Homeopathic Gastroenteritis Remedies for Children

When you have gastroenteritis, your stomach and intestines become inflamed. This may be caused by bacteria or a virus. Common symptoms are nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. These can be especially dangerous in children because children can easily become dehydrated. In addition to making sure children get plenty to drink, you can use homeopathic remedies to treat gastroenteritis.

Treating the Symptoms

• Homeopathic medicines are called remedies. You can purchase individual remedies or combination products. Remedies are available in different potencies. Remedies are available in tiny round tablets called pellets, as liquid tinctures, creams, or gels. When using homeopathic remedies, look at the specific symptoms that are presenting. Nausea, for example, can be treated with a variety of remedies depending on how it presents. Choose remedies based on the symptoms, not the disease. Remedy dosage should be one to three 30C strength pellets every one to two hours until there is improvement. If there has been no improvement following three doses, choose another remedy.

Nausea

• Use Aethusa if there is an intolerance of milk, e.g. a child vomits curd of milk, or if the ill child is very young. Ipecac is the remedy of choice for constant nausea that is not relieved by throwing up; it is a good choice if there is no thirst, and the smell of food makes the nausea worse. Choose Nux Vomica for children who are retching but unable to throw up, or if your child wakes up in the middle of the night with a stomach ache and nausea. A child who is nauseated and wants carbonated drinks and the company of others is a good candidate for Phosphorus. Veratrum album is a good remedy for a child with violent vomiting and diarrhea, who breaks out in a cold sweat while vomiting, or has projectile vomiting. A child who will respond well to Veratrum album may ask for ice, pickles, lemons, or salt to relieve their nausea.

Diarrhea

• When treating diarrhea in children, be sure to observe the stools. When stools are lumpy, mucoid, watery, and bright yellow, choose Aloe socotrina; the child may want to be alone, be irritable or angry, or experience a great deal of gas. Frequent, dark, watery and bad-smelling stools are a sign that Arsenicum Album may be the remedy of choice. Children who need this remedy may experience abdominal cramping, anxiety, be afraid of being left alone, feel chilly and may request frequent sips of water. For explosive, gushing diarrhea in large quantities, consider Croton tiglium. This is a good remedy of the child is also experiencing a worsening of symptoms after drinking or eating even the smallest amount. If the diarrhea is somewhat explosive, but comes out in thin, prolonged gushes, choose Gambogia. It is also the remedy of choice for children who experience intestinal gurgling before diarrhea, and tend to feel better after having a bowel movement. If your child is experiencing abdominal rumbling and cramping, and having sudden, urgent bowel movements that are liquid, profuse, gushing, bad-smelling, and yellowish-green, consider Podophyllum. This is the best remedy if your child feels better when she lies on her stomach. Veratrum album is good for the child who breaks out in a cold sweat, and has violent vomiting and diarrhea.