06/28/2019
Fevers and Children’s Tylenol
So I was talking to a mom about her little girl, and when her child gets sick she gives her Tylenol to break the fever and help her feel better. In this case it was not a dangerously high fever. I explained to the mom that she might consider not rushing to give her child a medication. The body’s response to a virus is to create the fever to kill off the bug that loves developing in that normal body temperature environment. When you give the medication, it works against the body’s normal defense mechanism bringing the temperature down and allowing the bug to proliferate.
(This is another reason why when you’re fighting a cold and take all kinds of drugs to feel better you may actually be prolonging the condition. All those medications are toxic to the body and are only manipulating your symptoms.)
The mom said, “Yes, but it makes her feel better.” I suggested to her that since the Tylenol helps her feel better, why not give it to her every day to keep her that way? She replied, “That that would be ridiculous. If I gave it to her all the time she would get sick.” I was just trying to get her to think when I said, “Then how is it you give it to a sick child to get them well but you won’t give it to a healthy child because it will make them sick? I just wanted her to stop and think before automatically reaching for the medicine next time.
According to Michael Lyons, M.D. in an article in Kids Stuff magazine titled FACTS ABOUT FEVER:
• A fever itself won’t hurt a child. In fact, elevated body temperature may help him get better.
• The height of the fever usually does not indicate severity of the illness. For example, a child with scarlet fever may have a temperature of 101°F, while the temperature of a child with a severe cold may be 103°F
• An estimated 80 to 90 percent of all fevers in young children are related to common viral infections — the kind of infections that get better without treatment.
• Fevers of less than 105°F are not harmful and do not cause brain damage.
• A small percentage of toddlers get seizures from fever. The first seizure needs immediate medical evaluation. Seizures are frightening to witness, but do not cause residual problems. Subsequent, even low-grade fevers will need to be treated early.
• Teething does not cause a true fever.
"Fever is often a good sign of a robust immune system," said Dr. Kathi Kemper, professor of pediatrics at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. "A fever in and of itself is not dangerous."
While fevers may feel uncomfortable for some kids, it typically means that their body is fighting off an underlying sickness. The most common include ear infections, the common cold, and the flu. But unless a child has accompanying symptoms like a cough, runny nose, or vomiting that might suggest one of these illnesses, it may be better to hold off on trying to treat the fever.
Dr. Estevan Garcia, vice chair for emergency medicine at Maimonedes Medical Center in Brooklyn, NY. says,"Make sure they're hydrated, make sure they're eating and drinking."
Kemper agreed and added that even simply rocking your child in your arms or trying to keep him or her quietly distracted helps. The theme here, "Treat the child not the thermometer.”
So, why all this fever talk from a chiropractor? Most chiropractors have seen infants and children in their offices and it’s usually not for back pain. These parents get it that having their children eat healthy and have their nervous systems checked on a regular basis makes for a healthy body. The nervous system controls everything so why not make sure the Master Control System is functioning at its peak?
