Natural Cures for Thrush in Babies

As a mama who has dealt with thrush in two of our babies, I can tell you it is one of the least fun things you’ll experience as a breastfeeding mom. I scoured the internet for hours looking for natural cures for thrush in babies. When we finally cured the thrush, I swore I’d write a post about it to help other mamas out there struggling.

Symptoms of Thrush in Babies

The first thing I noticed that alerted me to a problem were my son’s swollen lips. His lips looked extra puffy, even the area around his mouth looked slightly swollen.

Upon further inspection, I noticed small white sores in his mouth and knew instantly we had thrush.

My nipples had been sore when nursing for a few days, but that isn’t that uncommon for me. We were out of town for my husband’s job, so nursing was constantly happening on the run and we didn’t have much time to sit down for quiet nursing sessions.

I attributed my nipple pain to simple latch issues.

Plus, my son was over a year old at the time. Way older than most babies who get thrush.

Finally, my nipples were so dry that they were cracking and I had pain shooting into my breasts themselves.

All of these symptoms and pain developed over just a couple of days. We had been traveling nonstop and had been eating terribly and sleeping even worse. I attribute our fast onset of such a bad case of thrush to this.

Some of the things that actually worked for us were:

Obviously talk to your doctor before trying anything on yourself or your little one to treat thrush. This is just what worked for us or what worked for other mamas we know.

First, start with:

Probiotics for Thrush in Babies

We really like these ones. I’m convinced we’d STILL have thrush if we didn’t add probiotics to the mix. Thrush is a stubborn opponent. You need to treat it from the inside AND outside. Start with this supplement AND add yogurt.

We eat yogurt often, but it’s best to use fresh, organic, unsweetened yogurt if you’re trying to beat thrush.

The tricky thing with thrush is that it feeds on sugars.

What’s in a lot of yogurt? Yep, sugar. So good luck getting your child to eat plain, unsweetened yogurt…but it’s the best thing for them. Don’t forget, you have to consume it too!

Diet to Cure Thrush

While we’re on the topic of sugars, cut them out.

All of them.

The less sugar you and baby consume, the easier it will be to kick this thrush episode.

This means a low carb diet free of refined sugar, refined carbohydrates, and even healthier sugars like the ones found in fruits and fruit juices.

Eat the healthiest foods possible. Lots of fresh veggies and water will help you beat thrush in no time…and maybe drop a couple of stubborn pounds while you’re at it!

Plus, a nice, healthy diet will help you keep your energy up if sleep is lacking in your house.

Gentian Violet

Use this one with caution.

I only mention this because a lot of my friends have used it and seen success. We never tried it because I read conflicting things about it’s safety.

If you’d like to try Gentian Violet, you can pick it up here…but make SURE you protect your clothes, sheets, towels…anything the baby or your nipples touch that you don’t want stained purple.

Apple Cider Vinegar

I always buy this raw and with “The Mother” in it. This is the exact one we buy.

I drink a table spoon of ACV mixed with water 3 times a day (if I remember…cause…you know, something about having kids makes you forgetful).

Because it’s so acidic, I like to drink mine through a straw to keep it off of my teeth as much as possible.

Air Dry

As often as possible, let your nipples air dry after nursing sessions. Change shirts, breast pads, and bras daily and wash them in the hottest water possible.

Boiling Water

Any pacifiers and nipples to baby bottles NEED to either be boiled or washed in your dishwasher.

Personally, I like the idea of boiling them because I can REALLY see that they’re getting as clean as possible.

Don’t forget to replace any bottle brushes that you use.

Rest and Sleep!

This one is actually the most important.

When you’re tired, your body craves carbs – not ideal when you’re fighting an uphill battle and your success is partially dependent on avoiding them at all costs.

I know this is next to impossible to do with a baby that’s young enough to develop thrush. I get it. We even went through a nursing strike right around this time and got no sleep at all for 3 days.

The problem is that between poor diet and lack of quality sleep, your body is much more susceptible to a thriving thrush episode.

Use this time as an excuse to say no to social engagements and really just relax at home (between boiling pacifiers and changing your breast pads like it’s your job, of course!).

Stay Positive!

When I first realized we had thrush, I wasn’t quite prepared for how stressful it would be to treat. Thrush is incredibly stubborn and you have to really stick to your guns and keep everything as clean as possible to avoid re-contamination.

The thing is, you can come at this from so many angles – between the diet changes, cleanliness, and rest, you do have more control over this than it feels like while you’re in it.

Have you experienced thrush in your home? What did it finally take to kick it? Let me know in the comments!

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