Ear infections are often the bane of early childhood and even later in life, often occurring as the result of the common cold. They can be very painful and difficult to diagnose, leading to many trips to the doctor. In many cases, the suspected ear infection was no infection at all and mom has wasted her time and money and must rely on someone else, i.e. the doctor, to handle a very simple problem. So it would behoove every mom to learn how to spot and treat ear infections herself.
Equipment You Need to Detect Ear Infections
The first step is to learn what an ear infection looks like. In order to do so, one must have the right equipment. The kit at the mega baby store is not sufficient. In order to properly diagnose an ear infection, a mom needs to use what the doctors at the office use: an otoscope. The magnification and light intensity are far beyond the cheap store-bought variety and make viewing the inner ear much easier. The drawback is the price. A brand-new Welch-Allyn otoscope runs about 0. The good news is that many medical students, after graduation, are looking to offload the equipment they bought for medical school since their new practices will be providing such items for them. You can find many of them listed on Ebay for a fraction of the price. These otoscopes either have have a charger stand or they plug straight into the wall for quick battery recharging. The disposable specula (the black point that actually penetrates the ear for observation) are often included. You want to make sure you also acquire the pediatric specula that are a bit smaller for the little ears. The Welch Allyn otoscope is indeed more expensive than others, but it will save you many trips to the doctor and is invaluable, especially with those middle-of-the-night episodes.
How to Recognize Ear Infections
The next item to tackle is to take your newly acquired otoscope and learn how to use it! Many otoscopes come with a manual that includes pictures of the normal ear drum and compare them to an infected ear drum. If yours does not, an quick Internet image search will give your great pictures of ear infections that will help you discern what you are seeing. To use the otoscope, pull down the child's ear drum and gently insert the specula. Gently continue to slide in and rotate it every so slightly as you go, in order to get a good view of the ear drum. You may want to have someone hold the child still while doing so, especially the first few times you take a look. If you see bright red or pink in the areas surrounding the ear drum, you can be sure that you have the dreaded ear infection. If you just see a few capillaries, this is normal and does not indicate an infection. It's a great idea to begin to study your child's inner ear before an infection occurs, and then you will be familiar enough with the normal ear that any variation from normal will be apparent to you.
How to Treat Ear Infections
Now that you know what an ear infection looks like, you can now learn how to treat them. For many, the first inclination is to go for antibiotics. The problem is that about 60% of ear infections are viral. Antibiotics do nothing to kill viruses are therefore worthless in treating those 60% of cases. Add to that, the latest studies show that only one in nine ear infections respond to antibiotics. So a mom who doesn't want to waste time and money on needless trips to the doctor and medicines that will not work, needs other tools in her arsenal. My personal favorite is Oreganol (Oregano Oil P73). Oreganol is anti-microbial, killing bacteria, viruses and fungus and since it is applied directly to the ear, it goes to work immediately to wipe out most ear infections. It also is reported to be an excellent pain reliever, which is a great bonus when you have a child who is screaming! Oreganol is rather expensive, but you only need a few drops at a time and one bottle could very well last for years. You do not want to put the Oreganol in the ear undiluted, however. Mix one or two drops into 1/8 teaspoon of olive oil. Pour this mixture into the ear and have the child lay still for 10 to 15 minutes and then repeat in the other ear, if necessary. Other treatments that can be utilized are garlic oil, mullein, camomile and even breast milk, but I have found Oreganol use to be far superior to other methods I have tried.
My Experience with Ear Infections
The advice in this article should not be construed as medical advice, just a little know-how given from one mom to another. Being the mom of 7 children, I have had many an ear infection to deal with over the years and probably have many more still to come! Since being told about Oreganol from another mom several years ago, I have only had to go to the doctor once for an ear infection. My son had a fever for almost 3 days and the Oreganol wasn't working and in this case, antibiotics made a difference and helped him within 24 hours. All the other ear infections we have experienced were quickly alleviated with this simple and effective treatment, often with the pain subsiding immediately with administration of the oil. Rarely was a second application required.
A neighbor once called me about her daughter who she suspected has an ear infection and she wanted for me to take a look with my otoscope. When I took a look, sure enough, bright pink and inflamed. I sent her home with the Oreganol/olive oil mixture to give to her daughter. She called me later that day, elated., to tell me how the pain was gone from her daughter's ear and all was back to normal. She informed me that she would be jetting up to Whole Foods that very night for her own bottle of Oreganol p73!
Ear infections are to be expected by just about every family, but they do not have to be a huge problem. With a little information and experience, every mom can have the confidence to treat this common childhood illness. Your children with thank you for it.
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