Baby’s Cough and Nasal Congestion
Answered by: Susan Eagles
Question from: Healther
Posted on: July 08, 2006

I have a three month old who has a non productive cough. He is also congested in his nasal passages. Is there any SAFE herbal teas I could give him to help with his cough as well as congestion?

Always consult a medical doctor when you are concerned about the health of your baby.

A non-productive cough with congested nasal passages could signal an allergy or food sensitivity. If you are breastfeeding, avoid any foods that cause you digestive distress or allergic reactions. If you are giving your baby formula, be aware that babies are commonly sensitive to dairy products. For more information on infants’ problems with dairy formulas, please see our website at www.richters.com. Choose "Q&A" from the main menu, then enter "baby" for the search.

Plantain (Plantago lanceolata), Chamomile (Matricaria recutita) and Elderflowers (Sambucus nigra) are very gentle and safe herbs for babies. They will soothe the respiratory tract, and relieve congestion and inflammation. It is important to purchase excellent quality herbs. If you have a good health store with freshly dried herbs, you can make a tea by combining equal parts of these herbs, then steeping one half teaspoon of dry herbal mixture in one half cup of boiling water, covered, for 15 minutes. The dose for a baby is one teaspoon of the tea in a bottle with one quarter cup of water, three times daily.

Good quality dreid herbs can be recognized by look and smell. The colour of the dried herbs should be the same colour as the fresh herb (green leaved, white or yellow flowers) and they should have a distinctive smell. Old herbs are often brown and have little or no smell. The above dried herbs are available at Richters.

If good quality dried herbs are not available, ask at a good health food store for the best quality alcoholic tinctures. These are usually made by small companies, specializing in herbal remedies. The amount of alcohol in the small doses required is not harmful. The dose for a 3 month old baby is one drop of each of the 3 tinctures, diluted in one quarter of a cup of pure water, 3 times daily.

Do not add honey to the herbal formula for a child under one year of age. Honey can cause fatal illness infants. See the following link on our website www.richters.com for more information about honey and infants: http://richters.com/show.cgi?page=./QandA/Medicinal/19990202-4.html.

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