How to Treat an Ear Infection Without Seeing a Doctor

You know the symptoms: Your child shakes his head, or holds and scratches his ear. His ear might appear red, feel warm to the touch, or emit a discharge. He might have low grade fever.

Ear infections are a common problem with infants as well as young children. Many babies have almost chronic ear infections which lead to several rounds of antibiotics and, in some cases, surgery. If you are a parent who has dealt with these infections, you know that it can be time consuming as well as expensive to take your child to the doctor every time you suspect an ear infection. If you are looking for a way to treat your child's ear infections at home, here are a few natural home remedies that work:

1. Garlic oil. I discovered garlic oil when my first child was 15 months old. He had already had 4 prescriptions for ear infections during his short life and I was clueless that there was a way to treat them at home. That's when a friend of mine recommended natural garlic oil to treat ear infections and we haven't been back to the clinic since. You can buy a bottle of natural garlic oil at your local health food store, or you can purchase liquid garlic capsules. Have your child lay down on the side that is not bothering him and put two drops, or half a garlic capsule, into the offending ear. Put a piece of cotton in his ear for a few minutes to allow the liquid to make its way to your child's eustachian tube. You may repeat this process a couple of times, but usually the first dose takes care of it. I have also heard of cooking oil, hydrogen peroxide and baby oil being used this way to treat ear infections, but I have not tried them myself.

2. Apply heat to the ear. Warmth, theoretically, will loosen up the fluid being retained in your child's ear and enable it to drain. Put a cup of rice in a large sock and microwave it for 45 seconds, then have your child lay with his infected ear against it. This also helps relieve the discomfort and pressure that comes with infection.

3. Use a hair dryer to blow warm air into the ear as this may help dry the fluid trapped in the middle ear.

Other Tips to Aid Healing:

1. Acetaminophen can be used to make your child more comfortable and to reduce fever while his ear is healing.

2. You may also want to encourage him to drink fluids, as the swallowing mechanism encourages the fluid to move out of his eustachian tube.

3. Helping your child keep his head upright during the day and semi-upright at night will enable his ears to drain naturally.

4. As always, it is wise to keep your child away from second hand smoke as the irritants contained in cigarette smoke can irritate your child's eustachian tubes.

The next time your child exhibits the symptoms of an ear infection, try a home remedy. You will likely discover that you can treat your his problem naturally at home, while avoiding the bills and office waits that come with taking him to a physician.