In this lesson you will learn how to safely make herbal remedies for children.

Making herbal remedies for children

I believe that just about any average health care situation can be taken care of at home with herbs, nourishment, and natural means. There are a few steps you can follow to begin celebrating living the natural way.

1. Trust yourself
2. Give it a good effort
3. Stick with it and keep learning ( find people with common interests- ask assistance from other home herbalists when needed) Study the plants, books, classes, etc.
4. Nurturing family members at home (nursing others back to health- taking the time to tend to others with compassion within your knowledge level)
5. Using herbs out of your own garden and kitchen (there is a large variety of herbs in our own backyard and kitchen that we forget about using – in the old days it was done by using what was available, getting back to your roots, traditions etc) Any health care situation we experience as a family – if one member is sick everyone is involved. When you take care of your children naturally, you are passing down valuable traditions that they will appreciate later in life when the time comes to take care of their own family.

When adult dose is 1 cup

Age

Younger than 2 years- ½ to 1 teaspoon

2 to 4 years- 2 teaspoons

4 to 7 years- 1 tablespoon

7 to 11 years- 2 tablespoons

When Adult dose is 1 teaspoon, or 60 drops

Age

Younger than 3 months- 2 drops

3 to 6 months- 3 drops

6 to 9 months- 4 drops

9 to 12 months- 5 drops

12 to 18 months- 7 drops

18 to 24 months- 8 drops

2 to 3 years- 10 drops

3 to 4 years- 12 drops

4 to 6 years- 15 drops

6 to 9 years- 24 drops

9 to 12 years- 30 drops

Always use safe and gentle herbs for children. The herbs covered in this course are excellent examples. Always keep all herbs out of reach of children!

Cowling’s Rule: Divide the age at the next birthday by 24. Example: A five year old child- Six being the age at the next birthday, divide 6 by 24 which gives you 6/24 or 14 the adult dose.

Divide the weight (in lbs) of the child by 150 to give the approximate fraction of the adult dose. Example: a 50 lb. child will require 50/150 or 1/3 the adult dose

Young’s Rule: Computed by dividing the child’s age by 12 plus the age. Example: for a child of 4 it would be divided by 12 plus 4 equals 4/16 equals of the adult dosage.

It is better to use an insufficient dose and move up as needed! Try a small amount, watch your child’s reaction. Everyone’s metabolism is different. The dose also depends on the potency of the herb you are administering, do your homework! Know the herbs you are administering. Communicate with your child. When in doubt seek a ND or other competent practitioner.

Thoughts on dosage

Herbal Pops

These are excellent for teething children or for a tasty pop cycle in the summer. Simply make a strong herbal tea or infusion, chamomile for teething is one example. Pour into popsicle trays.  Place in freezer. You may dilute with organic juice to improve taste.

Freezing Fresh Herbs in ice cube trays

This is a convenient way to have herbs available for year round use. You chop, add water, and freeze. Use year round for poultices, and even add culinary herbs to soups for nourishing fresh herbs any time!

Herb Candy

To make herbal candy powdered herbs are mixed with honey, ground fruit or nuts, and rolled into edible balls. Herbal candy is a delicious and effective way to administer herbal remedies to children.

Henriette Cress gives an excellent example of “honey pills”

Caution:  Do not give honey or nuts to a child under 1 year of age- replace with other syrups.

Infusions

This is a gentle form of preparation designed to preserve the volatile oils. It is used to prepare the more delicate parts of the plant such as leaves and flowers. Steep for at least 1 hour, strain and drink. Susun Weed recommends steeping over night. 2 to 4 glasses can be consumed throughout the day. An infusion is stronger than a tea and will extract glycosides, alkaloid salts and water soluble vitamins. Infusions are intended for immediate use, store for a maximum of 24 hours in a cool place. Start small and work your way up, drinking slowly with smaller sips if you are not used to infusions (it is a lot like if you were to add more fiber to your diet, if you are not used to it, you can have minor discomfort for a short time) note this is adult recommendations, adjust dose, maybe only starting with a teaspoon (depending on age of child/ if the child is used to infusions etc).

1. Always use a glass or enamel container, this will preserve the integrity of the medicine. Stainless steel may also be used, never use aluminum.
2. Use distilled water
3. General Proportions are 1 tablespoon dried herb per cup of water, you can use more herb to water ratio for a stronger infusion. If you are using fresh herb use 3 tablespoons per cup of water
4. For general use the infusion is taken warm, however if you desire to produce a sweat, drink it hot.

Poultices

Poultices are applied directly to the effected area. A fomentation is and application of the tea or juice of herbs, a poultice is an application of the whole plant. Poultices can also be made of mud or clay.

Poultices are used to soothe, heal and regenerate tissue, stimulate circulation and organ function, warm and relax muscles, and draw out toxins or foreign particles.

Poultice, Basic Clay: (Clay is used to draw out toxins and foreign substances, to heal burns and to repair damaged tissues.) 1 lb green clay and some distilled water. Mix clay with enough water to make a thick paste; spread paste onto the center of a soft cloth which measures about 6 to 8 inches square and has about 4 layers of thickness. Apply directly to the area with the clay side against the skin and press it down a bit so it sticks to the skin. Cover with a dry cloth and leave in place until the clay pulls away on its own.

There are many other poultice recipes that will be covered later in the herb section of this course.

Powders

Herbs can be powdered in a coffee mill or mortar and pestle. If using a grinder be sure and not use the same grinder that you use for your coffee. I like to have a separate grinder set aside to use only for herbs. Clean out grinder after each use. This is an easy and effective way to add herbs directly to food and drinks. This is a great way to administer herbs to children because it is simple and effective. The flavor of bitter herbs can be masked. It is also very easy to regulate the dosage given. Powders may also be used for topical skin remedies.

Tea, Medicinal

Tea blends (if you like certain blends have them within reach) getting creative with ‘teas’ – also make a vegetable ‘tea’ for broths, or you can take the skins / tops of veges – make a stock for potassium broth (lots of things we throw away that are really healthy) – nut skins are also great -hazelnut skins have cancer protection… Have a pot boiling on the stove, just throw things in … Great for if you don’t feel like eating .. add some spices (if you wish) Also great are bones – for a bone broth (add a little vinegar to bring out the minerals).

Sun Extract

A sun extract is prepared using double the amount of herbs used in an infusion. It works best with leaves and flowers. This method best preserves the volatile oils and vitamins.

Fill a clear gallon jar with distilled water, add 1 cup herb mixture of your choice, let sit in the direct sun for 4 to 6 hours, strain.

Salves

Equipment you will need for making a salve:

Crock pot

Scale

Candy Thermometer

Cheese grater -if you wish to grate beeswax, can also be melted (no grating needed) if you have a pre-measured portion.

Wooden spoon

Strainer

Straining cloth

Salve jar

Label

Vapors and Steams

These preparations are useful for decongesting the lungs and detoxifying the skin. A vapor is prepared by dropping essential oils into freshly boiled water, a steam is basically an infusion with the herbs left in it. You can drape a blanket over the bowl and your head to inhale, take care it is not too hot, steam can burn.

Herbal Baths

Electuary

Tonic recipe for Children

1 tablespoon each

Red Raspberry leaves

Alfalfa leaves and flowers

Lemon Balm

Chamomile Flowers

Rose Hips

Anise Seed

Honey or glycerin

Equipment- Coffee Grinder

Mixing bowl

Wooden Spoon

Medium Sieve

Tablespoon measure

Storage Jar

Label

Procedure- Sift together (being careful to remove the rose seeds) and stir into honey or glycerin until pasty. It will harden with age, so make it just thick enough that it will not drop from a spoon easily. Store in a covered container, and dose by the teaspoon. This formula can also be used to create small pills by making the mixture thick and rolling it into small balls.

Folklore Method of tincturing

Tinctures are concentrated herbal extracts usually using alcohol as the solvent. The folklore method is easy & convenient, generally fresh plants are used. This makes it possible to bring your spirits to your wildcrafting site and create your medicine immediately. These tinctures are made without measuring and are a great way for the budding herbalist to get started. It is easy, and many effective medicines can be made with this method. This is a great way to connect with the plants and receive their healing virtues all in the same making. 100 proof vodka effectively extracts the majority of many plants constituents. The clearness of vodka also make it possible to observe the many color changes of tinctures. Such small doses are used when taking tinctures that the alcohol content is equivalent to consuming 1 ripe banana. You can replace alcohol with glycerin or apple cider vinegar for children’s preparations if you wish. You may also remove some of the alcohol from the tincture by placing it in water for 10 to 20 minutes. Since tinctures are very concentrated preparations it is important to start your child off with a very small dose (see dosing instructions) and be very familiar with the herbs you are using. Children’s tinctures are also usually sold at your local health food store. *note- I use Everclear brand 95 proof alcohol for fresh plants- directions HERE)

1.       Harvest the herb in its prime, after asking permission. Use the proper plant parts as identified in your plant key

2.       Chop the herbs finely and fill the glass jar. Label the jar with the date and name of the herb

3.       Fill the jar with vodka, stopping an inch from the top of the jar. This will allow space for you to shake the extraction more easily. If the plant absorbs any of the solvent, add more vodka. The vodka must cover the herbs throughout the process.

4.       Put the jar in a dark place and shake it at least once a day. Put all your good intentions into the medicine, sing healing songs or offer prayers. Keep the jar in sight, not forgotten in the cabinet.

5.       After 4 to 6 weeks (or longer) follow the moon cycle if you wish, pour the whole contents of the jar through the muslin or some other clean dry cloth. Squeeze all you can out of the mark. You can do this by hand, or use a tincture press or potato ricer.

6.       Store in a correctly labeled bottle out of the light. Most tinctures will keep indefinitely if stored properly. Keep out of reach of children.

Syrups and Decoctions

Reference: Herbal remedies for children’s health Rosemary Gladstar 1999