Homeopathy for Acute Ear Infections

Does your child suffer from frequent ear infections? Are you tired of giving her antibiotics every time her ears hurt? Do you know that recent studies seriously question antibiotic efficiency for treating childhood ear infections?

In the US this year, parents will visit a physician 30 million times for ear infections. Most children will have at least one ear infection by the age of two or three.

The new guidelines by American Academy of Pediatrics say that between 7 and 20 children must be treated with antibiotics for 1 child to derive benefit. By 7 days, approximately 75% of children have resolution of ear infection symptoms, whether they receive placebo or antibiotics. The guidelines recommend an observation option for acute otitis media, deferring antibiotics for 48 to 72 hours and limiting management to symptomatic relief.

Next time your child has an ear infection, ask your physician for an observation option and try a few homeopathic remedies for ear infections at home.

Oil Drops: First use Kid's Ear Drops with Mullein and Garlic Oil or just warm some Olive Oil to alleviate the pain in the ears.  Some mothers swear by putting a garlic clove in their child's ear. Give it a try if your child will cooperate. Never use ear drops when there is a rupture of the eardrum (you will see a discharge from the ear).

Next, try to choose a homeopathic remedy that fits the pattern of your child's symptoms most consistently.

Pulsatilla--this is the most frequently used remedy for acute ear infections. If in doubt, give Pulsatilla before any other remedy. Usually Pulsatilla will help when the ear infection is accompanied by clear or thick yellow mucus from the nose. Oftentimes, the earache develops after a cold. The child is clingy, whiny, wants to be carried or held all the time. The child may have a high fever, but refuses to drink anything.

Belladonna--use Belladonna when your child has a sudden onset of high fever with an earache. The child is very hot to touch. The head is red, painful, yet hands and feet are cold. The child is lethargic and feels worse from movement.

Chamomilla--this remedy works for a very severe earache, when the child screams and cries angrily from pain and cannot be comforted. She may ask for one thing, throw it away and ask for another. The child may feel a bit better when carried around. Often the ear pain starts in the middle of the night. If your child wakes you up in the middle of the night with the screams of pain, and you suspect an ear infection, try giving her Camomilla. She may be able to calm down and go back to sleep.

If your child suffers from frequent ear infections, she may benefit from a professional homeopathic treatment. Frequent ear infections point to a certain imbalance in the immune system of a child that can be healed by a homeopathic remedy. A professional homeopath looks at every child in a holistic way. During a homeopathic consultation, the homeopath will observe the child and talk to the parents, to thoroughly assess all the symptoms that the child displays, including the symptoms of ear infections, the behavior of the child, his likes and dislikes, and the family history of diseases.

Homeopathy presents a solution to both, stopping the acute ear infection and providing a constitutional treatment that prevents the ear infections from happening altogether. If your child suffered from more than two ear infections in the last year, she is a good candidate for the homeopathic constitutional care.