Thrush???

[chrfath]

What is the best way to get rid of it?

We have been lazily trying to get rid of it for a month now. I don't want to use the nystatin the Dr prescribed because DD is on heart meds and that is enough for her for now. I have been doing a vinegar wash but that doesn't seem to be getting rid of it. Some relief but not total.

Thanks for any tips.

[hvl25]

boy can I relate. Have had it 3 times. Gentian Violet is what finally knocked it our for us. It is messy though but works well and cheap. It will dye everything purple !! You only use it for 3-4 days max. Search here at Mothering, there is a great article on treating thrush naturally. Also, garlic and acidophilous will help too. I have heard grapefruit seed extract too but never used it so don't know the dosage. Good Luck

[Penguintrax]

Nyastatin and Gentian Violet didn't work for us, but acidophilus did the trick. I take a dose of a 'mega' acidolphilus supplement once a day - took about a week for my symptoms to disappear and about 2 weeks before I noticed a cleaning in DS's mouth. He's been totally clear for about a month. I continue to take the supplement as a preventative/probiotic measure.

Good luck - we struggled with thrush from (almost) day 1 until he was about 3 months old (when he mouth cleared).

[jogirl]

We cleared it up with Gentian Violet. Got it at Walmart for $1.46! Worked wonderful and quickly - 3 days and *gone*. Nystatin didn't work for us and I'm too lazy to keep up with the acidophilus .

[lexbeach]

Ugh. Thrush. We have it too. It's been almost 5 months now. We've tried everything: nystatin, diflucan, gentian violet, GSE (grapefruit seed extract), vinegar, and acidophilus. Also, I cut out all sugar from my diet. The oral nystatin did nothing except make the babies sick, although the nystatin ointment has been helpful for the yeasty diaper rash. The diflucan worked for me, but then the babies would just reinfect me when I got done taking it. The gentian violet worked to get the thrush out of the babies' mouths, but seems to only work temporarily for my breasts. GSE did nothing so far as I could see. We wash all of our clothes (and everything else) in vinegar and hope that it is killing the yeast. It never worked on my breasts. Acidophilus has been the best. It keeps the thrush at bay to the extent that I only feel a little burning now and then. The boys' mouths are now clear, and all that lingers on them is a bit of diaper rash. I take a few capsules of really instense acidophilus with bifidus (that's important) three or four times a day. It is expensive, though.

If I were you I would try the gentian violet, and also take acidophilus. I know that a lot of people have success with GV. You should know that there is an Australian study that links GV to cancer of the mouth. Most of what I've read and heard seems to dispute the danger of it, but you should do your own research before trying it.

Good luck! Thrush is horrible. I almost quit breastfeeding a few times when the pain got really bad. I'm so glad I didn't! Actually, weaning does not get rid of thrush, so there is no reason to wean!

Check out the bfing forum for more ideas. The thread is called "HELP! I can't believe we have thrush!" Or something like that.

Lex

[sahm]

We are dealing with it too, though very lazily becuase it's not really affecting us too much. I did one dose of gentian violet and it got rid of the patches in dd's mouth and took away the soreness in my nipples. Then I switched to Grapefruit Seed Extract because it's not as messy and it worked fine for us.

[jogirl]

If you have a diaper rash try adding some tea tree oil to the baby's *and* your bath. We add around 6 drops to a full tub. Has really helped keep the diaper area clean. I've heard a diaper spray solution of 5 drops GSE to 4 ounces of water can also help with the yeasty rash.