This time it's the youngest member of the family, our 18 month old, with an ear infection, spiking on a Friday in the late afternoon.
Due to a medical condition, I'm very reluctant to give him pain killers and fever reducers but of course it breaks my heart to see him suffer and cry so much. Needless to say we had a rough night with lots and lots of nursing (yes, we still nurse. Hey, remember - not only is it a healthy thing to do, it's also very green!) and I found myself taking him downstairs with me, sitting in front of the computer and searching for home remedies.
I landed on My Home Remedies and saw some good stuff. Suitable for the night was one tip - boil water, put a washcloth in, then remove the washcloth and place it in a cup. Hold the cup against the ear (make sure the hot washcloth doesn't actually touch the ear or any skin!) and let the steam soothe the ear. I did that and it gave my poor baby some relief.
But I also eyed this post from a user named Darlene:
"Gramma Mary's Ear Ache Remedy
For ear aches, ear infections, even an infection of the inner ear that is un-responsive to antibiotics. I'm the youngest of eleven children and I had ear aches as a child and this always worked for me.
My mom would bake a medium sized onion(with outer peeling removed) in the oven @ 350 for about an hour or until it would prick easily with a fork.(I cannot vouch for microwave). Remove the onion, place it at the bottom of a canning jar, wrap the jar in a towel so as not to burn your hand, prick the onion to release the steam. Place the affected ear over the opening to allow the steam of the onion to sooth and penetrate the ear. You can use a smaller onion and a smaller jar for a small child, the opening will be better for their little ears) Leave it in that position until the steam is no longer being released, the heat alone feels wonderful. It almost immediately eases the pain.
I know of a child scheduled for tubes to be surgically placed in her inner ear for drainage due to repeated infections that were un-responsive to antibiotics, who responded to this treatment the night before the planned surgery. When the doctor checked her ear the infection was completely resolved and the surgery was cancelled. The childs mother wanted to know if she could pay my mom,just knowing a child was no longer suffering was more than enough payment. We know now that onions have a natural antibiotic property and the heat may also help to improve circulation. It won't hurt to try, and it just may help. So what have you got to lose, onions are cheap!
Happy Healing!
Make it a Great Day for yourselves!!
Darlene"
Well, when we got up in the morning, the poor boy was still in pain and just super cranky. I baked the onion and did as told in the post. At first, he didn't like having the cup against his ear (I switched sides every few minutes). Then he kind of fell asleep for a few minutes. Woke up shortly after like nothing ever happened!
Thinking about ear infections and that they are the most common childhood illness, this might be a thing to consider. Why not talk to your doctor about it next time you speak to him/her?
Ear infections are 80% viral. Yet antibiotics are prescribed in most occurring cases. That is totally contra productive, since antibiotics won't work for viruses and we hopefully all know by now that over consumption of antibiotics is simply not healthy in the long run, for different reasons.
If you are also reluctant to work with pain killers and want your or your child's body to resolve the illness by itself, try this remedy.
Onions have strong healing power. They are green, always available, easy to prepare, wont' create any extra waste or require extra energy to be produced. Unlike prescription or over-the-counter medications they don't come in plastic bottles that add to the landfill and they won't pollute the water and the earth with more or less toxic chemicals.
I'm so thrilled I came across this remedy (Thanks Darlene!) and hope you find it as helpful as I do (hopefully you won't need to use it anytime soon!)
Stay healthy and warm :-)
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