What to do if your six-month-old baby has a fever

New mothers are very afraid that their babies will have a fever, especially when their babies are only a few months old. Usually, as long as the baby shows symptoms of fever, mothers will become anxious. Six-month-old babies become more active and have more contact with the outside world, so the chance of having a fever is greater than before. A baby's fever is usually caused by a cold due to the influence of cold air, while some babies develop fever symptoms due to indigestion and food accumulation.

1. What to do if your 6-month-old baby has a fever

1. Maintain air circulation in the home: maintain the room temperature between 25-27℃. But if the baby's limbs are cold and shivering, it means that warmth is needed. You can soak your hands and feet in warm water.

2. Take off too many clothes: If the baby's limbs and hands and feet are warm and the whole body is sweating, the heat needs to be dissipated, so you can wear fewer clothes. 3. Warm water bath: Undress the baby and rub the whole body with a warm water (30~37℃) towel. This will dilate the blood vessels in the baby's skin and release body qi. In addition, when water vapor evaporates from the body surface, it will also absorb body heat.

4. Use cooling patches: Cooling patches can take away heat and will not cause over-cooling.

5. Drink more water/milk: Water has the function of regulating temperature, which can lower body temperature and replenish the water lost in the baby's body.

6. Use antipyretics: When the baby's rectal temperature exceeds 38.5℃, you can use antipyretic solutions or suppositories appropriately. Check the dosage carefully and do not overdose.

7. Observe changes in fever and other related manifestations. For example, coughing, diarrhea, convulsions, rash on the body, mental depression and other accompanying symptoms. Before seeing a doctor, parents should sort out their child's fever process and other symptoms, as well as medication usage and reaction to medication, which will help with the diagnosis of the disease. If the fever lasts for at least 24 hours, taking your child to see a doctor can provide a more useful diagnosis.

2. How to reduce fever for 6-month-old babies

For babies aged 6 months with a fever not exceeding 38.5℃, it is recommended to use only physical cooling. However, if the fever exceeds 38.5℃, antipyretics should be used in time. Commonly used physical cooling methods:

1. Rub bath with 35% alcohol. When alcohol evaporates, it takes away a lot of heat, which can help cool down infants and young children when they have a fever. Keep the temperature of the alcohol at around 27 to 37 degrees Celsius. When using alcohol for bathing, be careful not to rub the baby's chest, abdomen, or soles of the feet to avoid causing adverse reactions.

2. Take a bath with warm water. Taking a bath can help dissipate heat. The water temperature is adjusted between 27 and 37 degrees Celsius. Be careful not to give your baby a hot bath, otherwise it will easily cause vasodilation throughout the body, increase oxygen consumption, easily lead to ischemia and hypoxia, and aggravate the condition.

3. Soak your feet in hot water. Soaking your feet can promote blood circulation and relieve discomfort. When soaking feet, the water temperature should be slightly higher than usual, around 40 degrees Celsius, based on the baby's ability to adapt.

4. Apply cold compress with ice pack. Wrap an ice pack in a towel and apply it to the baby's head, forehead, neck, armpits, groin, etc. This can be used repeatedly.

5. Ice pillow. When your baby has a high fever, you can make an ice pillow for him to use as a pillow, which is both comfortable and effective.