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September 4, 2020 By Jill 15 Comments

5 Herbs To Use For Babies and Children

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Not all herbs are safe for children, but here are 5 herbs to use for babies and children.

When we are using herbs and have little ones in the house, our first question is, “Is this herb safe for babies and children?”

It can make a parent nervous to administer herbs to children that they are not familiar with – and you should be careful. Just as you watch your child closely when you introduce each new food {one of my girls was allergic to green beans but has not had any reactions to herbs I’ve given her} to make sure there is no reaction, you should watch your child for reactions to herbs as well.

But herbs are foods, and can be a great choice for medicine as well. If your child has a rash after consuming an herb or does not tolerate an herb well, then you know to avoid that herb. There are definitely herbs that babies and children should never have, so I encourage you to research which herbs are safe that can greatly benefit your young one’s health when they are needed, and which ones need to wait until the child is older.

While these 5 herbs below are not in the least the only ones you can give to little ones, they are a good start to have on hand.

 5 Herbs To Use For Babies and Children

Chamomile Flowers

chamomil-flower-update

Chamomile is one of the safest herbs to use. The flowers are great for nervous conditions and have a mild sedative effect.  They help relieve menstrual cramps, intestinal cramps, digestive upsets and gas pains. For babies, they are a choice remedy for teething and colic.

To make chamomile tea for colic or stomach aches:

  • Steep 1-2 tsp. of chamomile flowers in a cup of boiling water for 5 minutes.
  • Remove the pan from the burner while steeping and cover with a lid.  Strain the flowers from the liquid.
  • Cool tea to room temperature
  • Give babies 1-2 ounces, children 2-4 ounces, and adults 1 cup as needed. Giving the tea warm will make a big difference in it being effective for colic and aches.

Using chamomile for teething:

  • Make a strong tea of chamomile when you want to use it for teething.
  • Steep the flowers in the tea for 30 minutes to an hour.
  • You can either freeze the tea in popsicle molds or soak a rag in the tea and freeze the rag for the baby to chew on! These methods will offer great relief for those aching gums.

Catnip

Catnip

Catnip is very gentle and highly prized in treating children’s ailments. It is excellent for colds, flus, and fevers.

To use catnip as a fever reducer:

Combine equal amounts of…

  • Catnip
  • Elder flower
  • Spearmint

…in a container and mix. Make a tea using the instructions above. If you don’t have the elderflower and spearmint, just make a tea with catnip. For children 3 and older, give 1/4 cup every 2 hours until the fever subsides. For children under 3, give 1 tsp of the tea every 2 hours. {Source}

Olive Leaf

WebOlive-leaf

Olive leaf is a natural antibiotic and something I would turn to for viral or bacterial infections…and it’s safe enough for children and babies. Like most herbs, it can be administered in tea or tincture form.

Elderberries

elderberries

Elderberries are a great immune booster and well known for their flu-fighting properties. Dried elderberries can be added to foods, but my favorite way to consume them is by making syrup out of them. Read here how I make elderberry syrup. If making syrup for babies under 1, use vegetable glycerin instead of honey.

Echinacea

Echinacea

Echinacea has been said by some to be used with caution for babies.My naturopathic doctor recommends echinacea for babies over 1, and I believe it is much safer than antibiotics and steroids prescribed for infants all the time. Echinacea is a powerful natural antibiotic and infection fighter.

Before I started making my own medicines, I bought an immune booster for infants and children called Sweet Echinacea that has echinacea as its main herb.

My babies and now children have all responded very well to this herb and it has saved us many doctors visits. I do know of one person that has had an adverse reaction to this herb, but this is very rare. It’s comparable to someone who is severely allergic to peanuts and knows to never eat them again, but most other people can tolerate them fine.  

Again, echinacea can be used in tea and tincture form, or you can buy this Infant Immune-Booster that contains both echinacea and elderberries!

If you make the olive leaf or echinacea into a tincture form yourself, here are suggested dosage amounts from Mountain Meadow Herbs:

Suggested Dosage Use for Babies and Children

Under 2 years old – 1 to 3 times a day as needed

  • 5-10 drops

2-11 years old – 1 to 3 times a day as needed

  • 1/8 tsp.

12 years and older – 1 to 3 times a day as needed

  • 1/4 tsp.

Intervention Use: Use suggested dosage every 4 hours.

Maintenance Use: Use suggested dosage 6 days on, one day off for 2 weeks.

Do you use herbs for your babies? Which are your favorites, or which ones would you like to try?

Sources:

Gallagher, K. (n.d.). Teething Relief. Retrieved April 23, 2015, from http://learningherbs.com/remedies-recipes/teething-relief/
Weaver, R., & Weaver, C. (2010). Be your own doctor: 101 stories : Natural remedies for the health of your family. Reinholds, PA (240 Mohns Hill Rd., Reinholds, PA 17569): Share-A-Care Publications.
Gladstar, R. (2012). Rosemary Gladstar’s medicinal herbs: A beginner’s guide. North Adams, MA: Storey Pub.
Bulk Herb Store. (n.d.). Retrieved April 23, 2015, from http://www.bulkherbstore.com/
Disclaimer: This post is for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent disease.
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Filed Under: Baby/Children Health Tagged With: Babies, children, natural antibiotics, natural remedy

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. sangeetha menon says

    May 11, 2015 at 11:43 am

    very informative post.

    Reply
    • Jill says

      September 5, 2020 at 4:17 am

      Thank you! I’m glad you found it helpful. 🙂

      Reply
  2. Jacqueline @ Deeprootsathome.com says

    May 18, 2015 at 8:33 pm

    Great post; We love each one of these useful herbs! I appreciate that you consistently are encouraging Moms to use herbals with their little ones. keep up the good work and information, Jill!
    God bless your new week!

    Reply
  3. Sarah says

    July 14, 2017 at 10:11 pm

    Hi

    My baby is 7 month old, is it safe to give olive leaf extract at this age?
    Thanks

    Reply
    • Jill says

      July 14, 2017 at 10:37 pm

      You sure can! 5-15 drops 1-3 times a day is recommended for ages 0-2 years old.

      Reply
      • Mj says

        August 16, 2017 at 2:18 am

        Hi Jill can you give some recommendations of how you give echinacea to a 18 month old? Wanting to try this and elderberry. Do U recommend any daily vitamins at all? Trying to prpepare for the cold season as she was sick last year for what seemed to be 6 months straight

        Reply
        • Jill says

          December 28, 2017 at 10:31 pm

          Hi, MJ! You can make an echinacea glycerite or purchase one like Sweet Echinacea by Herbs for Kids.
          I do think vitamins are great! I really like SuperKids!

          Reply
  4. Meredith says

    September 6, 2017 at 4:31 pm

    Thanks so much for this post! I have elderberry syrup, and my 8- mo-old got a runny nose and cough. I know elderberry is good for respiratory issues, so I wondered if I could give it to him. Now I know! I love to use herbs, and err on the side of carelessness, and decided to research this.

    Reply
  5. Maria muhammad says

    February 4, 2018 at 12:35 am

    Hi Jill, so I have a 21 month old who recently started school and now everyone is sick including my 6 month old. However I’ve bought both echinacea and elderberry syrup, he has a cough and runny nose can I give him some of each and if so how much ?

    Thank you

    Reply
    • Jill says

      February 11, 2018 at 3:01 am

      If you have echinacea tincture, Mountain Meadow Herbs recommends for under 2 years old – 5-10 drops 1 to 3 times a day as needed. If the elderberry syrup has honey, don’t give to under 1 year old. There should be instructions on the bottle. I use the amount hourly for my girls if they are really sick.

      Reply
  6. Ms E says

    September 4, 2020 at 6:20 pm

    Hi Jill,

    Thank you for this post.

    I use Catnip herb at the first sign of any flu symptoms. I have been using Catnip, along with many of the other herbs you have mentioned in this post for years. Both for myself and my children.

    Also, I want to add that I have found the herb, Dill, to work wonderful at stopping a fever or cold in its tracks.

    Dill, as you may know, when steep has a sweet taste and I find that my kids love it because of that. So win-win for me and them.

    Thanks again for taking the time to share your knowledge with us.

    Be blessed.

    Reply
    • Jill says

      September 5, 2020 at 4:19 am

      I have never tried dill for those purposes. How interesting! Thanks for sharing!

      Reply

Trackbacks

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Hi, there! I'm Jill, a Christian herbalist, homeschool mom of four, and live on a homestead in the Midwest. Welcome to my herbal home on the web! Here you'll find ways to treat your family at home with natural remedies, as well as how to make herbal medicine in your very own kitchen. Get To Know Me Here!

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