Herbal Healing
Extracts can help when kids are sick, but use caution
Echinacea purpurea
Herbal tonics have been used for centuries to treat and prevent a variety of health problems.
These days, herbal remedies are often the most commonly purchased products in natural food stores. Though we adults often trust the efficacy and safety of herbal extracts, there is much to consider before giving them to children.
Not all herbal extracts are created equal, and there are real dangers that parents must consider before incorporating herbs into their children’s natural health program.
For starters, it’s important to know how the extract was made. Most are extracted from plants with the help of alcohol. Not only will most kids turn up their noses at these, but the health effects on children from extractions made with alcohol are unknown.
As an alternative, extracts known as herbal glycerites are made using plant glycerine instead of alcohol, making them safer for kids and more palatable.
Parents should also learn what they can about where the herbal remedy was made. The Food and Drug Administration regulates domestic herbal supplements, and processors are required to adhere to standards for good manufacturing processes. But imported herbal remedies may also contain drugs or contaminants.
The good news is that there are many outstanding herbal growers and processors. Look for an organic seal, so you’ll know the plant material was grown and processed to a USDA-regulated standard.
In addition to benefiting from herbal extracts, children’s discomfort can also be eased using herbal inhalations, compresses, and salves.
Using herbal remedies for kids is a long tradition in many cultures, only recently having been supplanted in some countries by a reliance on drugs like Tylenol and Advil for childhood fever.
Echinacea extract, often used to prevent and treat colds, is the number-one selling herb in natural product stores in the United States, according to experts at Herb Pharm, a certified organic herb grower and processor based in Williams, Oregon.
If you give your child Echinacea for a cold, you can expect to see an improvement in two to three days, but it’s important to keep giving the tincture for five days after symptoms disappear to help shore up the immune system. Chamomile is another favored herbal remedy for fever or stomach upset.
David Bunting, a staff herbalist at Herb Pharm, cautions that herbs are serious medicines. Especially with children, he suggests starting with single remedies rather than combinations of herbal extracts.
Jessica Iclisoy is the founder of California Baby, a natural skincare line for babies, kids, and sensitive adults. Visit her website at californiababy.com.
