Last Monday night, around dinner time, Meghan started tugging on her ear. The rest of the night she pulled and tugged, but when we asked her if her ear was hurting, she said no.
The next morning she finally admitted that her ear did hurt, and the tugging continued. I did what any diligent parent would do, I called her doctor. An appointment was made for later that day and off to school she went.
While she was at school, I pondered what this trip to her doctor would entail. She’d never had an ear infection and I knew if that’s what this was, antibiotics would be quickly prescribed. I’d read about the over-prescribing of antibiotics, especially for ear infections, so I did some more research to see how necessary they were for ear infections.
Here’s what I found out:
- Ear infections can be viral or bacterial. Doctors don’t know which type of infection it is when they prescribe the antibiotics, so there is always the chance that the antibiotics are being prescribed in vain for a viral infection. (Antibiotics clear up bacterial infections, viruses just have to run their course)
- Antibiotics don’t just attack bad bacteria, but also wipe out good bacteria, which leaves the person susceptible to more sickness for a time after the antibiotics have been taken and the good bacteria can be restored.
- Studies have shown that children who are given antibiotics for ear infections are more likely to have recurring ear infections and eventually need tubes.
- Many ear infections will clear up on their own within 4-7 days (the newest research suggests that 80% will clear on their own).
- The overprescribing of antibiotics can cause antibiotic resistance, a growing problem.
Armed with this knowledge, I knew I was going to hesitate to give Meghan antibiotics, even if she was diagnosed with an ear infection.
Sure enough, after inspection of her ears, her doctor said she had a mild infection in the right ear that she’d been tugging. She pulled out her script pad and joyfully told Meghan that she was going to prescribe her the “bubblegum antibiotic”. No doubt filled with artificial flavors and colors. Fantastic.
I cleared my throat and quietly asked what she thought about taking a “wait and see approach”. I think she was initially surprised at my proposition, but had no problem waiting a few days to see if the infection would clear on its own. She requested we return on Friday for a follow up and sent us on our way.
In the meantime, I consulted a friend, Nicole, that I trust in her knowledge of alternative treatments to see what approach she’s taken with her own children. She recommended Wally’s Ear Oil
as a treatment or preventative measure.
We got some of the oil and used it on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday morning. At Meghan’s follow up appointment, her infection was gone. It could have cleared on its own, or it may have been helped by the ear oil. Either way, I’m extremely glad we avoided antibiotics this time.
So my title may be a bit misleading, perhaps forgoing antibiotics for a mild ear infection doesn’t exactly make me a rebel parent. But it did feel good not to blindly follow the doctor’s advice.
Clearly, I would have looked at this situation differently if Meghan would have been in a lot more pain. I would do anything to keep this smile on her face.
I am not a medical professional and this post is not intended to be medical advice. I do think, however, everyone should do their own research and make informed decisions about their own family’s health.
Question: How do you approach ear infections or other common childhood illnesses?
This is interesting because it’s something that Jason and I disagree about (for ourselves, since we don’t have kids). I’m of a similar mindset that you are, that our bodies need to fight the infection themselves and, in some cases, taking medicine just masked the problem. My husband, on the other hand, will take medicine for everything.
I love you for that! You are such a great mom and I wish more mothers would be like you, really educating themselves and then decide, what is best for their children.
Ouch! Those are no fun! I like to hear your opinion on things like this- I’m glad that it worked out for her! 🙂
I treat my two with garlic infused olive oil. First dice up the garlic then you add the oil and heat it up. Two things to beaware of before putting into the ear, 1. strain out the garlic pieces, 2. make sure the oil is warm, not HOT.
I’ve heard of the garlic/olive oil treatment as well. I love that you can heal with food!
So happy you tried an alternative route. I’m also so happy it worked out! I wish more people knew that antibiotics also kill our good bacteria, making us weaker. My mom is totally into natural medicine so she’d really appreciate this post. 🙂
i feel like i was always on a antibiotic for ear infections. Nowadays I avoid antiobiotics if I can help it. They’ve caused so much stress on my body. Not good!
Thanks for the alternative treatment idea. My boys have only had one ear infection each so far (knocking on wood), but both of them were severe and terribly painful. I did use the prescribed antibiotics, but only because of the severity of them, and the fact that neither of them had ever used antibiotics before. Luckily, the pain subsided after the first two doses, so I’m pretty sure they were bacterial. It is nice to know of another route to try first if they should get one again. But then again, when they are in that much pain I want whatever will work the fastest for them!
Super-bugs are scary. It’s good to avoid antibiotics when possible. I’m glad it all worked out okay. 🙂
Great information! Way to go for going with the wait and see method! We are having our first little one in 3 months! I am due just about a month after you!
Congrats, Jessica! I hope you enjoy the rest of your pregnancy. 🙂
Good for you! I worry about the over-prescription of antibiotics with myself because I get frequent infections and doctors are all to quick to hand over the penicillin. I have tried everything I can to improve my immune system but I still get infections, and they are too severe for me to choose not to take medication. But antibiotics definitely aren’t necessary in every case, especially with kids, and it’s so great that your little one’s infection cleared up on its own!
I have tried using drops of olive oil mixed with a bit of minced raw garlic, slightly warmed. The warm olive oil soothes the ear while the garlic is supposed to fight off bacteria. We seem to have been lucky with this so far. And even if it isn’t working on the infection, my kids have some relief with the warmed olive oil.
Wow what a great and smart mom you are! My nephews who is 8 now always had ear infections when he was a toddler and did end up getting the tubes in his ears. This is such great information to know since I plan on starting a family very soon.
Thanks for sharing your experience!
So glad everything worked well for you and Meghan. My sister and I had ear infections all the time as kids and took antibiotics (my sister eventually needed tubes). Now, I refuse to take antibiotics. Occasionally I will get a sinus infection and I use oregano oil. Works wonderfully! A few drops a few times a day and it clears out everything naturally. Doesn’t affect good probiotics in the body, either. You should look into it next time someone gets an infection.
Thanks for the tip, Alex! I’m always open to learn about natural alternatives to standard treatments. Sometimes the standard treatments are necessary, but why not try the natural first?
Oh no! I’m so glad that cleared up and didn’t get too bad. My kids haven’t had an ear infection yet and I’m pretty scared of it when it does happen because I’m sure it will. I’m so glad you wrote this post though, I feel a lot more informed now. When my son was little he had croup that just got worse and worse and worse and I ended up getting him something for that. I feel bad about it looking back now because I wasn’t nearly as informed as I should have been but sometimes it is necessary and it is nice to have medication available for when it really is needed. But at the same time, most of the time kids are just fine on their own if you let their bodies do what they need to do, or with the help of an alternate “treatment”. I agree with the comment above about Tylenol too. Sometimes it’s a lifesaver but most of the time it’s completely unnecessary.
I agree that sometimes standard treatments are just necessary. You shouldn’t feel bad about treating your little one for croup. I think it’s just a matter as being as educated as you can and not medicating for every little thing.
I just had to chime in, croup is scary… Kids who can’t breathe in the middle of the night? Scary. My kiddos get respiratory viruses and they get really sick and even with humidifiers and cool night air and tons of oral hydration they have had to go to the ER in the middle of the night. Yes, sometimes we overtreat but I am so thankful that we have access to the lifesaving treatments that we do.
Totally agreed!
Please just be careful with ears 🙂 My munchkin has had major ear infections since she was 6 months old and has had to have tubes 2 times already. Unfortunately she did not get as lucky and they are ALWAYS major ear infections. Watch her speech and acknowledgments to things this can also be an indicator of how bad the infection is.
Yes, I definitely made sure to have a follow up appointment to ensure the infection went away on its own. If it hadn’t, I would have done the antibiotics. I guess we’ve been lucky with her so far as this was her first infection and it was minor.
Good job! I love that her ear infection cleared up on it’s own with the help of the oil.
Good for you for doing your own research!
Several years ago my son was labeled (i hate labels) with chronic ear infections after he had 5 in 6 months time. It was a severe situation and he ended up on antibiotics, only to have his ear infection return a few weeks later…I felt that it was the same infection not properly clearing. We were given another script for antibiotics that I did NOT use.
I took matters into my hands. After many nights of research, I found Oto-Plex a homeopathic remedy for ear infections that worked wonders. I also stuck a raw peeled garlic clove in the outer ear several times a day.
When we returned for our follow ups this was the first time both ears were totally clear and free from infection.
It pays off to do research to see what else is out there. A lot of times these alternatives work.
I agree that the time it takes to do the research is totally worth it. I just hope this infection stays away!
I have never given my kids antibiotics. My youngest son Chase who is almost 3 has had a few ear infections they have always cleared up on their own with in a few days. I have never heard of this ear oil. I will have to look into that if he gets one again. With my kids I tend to wait allot of things out when most parents rush to the Dr. first thing. Maybe I’m a bad mom but I think most kids today are over medicated. Obviously if they have severe coughs, extreme high fevers, or can keep food down for days, or are getting dehydrated you go right in no hesitation!…… Big pet peeve of mine… Tylenol. Every mom I know keeps it in her purse! ‘oh I THINK he is teething’ or they fall get a boo boo. I ONLY use it if my kids have high enough fevers. In allot of cases fevers are there for a reason. They help fight off an infection. But again if its TOO high… I bring them to the Dr. but most cases I just let it do its job.
I don’t think that makes you a bad mom at all. We don’t even keep Tylenol in the house. We did use it on Meghan a few times and ended up having to throw it out because it expired before we used it all. 🙂 I totally agree with you about the fevers. Fevers are there for a reason and help our bodies fight off infections. Only when they get too high do we need to work on getting them down. Otherwise, you’re right–let it do its job!
Our daughter, who’s almost 16 months, has had a couple ear infections, starting back in the spring of this year. After numerous trips to the doctor to have them checked out, we determined that the first “ones” were actually 1 that never really went away and kept cropping up. She did get amoxicillin, which would help, albeit temporarily, we found out. However once we tried something stronger, she was allergic to the first medication, had a bad reaction to the children’s Benadryl they prescribed to counteract the allergy, then finally got on an antibiotic to clear it once and for all. We did also try the “wait and see” approach during a couple of the spells, but the stupid things never cleared up on their own. I asked about tubes, too, but she hasn’t had enough (fortunately) to warrant them.
Your points about the antibiotics are interesting though – especially the wiping out of good bacteria along with the bad. I think that may have happened to D, since she always seemed to have a bad cold along with the infections, which obviously could have been exacerbated with a diminished supply of good bacteria fighters. Hopefully this next year we can escape the plague of ear infections all together!
You should really check out Wally’s Ear Oil. My friend said she uses it weekly as a preventative measure against ear infections. It might help your daughter. I hope you have an infection-free winter. 🙂
I have four kids ranging in age from 2-18. My 12 year old had a lot of ear infections and antibiotics were prescribed always. She actually ended up with two sets of tubes. My little kids (ages 2 and 4) have each gotten at least one ear infection. The same doctor (from the Cleveland Clinic) who treated my 12 year old DOES NOT prescribe antibiotics for ear infections anymore. I was taken aback at first, but now appreciate that the infections can go away on their own. Her reasoning is much the same as yours. Guess you are not so much a rebel parent as you are a cutting edge medically savvy one! 🙂
Wow that’s so interesting to hear about how your doctor changed her stance. It makes me wonder, though, how long it will take for more doctors to follow this lead and just how resistant to the antibiotics the bacteria will be by then. Ugh.
I’m one of those children who had super frequent ear infections as a child — so much so that I developed a speech impediment (a lot of kids who can’t hear well during certain developmental stages due to ear infections often have this happen) and was on antibiotics all the time. I think it’s why I’m lactose intolerant — all the good bacteria died along with the bad…and why when I had a kidney infection, my body reacted so horribly to the 1 month round of antibiotics that I needed to take. Luckily, I haven’t had the need to take any since then — natural remedies unless it’s an emergency!
I’m glad your little one is feeling better!