With any solution to your child’s aliments you should know their allergies and the reactions before treating anything. If you are also unsure about how to treat and or are not sure about the information you can get off the internet, you should always consult your Doctor or Pediatrician first. With my four children I’ve been around the block and still going with lot of these issues and luckily my children have no known allergies so many of these methods worked for me.

With a GI (Gastrointestinal) virus you can expect or notice nausea/vomiting, fever, diarrhea, headache, abdominal cramping and fatigue. If your child is still in diapers you can expect a lot of runny poo, so watch your fingers. Be prepared for a smell that will wake the dead. Many times it will be followed by a diaper rash that will make your bottom sting a little too. The hardest part is the ear shattering crying from discomfort and irritation. So, now that you’ve dried your eyes and regained control, let’s get down to business.

As you probably know there are two major worries you should have, dehydration and for a child in diapers, raw bottoms. In general you want a GI virus to run its course. If your youngster is taken down by a real nasty one here are some tips that will help slow it down without the use of Imodium medicine which some Pediatricians don’t recommend for young children. Perhaps it could even save you an expensive trip to the doctor.

To combat the diarrhea -
With young children especially infants you are going to at some time have to deal with the dirty deed of taking care of upset stomachs and diarrhea. What would help you and your youngling the most is to try to stiffen the stool. Some the everyday stuff that works very well is products like Yogurt, cheese and bananas. It’s inexpensive and usually less of a fight and mess as you try to get them to hold still to take a foul tasting medicine. Another great stool stiffener is mash potatoes or potato soup with cheese melted in. The best part with this quick fix is you can make a little extra and throw in some freshly chopped chives and bacon chunks and you’ll have a nice potato soup for yourself too.

Diaper Rashes -
I always feel for my kids when they have a fire engine red backside. How I’ve had to handle them has been a little different for each. Boudreaux’s Butt Paste had work wonders on a couple of them but for the others I’ve found that Desitin Cream mixed with Vitamins A & D ointment worked better. If you don’t want to tear into your child’s checks try to avoid scented wipes and soaps.

Another great way to help "cool things down a bit" is to use a burp cloth (which is very soft) that has been soaked thru cold water. This will help them feel better, and you too! They are looking at you to make it all feel better, These things will help to cool things down, but remember this area needs to be dry afterwards. Another thing to help is to let things just have some fresh air, but make sure little persons have gone potty, or you might have something to clean up.

Another tip a friend suggested is if you are giving your little one a bath and the rash is still there, avoid bubble bath soaps. Most products have perfumes or irratants that could only make it worse. Just use regular water or an oatmeal bath to sooth the burn. A buddy of mine gives his girls "shower baths" and they love them. The water is warm, but it goes down the drain. They aren't there for a long time, but just enough to get clean and have a bit of fun! Me, I prefer the oatmeal bath or plain water for my babies.

Remember the goal for reducing diaper rash is to keep the area and diaper dry and clean so do a check often. If your baby’s rash don’t seem to be going away even after you’ve changed the type of wipes, diapers and soaps you should consult your Doctor or Pediatrician.

Colic and stomach cramps -
I have found a very cheap but very effective remedy. Before I explain it I’ll let you know I thought it was absolutely crazy when I heard it until I tried it. You’ll be amazed on what you might try when you’re desperate to find something to sooth your baby.

For children under two you can try onion tea. You can make onion tea by boiling a couple cups of water. Put a slice of onion in a bowl and sprinkle a spoonful of sugar on top of it. Take the boiling water and pour it over the onion until it’s covered and let it steep until it becomes luke warm. I tried other products like Gripe Water and Colic Calm which do work well, however with my children the onion tea worked best and was by far the cheapest.

Nausea and vomiting -
Nothing will test your love more than anything than waking up in the middle of the night to your little angel puking all over the bed, which follows the cleanup time for them and the bed. Then after getting everything calmed down, you are holding them wishing you could make it go away just to have it chucked up all over you. Ah, memories.

Potato soup, crackers (saltines are good because of the salt. Salt helps to retain water) and toast are some foods you can try that are easy on the tummy. Sprite and Pedialyte are good for keeping them hydrated however if your children are like mine Pedialyte didn’t go over well so I mixed a half and half solution of non-citric juice or Sprite to help the flavor. Another idea given to me by my buddy was Ginger Ale. Ginger is something that helps with nausea and he uses it for his girls, and for himself if he goes out on a boat. You need to try to get them to drink a little (about 1-2 oz every hour) throughout the day instead of drinking a lot at one time. Stay away from a lot of milk and milk products if you want to keep the mess down.