Fever in Children: A Comprehensive Guide for Parents

When a small child is at home, it is necessary to have a thermometer with him. Nowadays digital thermometers are easily available in chemists. Temperature is recorded in two ways -

• Degree Celsius (degree celsius - 0C)
• Degree Fahrenheit (degree fahrenheit - 0F)
• Fever means body temperature more than 37.5 0C or 99.5 0F.

Fever is not a disease. Fever is a problem, whose cause we have to find and solve.

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• Shivering
• Running nose
• Cough
• Headache
• Stomach ache
• Feeling of weakness in the whole body
• Sweating or sticky skin
• Nausea and vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Shaking
• Lack of appetite
• Less sleep

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Here I will only give you information about precautions in case of fever. Consult a doctor immediately if the child has the following symptoms:

• The temperature is 102°F or 39°C or higher
• The child is having convulsions
• The child is lethargic
• There are rashes on the body
• There is difficulty in breathing
• There is severe diarrhea
• The child is less than 3 months old
• He has reduced his food intake
• He is passing urine less than 3 times a day
• Hands and feet are getting cold
• The child faints
• There is swelling in the joints

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Every child falls ill at some point of time. That is because the immunity to fight diseases is not fully developed in his body. Apart from this, they do not know what dirt is. They put any dirty object lying on the ground in their mouth, due to which infection enters their body. We should keep dirty objects, which pose a risk of infection, away from the reach of children. Prevention of disease is the best cure. There can be many causes of fever, such as -

• Cold
• Diarrhea
• Typhoid
• Pneumonia
• Ear infection
• Skin infection
• Urine infection
• Throat infection
• Brain infection
• Joint infection
• Malaria

Apart from these, there are many other reasons.

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If there are no symptoms written above, then you can take the following measures. But do take the child to the doctor for a checkup the next day.

• Put normal water bandages on the entire body of the child. Keep the bandages until the body temperature comes down.
• Check the temperature with a thermometer every 6 hours and note it down. This will also help the doctor guess the disease.
• Put less clothes around the body. Do not cover the child with too many blankets. I have heard most people say that if the body shivers and sweats, then the fever reduces. This is not so, this is a misconception. Take a simple example - if the frying pan is hot, will we cover it to cool it down, or pour water on it? Switch on the fan in the room. Dress the child in less comfortable clothes. This will help the child's body temperature come down easily. But if your child is shivering from a cold, then cover him with a thin blanket.
• You can give paracetamol medicine to the child every six hours. Do not give any other medicine without consulting the doctor. Its dosage is written on the medicine bottle according to the age and weight of the child.
• The child should keep a handkerchief on the nose and mouth before sneezing. So that the infection does not spread to others.
• Take liquids, especially water, fruit juice and hot soup in large quantities.
• If the fever lasts for more than two days, consult a doctor.
• Fever takes 2-4 days to subside, be patient!

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• Give a balanced diet to the child, and keep him healthy.
• His weight should be within the age limit.
• Give him all the vaccines at the right age.
• If financially possible, get the vaccines for pneumonia, diarrhea, typhoid, chicken pox also administered according to age.
• For the treatment of children, consult a pediatrician only.
• Prevention of disease is the best cure.

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Fever is common in children and is the body's natural way of fighting off an infection. A fever occurs when the body temperature rises above normal, often to 100.4°F (38°C) or higher. The most common causes of fever in children are viral or bacterial infections, such as a cold, flu, or strep throat. Symptoms of fever can include fatigue, headache, loss of appetite, and body aches.

When children have a fever, let them rest, feed them light and nutritious food, and pay attention to hydration. If the fever does not subside in 2-3 days, or other severe symptoms such as vomiting, severe headache, or difficulty breathing occur, a doctor should be contacted immediately.