3 Natural Home Remedies For Scabies On Your Baby
How do you know if your baby has scabies?
There are two methods that you can use, to find out if your baby has scabies. The first way, is to look at your babies symptoms. The symptoms include rashes, red bumps, and small grey lines, all over thier body.
The rash that is caused by scabies mites, is very similar to other skin conditions, so you will not be able to diagnose scabies based on that. What you need to look for, are the small grey lines, that are about 1-2 inches long. This is where the mites dig there burrows to lay there eggs. If you find these small grey lines near the rash, you can be relatively sure that it is scabies, because this symptom does not occur in any other skin disease.
The second method for diagnosing scabies on your baby, is a little more complicated, but it is 100% accurate. What you will need to do is take a glass slide and scrape it against the the rash. Then put the slide under a microscope. You should be able to see one or two mites, as well as thier feces. This method is used in hospitals to get the most accurate diagnosis.
What is the prescription treatment for babies, when they have scabies?
If your doctor diagnosis your baby with scabies, there is only one prescription drug, that is considered safe enough to prescribe.
Permethrin is the first line treatment for scabies in all hospitals. It is prescribed to adults, and babies, up to two months old. However, permethrin is a synthetic pesticide with several side effects. Side effects include itching, numbness, rash, burning, and stinging. Another problem with permethrin, is that it is getting less and less effective every year, because scabies mites are developing a resistance to it.
Do not use other prescription treatments that are only approved for use in adults. This includes Lindane lotion, Crotamiton (Eurax), Ivermectin (Stromectol), and benzyl benzoate. These drugs are not approved to treat babies, because they can have more severe side effects including neuro-toxicity.
How did your baby get scabies?
If you baby has scabies, you will probably never find out for sure where they got it. But I will go over the most common ways that babies are exposed to scabies.
Hospitals are one of the most common places, where scabies is spread. Nurses and doctors can unknowingly, carry the mites on there clothing from an infested patients room to your baby’s room. In addition to this, the alcohol based disinfectant that is used in hospitals, has been shown to be ineffective at killing scabies mites. This makes it possible for one person with scabies, to spread it to everyone else in the hospital.
Daycares are another place that babies can easily get scabies. Because of the frequent skin to skin contact, in a day care, scabies is spread very quickly, even if only one person has it. When your baby is is playing with lots of other babies from different homes, it increases the risk of scabies, spreading to your own baby.
Family Members and anyone else that touches your baby, can spread it through skin to skin contact. You might not even know whether someone close to you has scabies, because it takes 1-2 months for the symptoms to appear after they are infested. During this time, it can be spread through an entire household.
3 Natural home remedies you can use, if your baby has scabies
If you search on the internet, you will find many different home remedies for scabies. The three that I have found to be the most effective and safest for babies, are sulfur, salt baths, and tea tree oil.
Sulfur
The american academy of dermatology, recommends sulfur as a safe and non-toxic treatment for babies that have scabies. Sulfur is the only other approved treatment (other than permethrin), to treat scabies in babies. Studies show that a 10% sulfur cream is enough to cure a baby of scabies in about 1-2 weeks. Here is how to use it.
- Rub it all over your baby’s body.
- Repeat this once a day for two weeks.
Salt Baths
Salt baths have not been scientifically studied for the treatment of scabies. However, speaking from personal experience it is the most effective treatment for scabies, in my opinion. It works by simply dehydrating the mites. If you give your baby a salt bath every day, you will typically see thier symptoms disappear within a week. Here are the steps to give your baby a salt bath.
- Add 1/2 cup of sea salt to a small tub, or 4 cups of sea salt to a full sized bathtub.
- Fill your tub up with warm water.
- Soak your baby in it for at least 30 minutes.
- Repeat this once a day, for a week.
Tea Tree Oil
The last treatment for scabies on your baby is tea tree oil. It is a natural essential oil, that is derived from the tea tree plant. Studies have shown that tea tree oil, can be just as effective at treating scabies, as prescription treatments like permethrin. But instead of having side effects, it has many benifits for your babies skin. Here is how you can use tea tree oil, to treat scabies on your baby.
- Mix your tea tree oil 50/50 with coconut oil.
- Rub the mixture all over your baby’s body.
- Repeat this once a day for a week.
