Is your child regularly complaining of stomach pains? Do you see a loss of appetite or weight in your toddler? If your answers to the above questions are yes, it’s a sign your that child needs a deworming treatment. Intestinal worms, commonly known as thread-worms or roundworms feed on a child’s nutrition. Parasitic infections spread fast and that’s why they need to treated as early as possible.
These are the symptoms you need to look out for:
- Regular stomach pains
- Poor digestion
- Weakness, nausea, anaemia
- Itching around the anal area
- Constipation
- Frequent vomiting
- A sudden increase in sugar intake
- Teeth grinding
Apart from the regular deworming tablets here’s how you prevent your child from being a target of worms:
- Keep the house clean spic and span
- Watch out for dirty objects which might be accessible to your child
- Wash all fruits and vegetables before consuming
- Ensure drinking water is filtered and boiled
- Make sure your child doesn’t play outdoors with bare feet especially during monsoons
- Train your child to wash up neatly after passing stool
Here are natural, home remedies if you want to give allopathy a pass:
Haldi Doodh/Turmeric Milk: Add a spoon of turmeric to a glass of milk and stir. Turmeric is a natural antiseptic and fights all kinds of intestinal worms
Coconut/Coconut Oil: Add a teaspoon of coconut oil to warm water and serve first thing in the morning for 10 days. You could also add some grated coconut to the breakfast or give raw pieces of coconut. The triglycerides in the coconut help fight the worms.
Bitter Gourd: This can be tough to get your children to have, but it works like magic. Cut and soak in water with salt & turmeric to reduce the bitterness. It can be consumed in the form of juice or as a curry boiled along with potatoes.
Neem: Dried neem powder in some warm milk and honey for a week or dried neem flowers added to rasam or sambar or crisp neem leaves with rice also helps.
Garlic: 2-3 garlic cloves crushed and added to milk or dipped in honey acts as a great worm-fighter!