Chamomile Tea For Kids - Everything You Should Know

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Chamomile tea is a caffeine-free tea that people use for relaxation and for calming their senses. It has several natural bioactive compoundsⁱXMolecules with antioxidant properties and health-promoting effects present in plants and some foods. that can benefit health over time. But while consuming it is safe for you, can you use chamomile tea for kids?

Herbal teas such as chamomile are often sold unregulated, which means you can’t know about their safety and efficacy for children. Besides, they may contain added ingredients that the product label might not mention. Hence, you must follow expert guidance. An expert will guide you about the right tea to buy, the right amount to use as per your child’s age, and the intent of use.

Read on as we tell you about the safety of chamomile tea for children, the safe quantity to use, and how it promotes health and wellness in kids.

In This Article

Can Kids Drink Chamomile Tea?

Chamomile tea is safe and soothes stomach issues in children.

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Well, the good news is that you can alleviate your kid’s stomach upset with the proper dosage of chamomile tea. Most parents remain skeptical about chamomile tea, and whether it causes adverse effects on their kid’s health. However, chamomile tea has not been known to cause skin rashes or harmful allergic reactions among kids. However, ensure that you use the purest form of the chamomile herb, as other mixtures might react with your kid’s stomach.

When kids fall ill, giving them strong OTCs is not something you like to do. Chamomile tea can be the savior here, and the herbal nature doesn’t trigger many side effects. The herb soothes your kid’s disturbed stomach. Repeated bouts of colicky babies can be treated with the regular intake of the chamomile tea. It is the safest remedy for your baby’s colicⁱXFrequent, prolonged, and intense periods of crying in a healthy baby without any apparent reason. problems. However, the dosage must be right. (1).

Quantity Of Chamomile Tea For Kids

You can give 2-3 ounces of warm (not hot) chamomile tea daily to your colicky babies. It helps decrease stomach pain.

Feeding 2-3 ounces of chamomile tea to your baby helps improve his digestive system, and he can easily recover from acute stomach aches.

Note:

Don’t overfeed your kid chamomile tea as it may not alleviate the symptoms of pain or ease the bouts of colic. Follow the accurate dosage.

Different Uses Of Chamomile Tea For Kids

Chamomile is one of the beneficial herbs that is also available in the market as tea. The herb is a mild sedative, which helps improve your kid’s sleep quality. Some parents also use Chamomile tea for teething or to treat a colicky baby, as it helps in easing tummy pain.

Here are some of the different ways in which you can use chamomile tea for your growing kid:

When your kid drinks chamomile tea before bedtime, it helps improve the sleep quality.

A mother from Rhode Island, who goes by the name ‘nonchalant mom’ praises chamomile tea. She says, “When my kids have trouble sleeping at night, I make them a cup of Chamomile tea, and they are sure to drop off shortly after (i).”

Chamomile tea before bedtime improves sleep quality.

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Chamomile tea for children serves as a tinctureⁱXHerbal extracts used as medicines by dissolving the herbs in an alcohol solution. for muscle pain and is rather effective for teething children.

The tea helps relax your hyper kid during emotional or physical distress and alleviates conditions such as anxiety and stress.

Chamomile tea offers adequate headache relief to your kids.

If your kid suffers from pink eyes, you can use a cotton ball dipped in chamomile tea to eradicate the harmful infection. The herbal tea soothes the eye region and removes the infection within 24-36 hours.

Point to consider

Chamomile tea is considered useful in croup and fever in children (1)

In the case of pink eyes, wiping with chamomile tea removes the infection.

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Health Benefits Of Chamomile Tea For Kids

Here are some of health benefits of chamomile tea for your little one:

1. Useful For Colicky Kids:

Chamomile tea helps with colic problems in your child.

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Babies that cry for a longer mostly suffer from colic problems, and they experience repetitive bouts.

Although researchers do not know the exact cause of the uncontrolled crying, they conclude that the fussy behavior of your child can be due to an upset stomach.

Feeding your colicky kid, an infusion of lukewarm chamomile tea soothes his digestive tract thus solving issues arising from improper digestion, and offers quick relief from severe pain and discomfort.

2. Promotes Healthy Sleep:

From ancient days, chamomile tea has been used as a sleep-promoting agent.

The chamomile tea helps in reducing the stress and anxiety of your restless baby and attains a good sleep.

Researchers conclude that, feeding a cup of chamomile tea to the baby before the bedtime helps him to attain a healthy sleep.

Did you know?

The flavonoid, apigenin, present in chamomile may be responsible for its sleep-inducing effects (1).

3. Treats Gastrointestinal Problems:

Kids often cry endlessly due to severe gastrointestinal problems. By giving chamomile tea to your kid, the pain easily subsides.

Lukewarm chamomile tea helps in soothing severe cramps and treats common stomach ailments of kids. (2).

Are There Risks From Chamomile Tea Consumption?

Consumption of chamomile tea in the right amounts does not cause any adverse effects. But you should be aware of the possible side effects, especially when considering its use in children. Some possible side effects include (3):

Nausea and dizziness.
Individuals allergic to plants (such as ragweed, chrysanthemums, marigolds, or daisies) may be more prone to chamomile allergies.
Rare cases of anaphylaxis, a severe allergic reaction, have been reported in individuals consuming or coming into contact with chamomile products.
Interactions with medications such as cyclosporine and warfarin have been reported.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. At what age can I give chamomile tea to a child?

Children may usually begin having chamomile tea once they start eating solids, that is, around the age of six months (1).

2. Can I add any flavors to my child’s chamomile tea?

You may add natural ginger, vanilla, cinnamon, lavender, or other herbs to flavor chamomile tea and enhance its flavor.

3. Should I give my child chamomile tea bags or leaves?

You should use chamomile tea bags for children because teas made with loose chamomile leaves may sometimes be contaminated with clostridium botulinum bacteria, which may cause botulism in children .

4. How many times can I give my child chamomile tea?

Children under five years should not consume more than half a cup (four ounces) of tea per day (1) (2).

If consumed in the proper amount, chamomile tea may offer your children various benefits, including relief from stomach aches and a better digestive system. However, further research is needed to assess the effects of chamomile tea on kids because it has the potential to trigger allergies, and the risk increases if your child already suffers from allergies. Hence, you should consult a doctor before giving this tea to your child. Once your child’s doctor has given their approval, your kid can start reaping the benefits of this relaxing chamomile tea.

Infographic: Benefits Of Chamomile Tea For Children

Chamomile is a gentle and soothing herb. It has anti-inflammatory properties and is a good source of nutrients such as calcium, magnesium, and folate. An easy way to use it for your child is to make tea from it. Chamomile tea benefits children in various ways. Read this infographic to find out about them.

Get the high-quality PDF version of this infographic.

Key Pointers

Chamomile tea is safe for children only in moderation and proper dosage.
This tea can promote relaxation and sound sleep in children.
It is also used to treat digestive problems such as indigestion and stomach aches in children.
However, before giving chamomile tea to children, it is important to seek a doctor’s advice.

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Personal Experience: Source

MomJunction articles include first-hand experiences to provide you with better insights through real-life narratives. Here are the sources of personal accounts referenced in this article.

i. Are you stressed out?
https://nonchalantmom.blogspot.com/2016/11/are-you-stressed-out.html?m=0

References

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