Is it good to use fever-reducing patches?

In medicine cabinets of families with young children, there is often a fever-reducing patch. However, the question is, is the fever-reducing patch good, really helping children to reduce fever as advertised by the manufacturer? Let's find out with aFamilyToday Health.

For a long time, every time your child has a fever, you let him or her use this patch to reduce the fever. These patches can be easily found at any pharmacy. But have you ever wondered if the fever-reducing patch is good or not, is it really as effective as what the manufacturer advertises or is just a "spiritual therapy"? Let aFamilyToday Health find out the answer through the article below.

What is fever reducing patch for children?

The fever reducing patch is a patch that has heat dissipation effect, mainly composed of hydrogels. Hydrogels are chain-type polymers, insoluble in water, capable of absorbing water in the skin they come into contact with. This patch works by absorbing heat and dissipates the heat from this area out. Because it does not contain fever-reducing medicine , this patch does not have a cooling effect on the whole body. Therefore, you should not use just the patch for your baby to replace fever medicine.

Some manufacturers also add peppermint oil to their patches. When the oil evaporates, it will help the patched skin to cool down quickly, but only for external use, so the cooling effect is not high.

In fact, at present, there are no valuable scientific studies proving that fever-reducing patches have antipyretic effects as advertised by manufacturers.

Really spoiled the effects of fever-reducing patches on children

The fever reducing patch for the skin area is applied using the temperature difference method. Therefore, when you first paste it, there will be a cool feeling that makes your baby feel comfortable. However, if you look closely, you will find that this coolness does not last long. The glued skin will return to its original temperature fairly quickly.

Because the baby's skin is immature and quite sensitive, many babies suffer the side effects that the patch causes such as rash, allergies , and itching.

In some special cases, a baby with a sensitive respiratory system when inhaling essential oils in the patch will constantly sneeze, runny nose ... Therefore, it can be seen using the product for the purpose of lowering Fever for children is sometimes a downside.

Tell mothers how to use fever-reducing patches for children properly

This type of patch is very easy to use, you just peel off the film and stick it right in the center of the child's forehead. Many mothers wonder: "Should we use fever-reducing patches for children?". If your child has a high fever, give him fever-reducing medicine according to the correct dosage. While waiting for the medicine to work, you can let your child use the patch as a measure of the situation, temporarily helping to reduce the heat in his or her body. But you need to note the following issues:

Read the directions carefully on the packaging to see how long your baby can use the fever-reducing patch

Consult with your doctor about using the patch for your child

Do not apply the fever-reducing patch to newly vaccinated skin or damaged skin

Choose to buy stickers from reputable manufacturers to avoid using the wrong counterfeit goods

If your baby has a history of allergies or frequent breathing problems, the patch should not be used to avoid dangerous side effects.

Always pay attention and monitor your baby during use if you see unusual signs that need to be stopped immediately.

Does the fever-reducing patch work?

As mentioned above, in fact this product does not reduce the fever as you expect. Usually, when your baby has a fever, you should not take the child to the hospital immediately, but leave the baby at home and monitored for about 1-2 days. Because when your child has a fever, it will be difficult for doctors to determine the cause of the fever so that there is an appropriate treatment.

Sometimes a child's fever is a warning sign that a baby is having serious health problems that need prompt care. If your child develops the following symptoms, you should immediately bring to the hospital for prompt medical examination and care by the doctor:

Child has a fever of 38 ° C or higher

Babies under 3 months old with fever of 38 ° C or higher

Children under 2 years old, the fever lasted for 24 hours. For babies over 2 years old, their fever lasts more than 72 hours

Baby fever is accompanied by other symptoms such as stiff neck,  sore throat ,  earache ,  rash  or  headache  intense

Irritability, irritability, irritability or poor reflexes

Fever children are accompanied by symptoms of lethargy, drowsiness ...

Convulsions

Quitting breastfeeding, eating, and drinking water

The baby turns pale.

How to reduce a fever for a child and take care of a sick child

Fever is a beneficial response of the body to fight infection by the mechanism of increasing body temperature in order to destroy intruders. In many cases, the fever is harmless and the baby will go away on its own in about 3 days.

Antipyretics containing paracetamol for children can help reduce fever. Depending on the age and weight, the child may be prescribed medication by a doctor.

1. How to reduce fever for children

The simple and effective way to reduce fever for children is to wear cool clothes, drink a lot (for babies still breastfed), drink enough fluids (for older children) and maybe give them fever-reducing medicines to reduce discomfort. Be sure to give the child exactly the dosage indicated on the package or as directed by your doctor.

Why should children wear cool clothes when they have a fever? The psychology of some people seeing that the sick child will let the child wear a lot of warm clothes, socks, hats, towels ... These things will prevent the child's body from radiating heat, so the fever will increase. . Even if your baby shivered or chills, do not put your baby in thick blankets or warm clothes.

2. Take care of a child with a fever

For babies, you need to get enough breast-feeding. If your baby is tired, breastfed less, you should breastfeed more often. If your baby is unable to suckle or stop feeding, you should express the milk and feed it with a spoon.

For older babies like babies who have weaned, you should breastfeed enough, drink more water, split meals into babies to easily eat. Sucking enough and drinking enough water helps to cool the body, avoiding dehydration.

In addition, you can use a soft towel, soak in warm water, wipe the child's forehead, armpits, abdomen, hands, and feet. Absolutely do not use cold water to wipe children. Note that if your baby has a fever and his hands and feet are cold , you should not wipe it off.

Using fever-reducing patches on your baby is just one situational solution for your child to feel comfortable. You should not use fever-reducing patches in place of antipyretics. Prevention is better than cure, so let your baby get vaccinated on time and fully in order to improve his child's health.