15 lessons on prevention and care of common childhood diseases

You don’t have to rush to the emergency room if you have even the slightest symptoms, nor do you delay things by insisting on blind care - all the content is accumulated through the pitfalls I have gone through after spending 8 years in the pediatric clinic and raising two children. They are all practical practices that can be implemented, and there are no empty theories.

Let’s start with the fever that every parent cannot avoid. This is the core of the first lesson. Last week, I met a neighbor downstairs rushing to the hospital with a baby whose temperature was 39 degrees Celsius. She was wrapped up three layers inside and three layers out to cover the sweat. The baby's face turned purple from the pressure. This is really the most common pitfall: there is no need to take antipyretics when the temperature is below 38.5 degrees. Do not use alcohol for physical cooling, and do not cover the sweat. The child's temperature regulation center has not yet developed well. Covering the baby too tightly can induce heat stroke. It should be mentioned here that there are indeed two views in the academic circles. One is that as long as the child is in good spirits, the child can be observed first when the fever reaches 39 degrees. The other is to administer the drug when the temperature reaches 38.5. In fact, the core is not a number at all, but the child's state: if the fever reaches 38.8 and he is still running around grabbing toys, you can give him some warm water and observe first. If the fever reaches 38 degrees, he can't open his eyes and cries at the touch of a touch. Just administer the drug directly. There is no need to stick to the scale.

Fever is an alarm, not a disease. The second lesson is about the cold that is most commonly associated with fever. Don't feed your children antibiotics as soon as they catch a cold. 90% of common colds are caused by viruses, and antibiotics are worth half a dime. My eldest son caught a cold last winter and had a runny nose. I didn't give him any medicine. I just sprayed his nose with saline two or three times a day and drank plenty of warm pear water. He was fine in a week. If the runny nose does not improve after more than 10 days, then consider whether it is complicated by bacterial infection. Go to the hospital to check the blood picture and then decide whether to use medicine. Don't blindly feed cephalosporins to yourself. If you eat too much, you may become resistant to antibiotics.

Cough is tied to the cold, which is the focus of the third lesson. Many parents are afraid that the cough may turn into pneumonia when their baby coughs. Don’t panic: Coughing is the body’s self-protection mechanism to expel phlegm. It is not pneumonia that is coughed up, but pneumonia that causes coughing. Do not give over-the-counter cough medicine to children under 6 years old during nursing care. The US FDA and my country's pediatric guidelines have clearly mentioned that the risks of such medicines far outweigh the benefits. If a child over 1 year old has a severe dry cough, you can feed a small spoonful of pure honey. The relieving effect is no worse than cough medicine. If there is phlegm, pat the back frequently with hollow palms from bottom to top. Don't pat the child too hard to hide, which can help the phlegm be discharged faster. Oh, by the way, if your child makes a barking sound when coughing, or is out of breath and has blue lips, don’t hesitate to go to the hospital. It is most likely acute laryngitis, which can easily get stuck in the respiratory tract and cause suffocation, so there is no need to delay.

The fever suddenly subsided after three to five days, and a large red rash appeared on the body. Many parents who encountered it for the first time were frightened. This is the acute rash in young children that will be discussed in the fourth class. Almost every baby will get this disease once between 6 months and 2 years old. The most typical feature is "heat goes away and rash appears". You don't need to take any medicine except antipyretics when necessary. The rash will disappear on its own in two or three days. There is no need to eat or drink. It is okay to blow dry and bathe. Don't listen to the old people who say that you should cover the rash so that it cannot be exposed to the wind. It is completely unnecessary. Covering the rash too hot will make the baby itchy and uncomfortable.

After talking about upper respiratory tract problems, let’s talk about gastrointestinal troubles. The fifth class will talk about autumn diarrhea, which is rotavirus infection. Don't give antidiarrheal medicine as soon as you have diarrhea. Antidiarrheal medicine will trap toxins that should be excreted in the body, which will make the condition more likely to worsen. The core of nursing care is to replenish oral rehydration solution III according to the instructions. Feed small amounts frequently. Preventing dehydration is more important than anything else. There are also two different care ideas here. One is to temporarily avoid lactose and switch to lactose-free milk powder. The other is that as long as the baby is willing to drink regular milk, he can drink it normally. In fact, it depends on the child's condition: if the diarrhea is worse after drinking regular milk, switch to lactose-free milk for three to five days. If there is no change, just eat normally. There is no need to deliberately starve the baby. Just light and less oily.

Diarrhea is annoying, and constipation is even more annoying. This is the content of the sixth lesson. I have seen many parents who frequently use Kaisellu on their children and become dependent on it, so don’t use it lightly. Usually eat more prunes, dragon fruit, and steamed apples with skin, which are more effective than any other probiotics. If you haven't had a bowel movement for three or four days and your baby is crying from holding it in, it's okay to use it once to remove the vaginal fluid, but don't use it for a long time. We also need to help the baby develop the habit of regular bowel movements. After eating, sit on the toilet for 5 minutes, and it will gradually become regular.

Skin problems are the hardest hit area for babies aged one month old. The seventh lesson is about eczema. Many parents think that eczema is caused by "wetness". In fact, on the contrary, it is caused by the skin being too dry. If you have mild to moderate eczema, apply a lot of moisturizer five or six times a day. Apply it thickly. Once the skin barrier is well maintained, it will disappear naturally. ； If there is severe oozing or scabbing, follow the doctor's advice and use weak hormone ointment, such as desonide, for three to five days. Don't be afraid of hormones. Short-term use of weak hormones for children has no side effects at all. It is much better than the itching that makes the baby sleepless all night long and scratching his face with blood marks. By the way, don’t stop breastfeeding or milk as soon as eczema develops. Only when it is confirmed that it is caused by food allergy do you need to avoid food. Otherwise, blind food taboos will affect the baby’s growth.

What is easily confused with eczema is heat rash, also known as prickly heat. The eighth lesson will teach you how to distinguish and care for it. Prickly heat is purely caused by heat. Don't dress the baby too much. To judge whether the baby is cold or not, touch the back of the neck. Don't touch your hands. Hands are already cold if they are exposed outside. When you have prickly heat, turn on the air conditioner, adjust the temperature to 24-26 degrees, and apply some calamine lotion. It will disappear in two days. Don't apply any prickly heat powder, as the particles are easily inhaled into the lungs, which is not good.

Hand, foot, and mouth and herpetic angina, which have become more common in spring and summer recently, are the contents of the ninth class. These two are "blood brothers". They are both caused by enteroviruses. There is no specific medicine and all they need is symptomatic care. If the baby has herpes in his mouth and it hurts so much that he can't eat, he can give him some cold milk, cold porridge, or even popsicles, which can relieve the pain and usually heal on his own in about a week. If your baby develops persistent high fever, poor energy, projectile vomiting, or convulsions, go to the hospital immediately to be alert to the risk of serious illness. Getting the EV71 vaccine in advance can prevent the most dangerous severe hand, foot and mouth disease. It is very cost-effective and is highly recommended.

Nowadays, more and more children are suffering from allergic rhinitis. This will be discussed in the tenth lesson. Don't treat your child's constant sneezing, runny nose, or nose rubbing as a cold. If it persists for more than two weeks, it is most likely allergic rhinitis. The most effective daily care is to wash your nose with normal saline and try to avoid allergens. If it is severe, follow the doctor's advice and use nasal spray hormones. Don't blindly give yourself cold medicine, as it will be useless. There are two different ways of dealing with it. One says that allergic rhinitis should be treated with desensitization as soon as possible. The other says that as long as it does not affect your life, you don’t need to worry about it. In fact, it depends on the frequency of attacks: if it occurs several times a year, each lasting one or two months, and the child breathes with his mouth open and snores when sleeping, then check the allergens and consider desensitization. If it occurs once a year, two or three days will be enough. Just avoid allergens on a daily basis.

Children often get nosebleeds, and the first reaction of many parents is to ask their children to raise their heads and stuff them with toilet paper. This is a mistake that needs to be corrected in the eleventh lesson. If a nose bleeds, don't raise your head or stuff it with paper. Let the child lower his head and pinch both sides of the nose with your hands. Apply pressure for 5-10 minutes and it will basically stop. Don't let your baby pick his nose all the time. If the air is dry, turn on a humidifier and apply some Vaseline in the nasal cavity to reduce bleeding. If you have frequent nosebleeds for no reason and are often accompanied by unknown bruises on your body, go to the hospital for a routine blood test to rule out blood system problems.

I just mentioned mouth breathing, and by the way, let’s talk about adenoidal hypertrophy in the twelfth lesson. Don’t be scared to death when the doctor says you need surgery, and don’t think that conservative treatment is necessarily better than surgery. If the baby only opens his mouth to breathe occasionally, does not snore, and does not affect his sleep, just observe him conservatively. ； If sleep apnea, adenoids, or recurrent otitis media have already occurred, the surgery is the best. Nowadays, it is minimally invasive and has no major risks. If it is delayed for a long time, it will affect the appearance and growth of the baby.

The most frightening thing for parents is that their children have fever, which is also known as febrile convulsions. This is the content of the thirteenth lesson. Don't panic if you encounter it. Don't stuff chopsticks or towels into the baby's mouth. Don't pinch him. Place the baby on a flat place and lie on his side. Untie the collar to prevent choking on vomit. Generally, it will stop on its own after 1-3 minutes. After it stops, you can go to the hospital for examination. If the smoking persists for more than 5 minutes, call 120 immediately. For babies with a history of hyperthermic convulsions, there is no need to give antipyretics at 38.5 the next time they have a fever. It can be given earlier, but it cannot completely prevent convulsions. This is related to the baby's constitution. Generally, after the age of 6, when the nervous system matures, it will not happen again.

Iron deficiency anemia, which is often diagnosed by child care, is the content of the fourteenth lesson. Don't rely on red dates and spinach to supplement iron. The iron content is already low and is not easily absorbed, and it won't be enough to supplement it for a long time. When adding complementary foods for 6 months, the first step is to strengthen iron-fortified rice noodles. Usually, eat more red meat, pork liver, and animal blood. These are good iron supplements. If your hemoglobin is lower than 100g/L, take iron supplements as directed by your doctor. Don’t just rely on food supplements, as you won’t be able to keep up.

The last lesson is about the most practical daily accident handling. If you get burned, don't apply toothpaste, soy sauce, badger oil or other messy things. Immediately run cold water for 20 minutes. If you get blisters, don't pop them yourself. Go to the hospital for treatment. ； Don’t rub it hard if you fall or knock it. Apply cold compress first, then apply hot compress after 24 hours. ； If you knock your head, don’t put your baby to sleep immediately. Watch for 2 hours to see if there is any vomiting, lack of energy, or drowsiness. If so, go to the hospital immediately. ； If you are bitten by a cat or dog, regardless of whether the animal has been vaccinated or not, rinse the animal with soapy water for 15 minutes before getting a rabies vaccine. Don’t leave anything to chance.

In fact, after all, these 15 lessons are not about advanced knowledge. They are just to help you stay calm when your baby is sick. Don't mess with your baby, and don't take it seriously. How can you raise a baby without getting sick? Take your time, and if you know more, the baby will suffer less, right?