Among the traditional medicines that are widely used for colds in children, camphor oil occupies a special place. It is a very effective remedy for ear diseases, rhinitis, and coughs. But it is also one of the most discussed in the professional environment, since doctors still have not come to a consensus about whether camphor oil can or cannot be used in the treatment of children.
ENT doctors assure that camphor can impair hearing and damage the eardrum when buried in the ear, pediatricians do not agree with this, but, in turn, warn about the possibility of poisoning the child with camphor oil vapor if it is used ineptly. Toxicologists disagree with the formulation "camphor poisoning", if, of course, the child was not allowed to drink it. And allergists unanimously say that this camphor treatment can cause severe allergies, which will then be quite troublesome to get rid of.
Let's take a closer look at camphor oil together, find out its properties and weigh the pros and cons.
What it is
Camphor oil is a unique herbal preparation that can be bought inexpensively at any pharmacy. It consists of vegetable oil and camphor, the concentration of which in the finished product is 10%. The substance, which gave the name to the tool, is obtained from camphor laurel, which grows in abundance in Indonesia, as well as in China, Japan and our Far East.
In addition to the natural pressing of bay leaves, camphor is also extracted synthetically. But the maximum amount of nutrients is still contained in a natural preparation.
Camphor oil is widely used in cosmetology, in alternative medicine due to broad antiseptic properties, it disinfects and relieves pain, relieves inflammation and promotes early wound healing.
The drug facilitates the discharge of phlegm when coughing and to some extent increases the overall immune defense of the body.
Camphor oil solution is an excellent remedy for flying pests. If you pour it into a small container and put it in the room so that the child does not reach, you can not be afraid of mosquito bites, since camphor vapors are a real poison for most insects.
Application in children
Due to the fact that camphor oil contains active aromatic and essential compounds, doctors of various specialties do not recommend using it to treat children under the age of two. The optimal age for camphor therapy is considered to be 3 years. However, some pediatricians take responsibility and, in certain cases, recommend the drug even to children over 11 months of age, albeit in an extremely low dosage.
Camphor oil can only be given to a child for external and topical use. In no case should you drink the drug! Any attempt to use camphor in the treatment of a child must be coordinated with a doctor, otherwise the consequences of self-medication can be extremely serious.
The opinion of Dr. Komarovsky on the topic of compressing children with otitis media can be seen in the following video.
Instructions
Pharmacy 10% oil solution of camphor, according to official instructions, can be used for the following diseases:
- Myositis
- Neuralgia
The instruction prescribes the subcutaneous administration of oil for opiate poisoning (as an antidote), for heart failure and depression of the functions of the respiratory center.
Traditional medicine, with the light hand of traditional medicine, has found other uses for the drug. So, it is buried in the ears for otitis media, compresses and rubbing on the chest with bronchitis, pneumonia and an unproductive dry cough, when it is required to provoke the fastest thinning and removal of sputum, are made. It is instilled into the nose for a runny nose and is widely used for cosmetic purposes, for example, as a facial treatment in the treatment of adolescent acne.
Contraindications
Camphor oil should not be used to treat allergy-prone children. It is not allowed to be administered subcutaneously to children with epilepsy. Outwardly, do not apply a camphor solution to too deep and purulent wounds, this can only aggravate the inflammatory process.
How to treat
Now let's look at a few gentle ways to use the drug in the treatment of children.
Otitis
If the ear hurts, the drug can be used as a means for instillation in the ear, in the form of tampons in the auricle and in compresses. This will help relieve the child of acute ear pain and reduce the spread of the inflammatory process. Be sure to consult your doctor!
With external acute otitis media, a single dose of no more than 2-3 drops of oil is recommended, which must be dripped into each ear in a heated form. You should first make sure that the drug is not hot. To do this, apply a drop to the back of your hand. After the procedure, the entrance to the ear is closed with clean and dry cotton wool.
With otitis media, it is better to put tampons with camphor oil in your ears. They are carefully introduced for 2-3 hours, the top of the ear is tied with a woolen scarf to preserve heat, after which the tampons are removed and the entrance to the ear is closed with a dry cotton swab.
With the most severe, internal, otitis media, camphor oil cannot act as an independent drug for therapy. This ailment needs serious treatment with the use of antibiotics, traditional medicine cannot cope with such severe inflammation.
Information about otitis media in children from a medical point of view is presented by Dr. Komarovsky in the following video.
When treating any form of otitis media with an oil solution of camphor, it should be remembered that purulent otitis media cannot be warmed up with compresses and tampons. If a child has ear congestion accompanied by a runny nose, camphor oil can be used only after the nasal cavity has been cleared of mucus and vasoconstrictor drops have been instilled to fully restore nasal breathing.
At high temperatures, if it accompanies otitis media, it is undesirable to use camphor, or only with the permission of a doctor.
Muscle pain
If a child has chilled a muscle (doctors call this condition myositis), a compress with camphor will help. For such a drug, the medicine is prepared in advance and stored in the refrigerator.
Onions (4 medium onions) need to be grated on a coarse grater and filled with rubbing alcohol or vodka (100 gr.). The mixture should be infused for about an hour and a half, after which camphor oil (3-4 pharmacy bottles) is added to the onion infusion. In a closed jar, the mixture should be kept for about 10 days, always in a dark place. Then such an ointment is rubbed into the sore muscle several times a day or a compress is made with it for 10-15 minutes twice a day.
If myositis has already happened, but there is no ready-made medicine at home, you can take pharmacy camphor oil and heat it up in a water bath. With careful movements, apply it to the sore spot and wrap it up warmly to warm up the muscle. After 20 minutes, wash off the camphor with a swab dipped in warm water and apply a dry warm scarf to the inflamed muscle.
Sprains and bruises
In case of injuries and especially with sprains, the child can rub camphor oil into the sore spot with intense movements. It is not necessary to apply a warm compress in this case. The procedure can be repeated several times a day. A compress with such a drug can be applied to a bruise and a bruised place for a child over 2 years old, it should be kept for no more than half an hour, and then after 3-4 hours the procedure can be repeated.
For joint pain
For joint pain, cabbage leaf with camphor oil will help. To do this, the drug is mixed with dry mustard and applied to a cabbage leaf. Such a compress is briefly applied to the sore spot.
General decrease in tone, sleep disturbances, depression, chronic fatigue
To combat such conditions, camphor oil can be used as a means for aroma lamps. Today they can be bought anywhere, but remember that camphor fumes can cause symptoms of poisoning in children under the age of three. Such sessions should be carried out only after consulting a doctor and with extreme caution.
Skin diseases, burns and abrasions
For acne, which so torments most adolescents in puberty, camphor oil solution in equal parts can be mixed with grape or liquid paraffin. After wiping the teen's face with cucumber lotion, gently apply the resulting mixture to the places of the greatest accumulation of acne. The mask should be kept for no more than half an hour, and then washed off with warm water without soap. It is desirable to repeat the treatment once a day.
Cough
When coughing, camphor oil is used as an adjuvant in complex therapy. If the cough is dry and sputum discharge is difficult, compresses and rubbing are done for children over 3 years old with pharmacy camphor. It is recommended to rub the baby's chest and back once or twice a day. It should be remembered that such rubbing should not be done at a temperature.
Runny nose
If the nose is stuffy and there is no snot as such, this may indicate a viral infection. In this case, camphor oil can be used, but only for children from 3 years old. To prepare the drops, take equal amounts of sunflower oil, pharmacy camphor and propolis tincture. The components are mixed, the resulting composition should be dripped several times a day, 2-3 drops into each nostril.
If the runny nose is allergic or accompanied by green or purulent snot, such forms of rhinitis will require more qualified treatment with antibiotics or antihistamines as prescribed by a doctor. In this case, camphor oil can only harm.
Reviews
Most of the reviews on the use of camphor oil in the treatment of children that parents leave on the Internet are positive. Mothers note that the drug costs mere pennies (about 30 rubles), but it works incredibly quickly. After one or two instillations or compresses, a good result is noticeable. Most often, the remedy is used for ear pain in children, only a few parents know about the other possibilities of the drug.
Not everyone likes the specific smell of camphor, but this is perhaps the only drawback of this useful and effective drug.
Tips
- Warm the oil before applying the product. Even if only one ear hurts, you should drip in both to avoid spreading the infection.
- Avoid getting the oil on your tongue, mouth, or eyes.
- Store the bottle in a dark place at room temperature out of the reach of the child.
