Dietary Relationship to Ear Infections

Your child's ear infection may be caused by diet. If you notice a specific time of year increasing the number of ear infections in your child, check their diet. One child often contracted ear infections right after Halloween. The dietary culprit was sugar.

While this isn't surprising, few medical doctors will associate time of year, diet and ear infections.

Other contenders for dietary factors of children's ear infections may include:

• milk and dairy products
• wheat and wheat products
• sugar
• chocolate
• peanuts or other nut products
• eggs
• citrus
• corn
• soy products

Any or all of these may be causing your child's ear aches and infections. Consider limiting your child's diet by eliminating all these products for a month and adding back one product at a time, for a month each, to determine which products are the culprit.

Food allergies cause many health issues. Consider these when looking at health care options and home remedies.

Ear Infection - Herbal Solutions

Your child's ear infection may be bacterial or viral. If this is the case, there are natural biotics on the market that may help your child fight the infection.

Olive Leaf Extract - this herbal biotic helps the body's natural immune system to fight germs that cause bacterial infections and help to balance out viral problems within the system. Unless prescribed by a medical care provider, stay within the dosages recommended on the bottle.

Oil of Oregano - this herbal biotic comes in both oil and capsule form and helps the body's natural immune system to fight germs and bacteria. It helps to balance out the body's natural immunities to fight off viral and bacterial infections.


We always recommend the better quality herbal products, usually available in a health food store or other location. Discount center selections often contain less of the actual herbal product and are more often less effective.

Children's Ear Aches

When a child's ear aches, the child is uncomfortable all over. You may notice a little redness near the ear, the child pulling or rubbing the ear, or even a bit of drainage from the ear. A slight temperature indicates an infection, as does the child's discomfort.

To ease pain, offer a single dose of Tylenol/acetaminophen, or Motrin/ibuprofen. These will lower temperature and ease any discomfort temporarily. Apply a warm compress, usually a cloth moistened in warm water wrapped in a zip-lock bag works best.

Massage the child's hand and foot in the webbed areas between fingers and toes to help relieve pain and induce healing in the body. This reflexology technique often improves the ache enough to end any infection or viral issue with the ear. These areas of reflexology are helpful if the child has a cold, congested head or other drainage in this ear/nose area.

Keeping the child warm and comfortable is half the battle.

Provide plenty of liquids, plenty of rest, and if the situation doesn't improve, contact your medical care provider within 24 hours.