I think it's pink eye...

[heket]

Any natural remedies I can use on my 3 1/2 month old? It's been going around and now I think he caught it. Suggestions?

[SheBear]

Breastmilk!!! It works wonders! Just express a little and drip it into his eyes several times a day.

My dh had pinkeye about 2 months ago (he's an educator, and it was going around the schools) and he didn't want to go to the doctor, so I convinced him to use the breastmilk. He was amazed first at how immediately soothing it was, then the next day that the redness, pain and itching were so much better! Even so, his eyes were sensitive for about a week, and he missed 2 days of work.

Anyway, the breastmilk is amazing. You can check it out online--google "pinkeye and breastmilk" or "conjunctivitis and breastmilk". Also, I got some eyebright capsules from the HFS and dh took a couple internally about 3x a day. I also broke open several capsules and steeped them into a tea (I used my coffee pot--it was very simple) then dh dipped clean cloths (we used cloth diaper wipes; you could use hankies or whatever) into it and put them on his eyes as warm compresses. He did that once or twice a day for several days, too.

Obviously, a baby couldn't take eyebright internally, but you could make the tea and apply it to his eyes if you wanted to.

Hope this helps, and hope your little sweetie is feeling better soon!

blessings!

[heket]

Thanks!

That's what I thought, but I wanted to be sure. I did that a few times last night and so far today, dh says he looks good. I asked him to continue through today, just to be on the safe side. I'd rather nip it in the bud before it becomes a problem.

I wish I had thought of it when I had it last month...

[Marco Esquandolas]

Did you know, also, that pink eye will go away on its own in about a week? Usually pedi offices give out that eye goop drop stuff for school aged kids or adults (I guess they wouldn't see a ped, lol) who have it to clear it up faster b/c it is so contagious and just looks so nasty. My particular office recommends just keeping EVERYTHING (hands, clothes, bedding daily, etc) clean as clean can be, and doing warm compresses of just water. Constant hand washing after touching, b/c they will touch and rub and itch their eyes. That's it. My now 6 yo got it when he was five, and was kind enough to share with his brothers, so the baby got it too. I did the bm and water compresses, and surely enough, all the kids cleared up. Dh and I never got it.

[heket]

Ya know, my husband said something very similar -- that the ointment stuff is just to force it through your system faster and not actually "curing" anything. It's just to get you through the contagious stage faster to help prevent it from spreading...

[mama_daba]

Originally Posted by phishmama

Did you know, also, that pink eye will go away on its own in about a week?

this depends on what the cause is, some pink eye is a bacterial infection that may not go away and may need treatment or can cause permanent damage to the eye, most pink eye is not an infection and will go away on it's own and needs no special treatment

[Marco Esquandolas]

Whoops, thanks, moonfroggy...yeah, viral or allergic will go away on its own, but bacterial may need meds.