Natural Remedies for Fever in Children: Safe and Effective Treatments

My 3 year old daughter recently had Herpangina (part of coxsackie virus family). Similar to hand foot and mouth disease, but it's main concerns are high fever and mouth sores. She had a fever of 39.2 Celsius (102.5 F). It kept climbing during the day despite a luke warm bath, taking off her clothes and pain med. I got very concerned and looked at cures on Earthclinic. For her I soaked two paper towels in the whites of two eggs and placed it into two butcher bags (one each). Put her feet in and tied the bag around her feet. Then I dipped a towel in a mixture of roughly 80% water and 20% ACV and wrung it out. Put that on the length of her body. Put her to bed like that, wearing only her night diaper. Every time I checked her fever during the night it was down and by morning it was back to normal.

A couple of days later my 2 year old boy got the same thing. His fever was 38 C (100.4 F) when I acted (which was at 1h00 AM in the morning). The egg whites are messy, so I decided to first see if ACV on its own won't do the trick. His skin is more sensitive, so I watered it down more. Roughly 1 part ACV to 6 parts water and just enough to wet a towel in a little basin. Wrung it out. Undressed him (save for his diaper) and put the towel on the length of his body. He protested a bit (towel was cold), but I stroked his head till he calmed down and he didn't throw it off. By 7 AM in the morning I checked again and his fever was down to normal. So with him nothing but ACV (no pain meds or bath or anything). It is summer here in South Africa, so I wasn't concerned about his temp should the fever break and his has a wet cloth on him.

A lady I know says her grandmother always makes vinegar cloths (she used plain spirit vinegar) to wipe their foreheads during a fever and it works well. I figured a cloth down the length of your body will be even better and will also cool the body. And ACV is off course better than regular for various health reasons, but in a pinch, try the regular spirit vinegar.

Potatoes also work on burns. As a child, a friend was being chased by a cousin. His grandmother, mom and aunts were in the kitchen preparing a holiday dinner. The grandmother was taking a stock pot of potatoes in boiling water when he bumped into her full throttle and he was scorched. The grandmother yelled for sliced potatoes; the women and men started slicing until his body was covered. He said by all accounts he should have had severe burns but didn't have to see a doctor. I've keep potatoes on hand just in case.

Our grandmother did this to all of us. Especially after a bath, she'd wet her hand and place it on our head. She said it kept the body warm to fight infections. She was born in the late 1800s and her kids and grandkids were seldom sick. Now... our grandkids? Their parents don't believe in any of it and the kids are always catching something.

Thanks, Mama to Many. Enjoyed reading about the various natural home remedies. Good helpful and informative blog.

I have given garlic, tepid baths, chamomile, enemas and other natural remedies in the past for fevers. And enemas for constipation in the child.

Prefer natural home remedies. No OTC stuff.

Recently while watching my three grandchildren, one got a fever. And found out he didn't have a BM for two days.

My daughter-in-law (divorced) was working out of town.

After discussing on the phone my observations and his temp with her and calling holistic doctor (she is old fashioned and wonderful), was given permission to give him an enema.

The egg whites remedy did not appear to be of much help.

After preparing everything I sat down with him and told him he was going to be given an enema to help him feel better.

Asked my neighbor to come over and watch the other two while he was getting an enema.

It was amazing. Almost immediately after getting the enema he was feeling great.

Blessings

Lukewarm baths work.

Trying the raw white potatoes remedy for the first time on baby. She is 9 months, had a bad fever and chest congestion.

Now it's all going away and fever went down.

Hi,

I tried the same method on my 2 yr old whom is having a fever at 100.4. And it spike up to 101.6 in 15mins time. I quickly bring her for a ACV lukewarm bath and after that ar 10mins later, her fever shoot to 102.74. Any idea why it doesnt works for ours?

Thank you so much, Heather! ..White potato really worked! ..my daughter's fever dropped from 100 to 99.0 in 15 min!

Thank you!

I know for a fact baking soda bath works to reduce fever. My mother used it on me from small child because I was a very ill child have a genetic immune prob so I would get sick often. But it's not just for children - I was running over 103 fever - high dosage of pain reliever wasn't reducing it so had my bf use warm baking soda water (not cold to prevent horrible pain) within in less than 2 hrs I had no fever.

My 2 year old woke up with 105.2. I quickly went to the site while waiting for his doctor to call us. I saw the apple cider vinegar cure. I quickly filled up a bath and dumped a little less then a half a bottle of organic apple cider vinegar, and with in 10-15 minutes he was down to 101.7. Amazing!!!!!

P.S. I'm still waiting for the doctor to call me back.

I also have given enemas for fevers. I have that book as well! Every mom should have a copy in the home. Enemas are a wonderful safe home remedy.

For fever in children -- enemas! I give either a cool water - tap water temp - enema. Or, give a catnip tea enema. Catnip will bring a fever down. It soothes and calms as well.

You can find this remedy in book Prescription For Nutritional Healing. Not medical advice. See your dr before giving any home remedies.

Bebe, how interesting! I remember lying in bed as a child, with the worst headache - I don't remember if I had fever - but my grandmother came and sat next to me with her hand on my forehead and after a while I was up and about with no headache!

My granddaughter would keep a fever til I put my hand on the top of her head and left my hand there, it started her to sweating, I was amazed at this, I guess if their little head is exposed and not covered the heat escapes, just hold your hand on top of their head for a little while and you will began to see the difference, the fever even broke after that helped, it took a little time, just be patient and keep your hand on their little head, it will work and don`t remove your hand til you know for sure the child is sweating real good and their fever will start to slowly go down, repeat it later next time if needed.

My 7 year old daughter went from playing happily to burning up almost instantly.

Using one of those forehead to ear thermometers, I took her temperature.

106.5

That can't be right...

I popped out the batteries and reset the thermometer. I swiped my forehead first and it read 98.7. Good, it's working. I swiped hers again... 106.3

I tore down the hall into the bathroom with her in one hand and a carton of eggs in the other, put her in the bathtub, turned on the water, dumped in 1/2 a bottle of apple cider vinegar with the mother, grabbed a new trash bag, cracked 2 eggs into it (without the yolk) and put her feet in.

My daughter wasn't lethargic.

Other than her body trying to catch itself on fire internally, she had no signs of sickness.

While waiting for my son to bring my phone to the bathroom, I found an oral thermometer and put it under her tongue.

105.3

It was working and fast. Still, it's dangerously high.

Obviously, I called 911 because fibril seizures are no joke and I've never seen a thermometer go that high. We have never experienced either and I certainly hope we never will/will again.

By the time EMS arrived, (and they were quick), she was down to 103.

Upon returning home from the hospital, I laid her down and filled her ear with peroxide. Usually, it takes 10 minutes on each side until the bubbling stops.

It took 30. Each.

THIS is how to minimize something brewing (and brewing large).

1. Peroxide in each ear until it stops bubbling. The sooner you do this, the less your body will have to fight.

2. Egg whites on the feet.

3. ACV in the bath water.

It works.

It worked for me, I tried this last night for the 1st time with my 7 month old he was having 100.7 fever for 24 hours. One mother told me to try it. I did, and it worked! he is now at the normal temperature! very thrilled!

Question for you: was the egg whites raw or was this from a hard boiled egg? I am going to try this so am wondering which method you used? Thx.

Mama to many; thank you very much.

Sadie,

A quick PS - if your grandchild is under a year old, honey should not be used to sweeten tea, or internally at all.

Dear Sadie,

Astragalus root is a great herb for the immune system. In some countries it is used as food. I feel comfortable giving it to little ones. If you could get the powder form, you could add 1/4 teaspoon into some yogurt or applesauce once a day.

One way I have use colloidal silver for little ones is several drops into the ears and nose a few times a day. 25ppm.

The garlic your daughter is using is great. So happy to hear the doctor suggested more water.

Red raspberry Leaf tea is gentle and healing. It can be sweetened wit honey.

Baking soda or epsom salt baths are great for little ones. 1/2 cup of either in warm bath for 20 minutes. Adding a drop or two of lavender essential oil is nice, too.

Extra Virgin Coconut Oil - 1/2 teaspoon on some toast a couple of times a day is great for viruses.

I hope your granddaughter is better soon!

~Mama to Many~

my granddaughter is having on and off fever for 4 days . Her mother have been putting garlic paste on the child's feet. Yesterday they went to see their GP which told them to give more water. No meds prescribed which is a good thing. Is there more immune booster we can use for a one year old? Is Colloidal Silver safe for her and what is the dosage/how to apply? Any suggestion will be highly appreciated.

Vinegar works for a lot of ails. In the bible, did not Mary wipe vinegar on Jesus in his hour of pain? Nothing I have used it for comes back void. It works every time. Staple in our house!!

His body is fighting an infection - it may be an urinary infection. Try the cranberry juice (no sugar but you can add honey) and also keep his feet in warm water with smashed garlic. Give him Manuka honey and bee Propolis tincture in water.

Just a thought for your nephew... I had a dog that had seizures, 3 or 4 a week, so I gave her a zinc tablet in her food every evening, the kind I take myself. She only from there on had about two a year and they were only mild.

My poor nephew has been suffering from an ongoing fever for about 1-1 1/2 months. After blood work and scans Dr's cannot find out what is going on with him. The fevers have recently triggered a seizure, he was rushed to emerg where Dr's said that the fever was the only cause and to give him Advil every few hours and check his temp.

There has to be a better way, he is coming to stay with us tomorrow and I am looking up everything I can for fever and seizure remedies. I will be trying 1 tsp ACV in water (this is what I give to my daughter instead of juice) as well as on a cloth if his temp gets high, egg white for a more severe temp and a tsp of coconut oil a day for the seizures.

Funny thing, my 3 year old daughter loves coconut oil and sneaks it whenever she can. Our family has a history of seizures yet nether myself, nor my daughter have ever experienced one even with dangerously high fevers. We have consumed and applied coconut oil almost everyday since before she was born, perhaps this is the answer to our mystery.

Anyways I was wondering if anyone might have some experience with these symptoms and perhaps a cause? I would like to be able to send him home without a trip to emerg, some new knowledge about the issue and some remedies to try.

Thank you all.

Well, we tried the egg whites for fever remedy and I'm sorry to say, it didnt work In fact, my child's fever climbed to 103.4 from 102.8 :-( I used 4 eggs whites and soaked a handtowel in the egg whites and put on his feet and covered with socks. I was hoping that this would work.

I have read stories about infants and children in olden times who were sick & had various warm poultices applied to the bottom of their feet repeatedly through the night by kin folk or neighbors who had knowledge of healing herbs. In all the instances I read about, the children were recovered & out of danger by the next day. There was once a form of therapy using herbal extracts & a heated footbath, gradually increasing the temperature over a period of a few hours. Unfortunately, I have never been able to find complete instructions to it, only a brief reference. The art of Reflexology has a part devoted entirely to various areas of the feet & their relation to all the organs & other parts of the body. I think that the use & application of natural remedies to the bottom of a person's feet, infants & childred especially, can be an alternative form of natural treatment for various ailments, providing that the right combination of remedies & wet heat is used.

Yaa. My 18 month old son has had a high fever for over 24 hours. Wouldn't drink anything and didn't want me to touch him with anything. Finally I got a rag and wiped egg whites on it. I wiped it on his feet. He complained, but allowed it. I held him for a few minutes and his fever was gone!. Now resting quietly. Thank you earth clinic!

Many thanks... Great site. It is coming up on 3am and my 6 year old has had a temp for twelve hours. Tried the apple cider vinegar - too impatient, my child at this point had the flushed cheeks.I moved on to the egg whites and temp came down within 20 minutes. Thank you!!

It's a old Mexican home remedy for fever. It actually works, after 1.5 days of fever and giving her motrin and tyleno l and the fever just keep returningl. My mother in law covered my 1 year old in a paste of baking soda and crisco lard right before bed. She woke up fresh with no fever. And the fever didn't return! She said when u didn't have money in Mx. You had to believe and go by home remedies handed down.

One day my child was running a 105 temperature, so I thought of something that I just knew would work. I took an egg, and literally cracked it onto his forehead. By way of conduction, the heat will transfer to the egg, thus lowering fever. It worked VERY well. Within 30 minutes, his fever was down to 100. I highly recommend this remedy.

Another yay! I love this site. My father in law had a fever of 102 one night at about 7pm. I dipped paper towels in egg whites, wrapped his feet with them, put a large zip -- bag over his feet, then put his socks on so I he wanted to walk around he could. By 9pm (2 hours later) his fever went down to 99.1. Thank you earth clinic! I used earth clinic for years and would never submit yay or nays. Now I will because after all earth clinic wouldn't be what it is with out all the feedback. So let everyone know yay or nay if it works for you:-) k?
-Via Vapor in Bentonville, Arkansas

My 21 month old son had a fever all day yesterday and after letting it do it's thing all day, it got worse last night before bed. It kept fluctuating, but the highest temperature I read on the thermometer was over 106. I've taken previous kids to the ER for high fevers and they did what I could have done at home. I alternated Motrin and Tylenol every 4 hours, gave him tepid baths, kept damp cool rags on his back, tummy, neck, and forehead, and things helped, but never for long.

At 3 am as I was monitoring him sleeping, I came across this website. I love holistic healing so I decided to try it. I got 2 egg whites and cut a large paper towel in half. I soaked the paper towels, wrapped his feet, put little plastic sandwich baggies on over them, and then socks. He whined at first because they were cold but I just cuddled him and he went back to sleep. I checked after 15 minutes, no real change, maybe slightly lower. After 30 minutes, no real temp changes, after an hour, still no big change. But I noticed that his breathing was less labored, his nose was clearer, and he was sleeping a little more normally.

I fell asleep next to him at 4 am with the egg still on his feet (I could feel his feet were especially warm) and at 7am, he woke me up bright eyed, happy, and rested. I was so relieved! It is almost 11am and he has been running a low grade fever this morning, but he's playing and happy so I'm not worried. If it gets up there again, I will repeat the process. Thank you EC, thank you folk remedies, and thank you everyone who left comments, they're the reason I gave it a try! So grateful this morning!

Hello, I know of apple cider vinegar for fevers and I now do it for my son as well. It works. I mix the vinegar with water though as I think vinegar alone is too strong, and I heat it up a little and after rubbing it in I wrap my son in a warm blaket and let him sweat.