Even though nausea is common in children, most parents will get worried when they find it in their children. The situation that worries parents more is when nausea is accompanied by vomiting, causing their children to get weak and limp or even more than that, i.e., dehydration in children.
When nausea appears in your children, you may immediately look for medicines to treat it, right? Prior to buying a medicine for nausea, it’d be better for you to identify some medicines that contain ingredients intended for safe consumption by children.
If it is hard for you to find the proper medicine for nausea, you shouldn’t worry since this post will show you some of the most-recommended medicines for nausea that have been parents’ choices. Beforehand, we will give you information about the common causes of nausea in children and some home remedies to cure it. Okay, let’s see our post below!
Causes of Nausea in Children
Since children cannot recognize nausea yet, it requires the help of parents to identify it. Of course, there are so many factors that can cause a child to feel nauseous and want to vomit. Although many factors can contribute to nausea in children, digestive disorders are the most common cause.
Here are some causes of nausea in children:
1. Stomach flu
Stomach flu or viral gastroenteritis can appear because of a viral or bacterial infection in the digestive system. It can cause further signs and symptoms, in addition to nausea, such as stomach cramps, watery diarrhea, vomiting, and sometimes fever.
You need to know, there is no effective treatment for stomach flu since it can heal by itself, but prevention is key. Make sure to avoid food and water that may be contaminated, and always wash your hands thoroughly and often.
2. Food allergies
Food allergies in children are so common. Foods with protein, such as eggs, cow’s milk, soybeans, fish, and shrimp, are the biggest cause of allergies. The allergy caused by food usually causes itching in several parts of the skin. However, it is causing further symptoms of nausea to appear after consuming these foods.
3. Food poisoning
Nausea in children can also occur because of food poisoning. Due to many factors, such as unhygienic and immature processes, food consumed by children could become toxic and contaminated. Furthermore, a number of food ingredients that are not stored properly can also become a nest of bacteria.
4. Overeating
It is so normal that when eating our favorite foods, we will eat too much, just as with children. They will get excited to eat their favorite food, leading them to eat too much. When overeating, it can cause the child’s stomach to expand beyond its normal size to adjust to the large amount of food.
Aside from that, overeating will require your organs to work harder. Later, the expanded stomach will push against other organs, making the stomach uncomfortable. If it occurs, your children will feel nauseous.
5. Motion sickness
Keep in mind that nausea is not always caused by food. If your children get carsick, seasick, or airsick, they may experience motion sickness that causes them to feel nauseous or even vomit. Well, motion sickness will occur when your brain cannot make sense of information sent from your ears, eyes, and body.
4 Nausea Medicines of Parents’ Choice for Children
If nauseousness appears in your children, hurry up to remedy it. If you do not have time to see a doctor, you can look for nausea medicines in nearby pharmacies. The pharmacist will give the dose that is appropriate for children. You also need to explain the chronology of why your children get nauseated.
So far, many parents have attempted to use the following nausea medications with their children with success:
1. Ondansteron
Ondasteron is commonly given for vomiting in children. It works to block the hormone serotonin from the brain, which can trigger nausea and vomiting. This medicine can be obtained from a pharmacy. Prior to consuming Ondasteron, it’d be better for you to consult with your doctor first, so you can get a prescription and buy it at the pharmacy.
It’s important to note that the dosage for use should also be in accordance with the doctor’s advice. However, this medicine can cause side effects such as dizziness, dry mouth, diarrhea, constipation, and facial redness.
2. Domperidone
Domperidone is commonly given to cure nausea caused by overeating. This medicine works to help the stomach and intestines work faster. As a result, having too much food in the stomach causes it to flow faster and reduces nausea. It can also prevent vomiting in children from going back up.
In addition, domperidone can also reduce the stimuli for nausea or vomiting that originate in the brain. You shouldn’t know that it can also cause side effects such as stomach cramps, drowsiness, and headaches.
3. Metoclopramide
Metoclopramide is available at pharmacies and works to prevent nausea and the urge to vomit by emptying the stomach faster. This medicine is good for relieving nausea caused by overeating and food poisoning.
Metoclopramide can also work to cure stomach acid issues in children. After being consumed, it can cause the muscles that connect the stomach and esophagus to work. That’s why stomach acid cannot go up into the esophagus.
4. Dimenhydrinate
Dimenhydrinate is an antihistamine that can suppress the brain’s response to nausea and vomiting. Dimenhydrinate is commonly found in medicines to cure motion sickness. This medicine works to balance signals in the brain through the eyes and inner ear.
You can easily find dimenhydrinate at the pharmacy. However, you need further consultation with your doctor before giving it to children. It’s important to note that this type of medicine must not be given to children under two years of age.
Just like other medicines for treating nausea, dimenhydrinate can also cause side effects such as dizziness, drowsiness, a dry throat and mouth, and mucus appearing in the throat. You may need to contact your doctor immediately if the side effects are too severe.
Home Remedies to Cure Nausea in Children
If you do not want to give medicines and also do not have time to see a doctor, you can instead use some home remedies as alternative ways to treat nausea in children. Let’s see them below!
1. Allow them to drink enough water
Allowing them to drink enough water is the first simple step you can take. By doing this, it can help encourage food to be digested more quickly and sent out for final disposal. Make sure not to give them too much water, as this can make them nauseous.
2. Give ginger and honey a drink
A mixture of ginger, honey, and warm water is believed to cure nausea. It is a safe drink for children who experience nausea. It can not only relieve nausea but also nourish digestion.
3. Make a lemon-mint drink
It is known that mint can help relieve symptoms of nausea in children. The smell of mint leaves can also make the body more relaxed. You can also mix mint with lemon juice to increase its usefulness. Then, give a cup of lemon and mint drink to your children to reduce the symptoms of nausea and vomiting.
4. Give easy-to-digest food
Nausea, especially vomiting, can usually be accompanied by a decrease in appetite. Of course, you shouldn’t let this condition affect children since it can make them weaker. What you should do is provide nutritious foods that are easy to digest. You can try to give them warm soup with toast or rice to stop their nausea.
5. Eat banana
There is no doubt that bananas are an easy-to-digest fruit that has nutrients for healing the symptoms of nausea. Prior to giving them bananas, make sure to choose ones that are slightly ripe and have a sweet taste.
6. Eat yogurt
In addition to giving them bananas, you can also try to give them yogurt. It is known that yogurt contains good bacteria that can improve digestion. Yogurt with too much sugar, on the other hand, will make children nauseous.
7. Have enough rest
In some cases, nausea can cause a child to become weak or even dehydrated. To prevent it, you need to allow them to take a rest after being given drink and food as first aid. Of course, taking a rest can really help charge their energy. It would be better if they could sleep soundly.
If you’ve tried these alternatives but the symptoms of nausea haven’t gone away, you definitely need to go to the doctor to get the right treatment. We hope the information about the causes of nausea in children, the best nausea medicines, and some alternatives to treating nausea will help you make the best decision possible in treating nausea in your children.
