Ginger for Babies: The Best Natural Home Remedy for Coughs, Colds & More.

Ginger for Babies, is it Safe?

Cough, cold or other minor irritability make the babies cranky and super uncomfortable. Such issues increase sleep discomfort and make your cute baby look grumpy and irritating all the time. As parents, we tend to take the utmost care to reduce their discomfort. Most cases of cough and cold can be treated with natural remedies for babies. Among the most common home remedies, ginger is the most commonly used. 

ginger for babies

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Ginger is used for medicinal purposes for soothing sore throat, cough and cold. It is a multi-utility substance that can be used in many ways. Ginger is a flowering plant with leafy stems closely related to turmeric and cardamom. It is locally known as adrak. Ginger is pungent, aromatic and spicy, the root of which is a powerhouse of nutrients and bioactive compounds that are beneficial for physical and mental health.

Home remedies for cough and cold

You might be a little susceptible about directly visiting the doctor for your toddler. Mild drugs that help adults get through cough and cold easily can be dangerously threatening for your toddler. Feeding raw ginger in such cases can be the safest alternative for the tiniest of patients. Your baby is most susceptible to cough and cold during winter. During this pandemic, if you are worried about taking out your baby to the hospital for minor issues, ginger is the saviour you can have handy. 

Benefits of ginger

Ginger is also a source of immunity boost for babies. The anti-microbial properties of ginger help your baby remain immune from a lot of viruses and bacteria attack, which help to cure a cold and fight against infections. The antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of ginger help in enhancing the immunity of your babies. 

Ginger is considered the best remedy for toddlers cough. For an irritating and upset stomach, ginger helps in the digestion enhancement and absorption for babies. It can be considered as one of the remedies for nausea and morning sickness. Ginger helps your baby fight bacterial diarrhoea. The anti-tumour activities of ginger can help fight a certain type of cancer. Ginger reduces muscle pain and soreness. It is also useful for improving the health of your little one's heart.

Precautions and amount 

While you are worried about what to feed and what not to feed, knowing how and what not to feed is important. Excess of any remedy might show harmful effects rather than good. Give your baby half teaspoon of honey with a few drops of smashed ginger before bedtime for a good night’s sleep during the days they are affected by a cold. But feeding ginger to a child less than a year old can make them very ill.

To ease out your labour, here we come up with a few ginger recipes for your babies. 

Ginger, honey and lemon decantation

ginger tea

The mixture of ginger and honey soothes sore throats and eases coughs of your little ones. If your kid is repellent to plain ginger tea, try it with a twist of decantation using ginger, a few drops of lemon and a spoonful of honey. Boil the ginger and strain and then add a spoonful of honey and a few drops of lemon juice to the mixture. Feed this decantation twice a day for quick relief from cold and cough.

Dry ginger and honey

Mix half a teaspoon of dry ginger powder with honey. Remember not to make the solution too watery. Feed this mixture to your child for the best results and immediate relief. It is to be noted that home remedies with honey should not be given to babies below one year. 

Ginger vapour

Boil ginger in water to get the ginger scented vapour. Ginger vapour treatment is the most preferred treatment for your baby's health. It is safe for babies over vapour rub and vapour capsules available in the market.

Ginger candy

ginger candies

Ginger candy is another home remedy that can be given to older kids to get relief from cold and cough and also motion sickness. You can also smash the candy for your little ones.

Precautions to be considered while giving ginger to your baby

Look for allergies

Ginger usually does not cause allergy, but if you are introducing it to your baby’s diet, look out for any allergic reactions.

Adjust the spice levels

Ginger is spicy and hot so it is necessary to adjust the quantity accordingly so that your kid can tolerate the ginger preparation. Dried ginger is spicier than a fresh one.

Avoid excessive amounts of ginger

Ginger with its hot and pungent flavour sometimes become difficult for babies to accept. So always prefer a moderate quantity of ginger. Too much of ginger can cause adverse effects like heartburn and stomach upsets.

Is ginger safe for babies?

Considering the benefits and applicability of ginger, the right amount and recipe are completely safe for babies. The ginger recipe can be greatly beneficial for babies of 10 to 11 months.

Apart from using it to treat cold and cough in babies, there's no harm in including ginger in their daily food to spice it up a little. Dried ginger is spicier than raw ginger. Use a small quantity of ginger accordingly for babies and kids as they may not be able to tolerate the spice levels of ginger. These are some of the basic traditional home remedies using ginger to get relief from common cold and cough. Try out any of the recipes to relieve your little ones from cold and cough.

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Disclaimer: The opinions expressed/shared in the blog above are personal thoughts of the writer. Berrytree recommends you consult with your doctor/pediatrician/family before instinctively following any suggested steps.