) or higher
• Axillary or armpit temperature is 99° F (37.2° C) or higher

Oral or rectal temperature readings are preferred as they tend to be more accurate. However, oral readings are less accurate the younger the child, especially for those under 1 year old. Oral readings need to be taken under the tongue. To take your child’s temperature rectally, coat the tip of the thermometer with gel and insert the tip into his rectum by about half an inch.

Fever in children could be caused by an infection. Some common causes of infections in children include viral infections that bring about flu, ear infections, urinary tract infections, sore throats and meningitis. At times, fever could also be a reaction to immunization.

The rise in body temperature is often accompanied by a flushed face as the blood vessels near the surface of the baby’s skin dilate. Fever may also be accompanied by discomfort in the babies, leading to continuous crying. Other symptoms that may come with fever include runny nose, cough, diarrhea, rashes, dehydration (sometimes seen in significant decrease in urine) or even breathing difficulties, depending on the underlying cause of the fever.

Febrile seizure or fits (muscles become rigid, convulsions and even temporary loss of consciousness) may also take place, especially when the fever goes too high. If your child throws a fit, you should lay him on his front immediately, with his head turned to one side, so as to prevent him from choking on any content from the stomach should he vomit. When the fit stops, you should seek medical advice immediately.

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