3:13
Both doctors said items like humidifiers, saline nasal sprays and nasal suctioning tools are all great to have on hand at home.
For children over the age of 1, a small dose of honey, around one teaspoon, can help ease a child's cough, according to Patel and Bracho-Sanchez.
Hydration is also very important when kids are sick.
\"When my daughter is sick, we make sure that she's still eating and drinking consistently, even if it's small amounts at a time,\" said Patel.
\"Some things that I personally have seen and heard of from social media platforms are home remedies such as onion water, or making immune-boosting smoothies, or even cutting up garlic cloves and placing them on children's feet, inside their ear or on their chest to 'draw out toxins,'\" said Patel. \"There is no evidence that any of this actually works.\"
Patel said he warns parents to be wary of remedies that claim to be safe because they are \"all natural.\"
\"Some treatments that may be homeopathic or natural are not necessarily safe,\" he said. \"They can actually interact with certain medications or have bad consequences for some children.\"
Another red flag, according to Patel, is a claim that a product or treatment can cure RSV.
\"There is no actual proven RSV cure,\" he said. \"We just have different forms of supportive care and treatment in some particular situations. There's nothing you can buy or make that is going to magically cure your child of RSV in one day.\"
Both Patel and Bracho-Sanchez stressed the importance of parents knowing that what may have helped one child, may not necessarily be the most effective or safest treatment for their own child.
\"Your child may have asthma or a heart condition or allergies, and what works for somebody else's child may not be enough for your child,\" said Bracho-Sanchez. \"You know your child best. Trust yourself and trust your doctor.\"
Patel also said it's important for parents to seek medical attention when necessary for a child so there is not a delay in the correct treatment.
\"Coughing, sneezing, congestion, itchy eyes, all those symptoms may not be from the same cause as somebody else's child,\" said Patel. \"What might be RSV in one kid, could be influenza in another or COVID-19 in another or a sinus infection in another child, and treatment may differ.\"
Symptoms that would call for urgent medical care include changes in their mental status like confusion or sleepiness, respiratory distress like gasping for air and difficulty breathing and signs of dehydration like not making tears when they cry or making less than one wet diaper every eight hours, according to Patel.
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