10 Effective Home Remedies For Deworming Kids To Provide Relief

How do Children Get Worms?

Children are more susceptible than adults to intestinal worms because of their unhealthy habits. The eggs of these worms can be found on the damp ground. Larvae can be found in the flesh of animals like pork, which rely on waste for their food.

The Intestinal worms enter the body through their skin, nose, under fingernails, and through food or water that has been contaminated. Here are some of the ways through which your child can get infected with intestinal worms:

• Walking barefoot in gardens or parks.
• Not washing the hands thoroughly after playing outside or after going to the toilet increases the chances of intestinal worm infection.
• Eating undercooked food, unwashed fruits, and vegetables.
• Drinking contaminated water.
• Exposure to livestock affected with worms.

[Read: Worm Infection In Children]

What Is Deworming?

Deworming is a medicated method of killing parasitic worms. As part of this process, an anthelmintic medicine or drug is administered so that the intestinal worms or parasites can be evicted. Deworming medicines can be safely administered to children.

Why is Deworming Important for Children?

Malnutrition is one of the consequences of parasitic worms. Deworming improves the child’s ability to absorb important nutrients. To promote a child’s development and growth, it is important to increase their nutritional intake.

The benefits of deworming also include boosting immunity and preventing infections. Children should be dewormed regularly starting at age two. Repeat deworming is needed for children who experience recurring worm infestations. A community-wide deworming program is required for children living in endemic areas.

10 Effective Home Remedies For Deworming Kids to Provide Relief

The treatment of worm infections varies with the kind of worm that has infected the child’s intestines. The deworming tablets for kids usually kill the parasites without harming the child. Ensure that you give the child the medication precisely as recommended by the doctor to get complete results.

Along with the medicines that are given to your child for deworming, there are many natural cures and home remedies that may help in getting rid of intestinal worms in children. Keep in mind that though these remedies help to alleviate the infection, it is not a replacement for the medication prescribed by the doctor. Therefore, never discontinue the prescribed medicines while practicing these home remedies.

1. Turmeric

Turmeric has antiseptic properties and can be taken internally. This spice helps in eliminating a wide range of intestinal worms. Make your child drink a glass of warm water mixed with one spoon of turmeric once every day, for five days continuously. You can also add turmeric to buttermilk and give it to your child for a week. This will help to destroy intestinal worms.

2. Coconut

Coconut has exceptionally strong anti-parasitic properties that make it the most effective home care to treat intestinal worms. Both the fruit and oil are used for the treatment.

• Make your child eat a tablespoon of freshly grated coconut along with breakfast in the morning.
• After this give him 30ml to 60ml of castor oil to drink.
• Then after a gap of 3 hours, make him drink around 375ml of lukewarm milk.
• Do this practice every day until your child is cured of worms.

Extra virgin coconut oil will also help to eradicate the worms from your child’s body:

• Let your child have four to six teaspoons of coconut oil every morning for a week.
• Not only will it help to eliminate the worms from his body, but it will also help to increase your child’s immunity and prevent recurring worm infestation.

[Read: 15 Amazing Uses Of Coconut Oil]

3. Pumpkin Seeds

Pumpkin seeds can help in eradicating intestinal parasites. These seeds have cucurbitacin, a compound that can paralyze the pests and stop them from remaining in the body. It is particularly very effective in expelling tapeworms.

• Give your child a spoonful of roasted pumpkin seeds blended with a spoon of honey.
• Take one tablespoon of peeled and crushed pumpkin seeds. Add this to 250ml of boiling water. Brew it. Keep it aside for half an hour and then make your child drink it.

4. Cloves

Clove has been used from ancient times to help eliminate parasitic eggs and worm infections. Cloves are antiseptic, bactericidal, and antiparasitic. Cloves not only put an end to existing intestinal worms and their eggs but can also prevent any future infestations.

• Add a teaspoon of cloves to a cup of hot water and soak for about 20 minutes.
• Make your child drink this water three times a week to stay free of worms.

5. Raw Papaya

Raw Papaya has papain, which is an enzyme known to be anthelmintic and helps to get rid of the intestinal worms. Both the papaya and its seeds are excellent home remedies for deworming kids.

• You can crush the papaya seeds and mix a tablespoon of these crushed seeds in warm milk or water. Get your child to drink this first thing in the morning, for three days in a row.
• Mix one tablespoon of raw papaya juice, along with the same quantity of honey in warm milk or water. Making your kid have this drink on an empty stomach every morning in order to help remove worms from his intestines. For best results, after a gap of about two hours, make your child have 30 to 60ml of castor oil combined with around 250ml of lukewarm milk. For the next two days, keep repeating this treatment.

6. Garlic

Garlic is a natural dewormer for kids. It is one of the most effective home remedies known to help soothe extreme itching, which is caused by intestinal worms around the rectum. Both garlic and its oil are one of the top home remedies for deworming kids.

• Just crush some raw garlic pods and add a dash of Vaseline and make it into a paste or crush garlic pods and oil together to make garlic oil. Rub this paste on the area around the anal. This will help to destroy all the eggs and reduce the itchiness.
• Raw garlic is known for its anti-fungal properties and is antiseptic in nature. So consuming around three cloves of raw garlic every day is also believed to help get rid of all kinds of intestinal worms.
• It is pretty difficult to make your child eat raw garlic because of its strong flavor. So you can make your child drink milk boiled with two crushed garlic pods, every day for a week.
• Chop finely five cloves of garlic. Mix with honey. Give it on an empty stomach to your child three times a day for three days in a row.

7. Pomegranate

The bark, the root, and the stems of pomegranate are exceptionally effective in expelling the intestinal worms in children. However, the bark is the most effective in killing the worms because it has punicine in it. This acts as a poison for intestinal worms.

• Give 30 to 60 ml of decoction made of fresh pomegranate tree bark and water three times in a day to your child when he has a worm infestation.
• Take one liter of water and add 50 grams of pomegranate dried peel. Let it boil and evaporate to half. Give this to your child on an empty stomach for five days.
• Grind the root of pomegranate to a smooth paste and mix it in buttermilk and give it to your child for five days.

8. Neem

Neem is known for its anti-parasitical properties and can kill various intestinal worms.

• Powder the Neem leaves and mix it with warm milk and honey. You can make your child drink this decoction two times in a week.
• Neem leaves sautéed in butter can be given to your child along with rice or bread.
• Blend around half a teaspoon of paste made from Neem leaves in a glass of warm water and make your child drink it on an empty stomach first thing in the morning continuously for a week. Give a break in between for a week and then repeat it for another week. Do this treatment every alternate week till your child gets rid of all the worms.

9. Carom Seeds/ Ajwain Seeds

Carom seeds, also known as ajwain seeds, are rich in thymol, which helps in preventing the growth of intestinal worms. The seeds are found to work wonderfully in killing these parasites when combined with jaggery.

• Give your child a small piece of jaggery or one teaspoon of powdered jaggery first thing in the morning.
• After 15 minutes, give a quarter spoon of crushed carom seeds with water.
• Repeat the routine for 15 days to eliminate all the worms.
• Take 1/2 teaspoon of ajwain seeds and blend with the same measure of jaggery. Make your child have this twice every day.
• Add 1 tsp ajwain seeds in a half-liter of water and boil for 4-5 minutes. Strain and give this water to your child 5-6 times in a day for deworming him.

10. Carrots

Carrots are found to be most effective in eradicating intestinal worms, especially thread worms.

• Make your child eat fresh carrots first thing in the morning.
• Drinking fresh carrot juice sweetened with honey on an empty stomach also helps.
• If you are giving your child carrot juice, try not to strain out the carrot pulp and persuade your child to gulp it down. Vitamin A in fresh carrots helps in boosting your child’s immunity. Beta-carotene is also good for the eyesight of your child.

Symptoms of Intestinal Worm Infection in Children

The symptoms vary with the type of intestinal worms infested. The common symptoms of intestinal worm infection in children are:

• Stomach aches
• Itching around the anus that becomes severe during the night
• Gas formation
• Anemia
• Diarrhea
• Weight loss in spite of increased appetite
• Nausea and vomiting
• Presence of worms in stool
• Grinding teeth during sleep
• Nutritional disorder

Diagnosing Worms in Kids

Sticky tape test and stool examination in a lab are usually done to diagnose the intestinal worm infection in children. During the sticky tape test, a tape is stuck to the anal region of the child and removed. This tape is sent to a laboratory for checking for the egg of these worms. The worms usually go to the bottom of the child during the night or early morning for laying eggs. The tape will, therefore, contain the eggs of the worms. The presence of a worm egg in the lab test will confirm the presence of intestinal worms and the type of intestinal worm that has infected your child.

Treatments for Worms in Kids

Despite the fact that intestinal worms in children sound serious, they are usually easy to treat. Sometimes, the child does not require any treatment or medication at all. The use of home remedies for treating symptoms in children may be helpful in resolving the entire issue.

A doctor may prescribe antiparasitic tablets if he believes that your child has worms that should be treated. You can purchase them over the counter at a pharmacy. To ensure that all the worms are gone, you should give the child another dose after two weeks.

Aside from medicines that kill intestinal worms, your child may also need medicines to reduce inflammation or other problems caused by worm infestation, such as nausea. Even though other family members don’t exhibit any signs, they will also undergo treatment for best results.

Dangers of Worm

Infection In Children If left untreated, intestinal worms start laying eggs and rapidly grow in the body, the infection is, thus, spread throughout the body, and can eventually get into the bloodstream. Once the larvae or egg get into the bloodstream, it can infest vital areas like the cornea of the eyes, the brain of the child, etc.

The worms are parasites, which take nourishment from the body of your child. This, in due course, results in malnutrition, affecting the healthy development of your child.

[Read: Malnutrition in Children]

>How to Protect Your Child From Getting Worms

It is common to find parasitic worms in poor communities and areas where food and water are not often cleaned. The children who walk barefoot in high-risk areas are the most likely to contract worms.

By improving hand hygiene, worm infestation we can reduce the chances of worm infection to a great extent. By teaching your child good personal hygiene and focusing on household cleaning, you can greatly reduce the risk of worm infestations and many other diseases.

Some tips to protect your child from getting worms are:

• After touching a pet or coming inside from the playground, make sure your kids wash their hands.
• Every time they use the toilet, they should wash their hands with soap and water
• Always trim your child’s nails short, and clean
• When walking or playing on the open ground, always have them wear slippers or shoes.
• Keep your kids’ toilet seats clean by disinfecting them regularly.
• To prevent infection, never let them drink contaminated water or eat contaminated food.
• Wash fruits and vegetables properly before giving them to kids.
• Always cover the food items.
• Do not let your child eat undercooked meat

We hope these home remedies for deworming kids will come in handy when you are dealing with worm infestation in your child. If you have anything more to share or any other home remedies that help with worm infection, please do share it in the comments section below.

Read Also: Signs Of Nutritional Deficiency In Children