There are a lot of decisions we face as mothers of newborns, and we could worry over each and every one of them. Every woman who paved the way before you could have the advice to give. Below, we have some interesting information which will make your baby healthier.
Chamomile tea is a popular natural herbal product that much extensive research plus thousands of years of use tell us is very useful for calming down adults and helping them to go to sleep.
If you have a newborn baby, chances are someone has gifted you a packet of this stuff as you will need to calm down and get some sleep. But can you give chamomile tea to your baby too? Let’s look into this a little bit more.
Chamomile for Babies: All You Need to Know
What Is Chamomile Tea Good For?
Chamomile has been used for centuries by many cultures as a traditional medicine. Commonly, the flowers are used, and there are benefits to be gained from ingesting it as well as from inhaling its lovely scent. You can use chamomile tea for:
- Reducing anxiety
- Treating wounds
- Aiding with sleep
- Settling stomach discomfort
- Reducing fever
- Treating croup
- In hair and beauty products
- To flavor alcohols such as beer
- And it has been recommended for colicky babies
Is Chamomile Tea Safe for Babies?
If you have a newborn suffering from pain that is diagnosed, this can be quite straining on you. However, if the pain is undiagnosed, there is even more stress for you.
You want answers to your questions, but most of all you want to be able to give relief to your baby. And if your baby is in distress, chances are he or she is not sleeping and doing a lot of crying, and this is very hard on you.
The answer is yes, not only chamomile tea is perfectly safe, but it’s also very beneficial to your baby. However, you shouldn’t use it until your little one is six months old, and remember to consult with your doctor first.
And like everything you are giving to your baby, be careful about the dosage! By six months of age, many over the counter remedies are available for your child, including manufactured medicines for colic, pain relief and sleep.
If you are considering against giving your baby something synthetic for their little tummies, then the natural benefits of chamomile tea could be worth a go.
However, it is possible that your child may suffer from some side effects, but they are nothing to worry about. For examples, some babies get a sore tummy from the tea rather than the opposite effect. And some babies may come out in a rash.
If either of this happens, just stop using and let your GP know about this. Also, if you or your partner has an allergy to chamomile, it would be a good idea not to try it on your little one.
Some mother and baby online forums will say they have experience using chamomile in infants as young as six weeks old, so be very careful following the recommendations of any of these.
As always the internet is a great place to do basic research, but you should not take action until you’ve talked to a qualified physician.
Benefits of Chamomile Tea for Babies
This natural treatment is becoming popular around the world to gently and quickly relieve your baby’s pain from colic or gas. For most of us, this pain can be quite stressful for your child, and subsequently for you, too.
Chamomile is anti-inflammatory, non-allergenic, anti-bacterial and contains calcium, magnesium, folate and Vitamin A. It is a mild muscle and neurological relaxant. With that said, it can be given to babies to:
- Strengthen their immune system
- Fight infections such as croup
- Suppress blood sugar levels
- Reduce colic
- Reduce gas
- Relieve diarrhea
- Help get rid of hiccups
- Provide relief from indigestion
- Provide relief from constipation
- Help with sleep problems by encouraging baby to calm and relax
- Reduce diaper rash
- Reduce cradle cap
- Work as a decongestant and reduce a cold or sinus infection
- Wash your car and do several loads of washing (okay, I’m kidding about that last one :D)
How to Prepare Chamomile Tea for Babies
Mix 1-2 teaspoons of tea leaves with warm water. Strain it and put this in a bottle for your baby. You can give up to 2oz in a 24 hour period. If you are unsure of quantities, remember that weaker is always better than stronger with this brew.
Always make sure that the tea you are using is caffeine free; the last thing your little angel needs is any kind of stimulant. This is not to be given as a drink, that is for replacement of fluids or for refreshment.
Also, herbal tea is not a substitute for breast milk or formula either in nutrients or sustenance. While you can sit down and have a cup of chamomile tea, your baby just can use it as a medicinal remedy.
Some moms recommend putting in a pinch of sugar to help with the taste. Also, we suggest starting more diluted to introduce as your baby may reject it because of its flavor, and then not be willing to try it again.
Another remedy of chamomile tea is for pain relief caused by teething. You can soak a sterilized washcloth or flannel in a chamomile tea solution and give it to your baby to suck and bite on it.
As a very lovely flower coming from the daisy family, it looks like little, well, daisies and has a smell like apple blossom. You may want to consider having a bunch in your baby’s room to help them sleep better.
Best Chamomile Tea 2020
Stash Tea Chamomile Herbal Tea
As an avid lover of all things tea, including a really herbal tea, I recommend green tea for digestion and to boost your immune system, raspberry tea to help with your diet, peppermint tea to settle hiccups, and the grandmother of them all, chamomile to relax.
Chamomile helps people to sleep and has natural anti-anxiety properties. To me, it tastes lovely if you know how to choose the best and prepare it yourself!
With that said, I have a few requirements with my herbal teas; I like them to be leaves, not just sweepings or powder. Also, I like a good heady aroma and a pleasant smooth taste.
I purchased Stash Chamomile Tea since my friend, Stacy, has used the mangosteen green tea, and raved about this. If you want to know more, below are the pros and cons of this product:
- Great smooth flavor
- Not too strong
- Lovely hints of apple in the taste and in the aroma
- Chamomile sourced from Egypt
- Available also in a number of flavor mixes
- Caffeine free, suitable for all the family
- Tastes lovely on its own, doesn’t need to be sweetened
- Need to steep for a long time
- The string is only long enough to wind around the teaspoon once, twice would be better
- You need to shake, and gently wipe down the teabag after taking it out of the package to get the best flavor
Why You Should Use Chamomile Tea as a Treatment
- Because it is all natural, there are significantly less possible side effects than synthetic drugs.
- It is a cheaper alternative than paying for over the counter medicines and treatments.
- You can use it for many remedies, saving you from having to buy a multitude of different things for colic, pain, fever, sleep, teething, constipation, indigestion etc.
- You and your family can enjoy it too.
Conclusion
It is safe to give chamomile tea to babies, only once they are at least six months of age. And you are giving this for medicinal purposes, so only in tiny amounts, not as a regular drink.
It should not replace breast milk or formula in any way as it does not contain sufficient nutrients. However, chamomile tea can very gently help your baby relief from many conditions that cause her a lot of pain and you a lot of stress.
If you want to share your experience about chamomile tea for babies, feel free to comment below and I would be very happy to reply.
