Tummy ache in children is an extremely common occurrence and is never a nice experience for either you or your child.
However, there are many natural remedies for tummy ache in children which can help to quickly and safely treat your child’s tummy pains.
This article will tell you all about what natural remedies for tummy ache are available, and how they work.
#1 Chamomile
Chamomile (Matricaria recutita) is one of the best natural products for helping with tummy ache. It has properties including being anti-inflammatory and antioxidant which make it extremely good at helping to treat gastrointestinal issues including stomach ache and diarrhea [1]. In fact, one study showed a 57% improvement in tummy pains for children who had just one cup of chamomile tea a day for one week [1].
So, give your child some chamomile tea (make sure it’s not too hot), and it’ll help soothe their tummy to make them feel more comfortable.
Alternatively, you can get Tummy Soothie which contains chamomile and so is perfectly suited for helping to cure tummy aches in children. It comes as a pack of 12 lollipops which act as a herbal dietary supplement.
It’s great as your child is likely to be more compliant to use the supplement, as it is in the form of a lollipop, so they will probably think it is a treat when really it is actually something that is a functional lollipops and will ease their tummy ache.
#2 Fennel Seed
Fennel seed (Foeniculum vulgare) is another ingredient that you can make a natural remedy for tummy aches with. It is a natural substance that has been proven to significantly help in gastrointestinal issues, abdominal pain and stomach ache, with signs that it is especially helpful in these issues in children [2]. It works because the plant that it comes from has medicinal properties in all parts of it, which have extremely beneficial properties including being anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive [2]. This latter property means that it helps to prevent pain, including those experienced in the stomach [2].
One way you can make a little remedy out of fennel seed is to crush them and add hot water to make a fennel seed tea. Alternatively, you can incorporate them into your child’s meal or even into a cake to make the tummy treatment a nice tasty treat for your child at the same time!
Tummy Soothie doesn’t only contain chamomile but contains fennel seed too. Therefore, it really has the best mix of herbal extracts to make it the ideal natural remedy for tummy ache.
#3 Peppermint
Peppermint (Mentha piperita) isn’t just something that smells and tastes divine. It also has some amazing health benefits.
One of these health benefits includes that it can help to relieve tummy pains. The reason why it works is because peppermint is able to relax the smooth muscles that our stomach is made of [3]. When we experience stomach pains it is usually because something has caused the muscles to become strained, and so the action has on muscles to relax them helps to soothe them and relieve some of that stress [3].
The reason why peppermint is so good is because it doesn’t just help by focusing on the stomach, but it also acts upon the gallbladder, colon and our bowel to ensure that stomach pain can be eased no matter where or what the origin or cause of it is [3].
Giving your child some peppermint tea is probably one of the best ways to use this amazing natural ingredient and is the perfect remedy for tummy ache.
Alternatively, peppermint is found alongside chamomile and fennel seed in the Tummy Soothie lollipops. You can find a full list of Nature Soothie herbal and natural ingredients here.
#4 Ginger
Another great naturally occurring product that will help to treat stomach aches in children is ginger (Zingiber officinale). It works by helping to regulate the process of gastric emptying which, when abnormal, can cause a multitude of stomach issues including pain [4].
Ginger helps to, overall, control all the gastric processes and make sure things are moving along as they should be [4]. This includes ensuring that gas is expelled as and when it needs to be, as issues such as trapped gas can cause stomach pain [4].
You can infuse ginger into hot water to make tea, or you may add it to meals as a natural remedy for tummy aches in children and adults.
References:
[1] Srivastava J, Shankar E and Gupta A (2010) Chamomile: A herbal medicine of the past with a bright future. Mol Med Report. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2995283/ [Accessed: 21/09/2020]
[2] Badgujar S, Patel V and Bandivdekar A (2014) Foeniculum vulgare Mill: A Review of its Botany, Phytochemistry, Pharmacology, Contemporary Application, and Toxicology. BioMed Research International. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4137549/ [Accessed: 21/09/2020]
[3] Chumpitazi B, Kearns G and Shulman R (2018) Review article: The physiologic effects and safety of Peppermint Oil and its efficacy in irritable bowel syndrome and other functional disorders. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5814329/ [Accessed: 21/09/2020]
[4] Bodagh M, Maleki I and Hekmatdoost A (2018) Ginger in gastrointestinal disorder: A systematic review of clinical trials. Food Science and Nutrition. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6341159/ [Accessed: 21/09/2020]