Search icon

Health

08th Jul 2019

Sick baby or toddler? Check out these 6 hacks to make both your lives easier

Anna Daly

sick

Brought to you by Easofen for Children Strawberry Oral Suspension. 

Life can be pretty miserable when your baby is sick.

They understandably feel awful so it’s non-stop crying if they’re babies and a fair bit of complaining if they’re already at the talking stage.

That’s fair enough though, no one likes to be sick, and if we could cry or complain all day when we feel poorly, we definitely would. It’s absolutely no fun seeing your little one unwell and the constant looking after them will have you feeling run off your feet pretty quickly too.

Like we said, not a fun time for anyone. So we’ve come up with a few hacks that, while they won’t magically make your baby better in an instant, will hopefully take some of the edge off. You know, make your life a little bit easier, and hopefully make the tiny tot feel a little bit better too.

1. Double up on the sheets

Might seem like a pretty basic hack but, trust us, if you’ve got a toddler who is throwing up constantly and they’re not at an age where they can use the sick bucket by themselves, having an extra sheet that you can whip off quickly in the middle of the night is a must.

It means less midnight work for mum and dad, and also means your little one can hopefully grab a few z’s in that after-sick bubble when tummies feel a little bit better. Bonus if you can get a waterproof sheet.

2. Get that medicine down

Medicine and kids don’t usually mix well. Whether you have a little one who’s continually coughing it back up or a toddler who’s moaning about the taste, there are two things you can do to make it go down a lot easier.

If you’ve got a baby who keeps coughing up, try using a dropper to put the medicine under their tongue. That way they won’t taste it and hopefully, it will go down pretty easily.

The best thing to do, though, and probably the most fail-safe way to get your little one to take their medicine, no matter what age, is to pick up a medicine that tastes delicious. You know what they say – a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down.

Pick up a bottle of Easofen for Children Strawberry 3 months plus Oral Suspension – it’s suitable for kids aged three months and up and has that yummy strawberry taste the kids will love. Medicine time will go from a dreaded experience into a (relatively) fun one. Easofen for Children is great for reducing pain and fever, so you can use it for teething pain, earaches, headaches, sprains and strains, sore throats, or any cold and flu symptoms. It’s a catch-all that the kids will love.

3. Soothe a sore throat with a marshmallow

Surprised? We were too, but apparently the gelling agents in marshmallows do a pretty good job at coating and cooling sore throats. So the next time the kids (or you) have a sore throat, pick of a bag of marshmallows to ease the pain. We don’t think you’ll hear any complaints with this remedy.

Be careful though – marshmallows are also a choking hazard so leave the big ones for the older kids and stick to the mini marshmallows if your toddler is under four years old.

4. Clean those teddies

Stuffed toys often go under the radar when it comes to cleanliness. Though these little playmates that are constantly hugged and coughed on are probably more covered in germs than most items in the bedroom. That can be a problem when your kids are recovering from sickness and still prone to reinfection.

To make sure your little one’s cuddly friend is safe and germ-free, give them a good clean. Check the teddy’s washing instructions – most can be cleaned in the washing machine (just pop it in a pillowcase to make sure no button eyes get pulled off).

For teddies that can’t go in the machine, place them in a zip lock bag or bin bag and add some baking soda (about half a cup for an average sized teddy). Shake the toy around in the bag and then leave it for about 20 minutes. Brush the remaining baking soda off the teddy and there you have it, a clean toy for your baby.

5. Stick to the BRAT diet

No, this isn’t a meal plan for bold children. In this case, BRAT stands for Bananas, Rice, Apples, and Toast. All these foods are easy on the stomach and are the four main snacks to stick to when tummies are feeling upset.

If your child has been throwing up all day but has stopped for a few hours and needs to get a little food into them, these are the best choices to go with. Make sure not to go crazy with the butter if you’re giving them toast though – dry toast is best or just a tiny spread of butter if they need a little help getting it down.

6. Salt in a sock for earaches

If your kid has an earache plaguing them and it’s too late to run to the shop, try a warm salt-filled sock. First, heat up some coarse salt in the microwave, and then pour it into a thick cotton sock. Tie the sock up and hold it against your child’s ear. Alternatively, for those of us who don’t have microwaves, you can pour the salt into a sock, tie it up and then heat it in a pan or skillet until quite warm but not too hot that it will cause discomfort.

The soothing warmth will help with the pain and the salt may also draw fluid out of the ear, helping to decrease middle ear pressure. For extra soothing, you could add a drop or two of essential oil to the sock.

So there you have it – our top six hacks for when the little one is feeling under the weather. While sick days are never going to be top of the list, we hope these little tips and tricks help make the time just that little bit easier.

Brought to you by Easofen for Children Strawberry Oral Suspension. 

You can use Easofen for Children Strawberry 3 months plus Oral Suspension to help relieve children’s discomfort. Available in strawberry flavour, Easofen for Children Strawberry Oral Suspension reduces pain and fever including teething pain, earache, headache, sprains and strains, sore throats along with cold and flu symptoms.