Boosting a 2 Year Olds Immune System PLEASE HELP

I would talk to an MD pediatrician about whether she is really having an unusual number of infections. If so, he/she may recommend consulting and immunologist as there are a number of immune deficiencies that she should be tested for. Most are rare and most likely it's just an unlucky run of infections but I would certainly find out. Discontinuing immunizations may not be the best thing if she is truly predisposed to infection.
Good luck,
D.

take vitamin D3 supplements. I give my daughter an extra 500iu over what is in her mulitvitamin. Kids should get 1000iu for every 25lbs. Also try some probiotics. The antibiotics have killed all the good bacteria in her body, and need replenished. You can get florastor for kids at any pharmacy. You probably have to ask for it though.
http://www.easy-immune-health.com/Vitamin-D-Requirements....

http://www.vitaminshoppe.com/store/en/browse/sku_detail.j...
http://www.vitaminshoppe.com/store/en/browse/sku_detail.j...
that one (above) is the probiotic i give my daughter. It is cheaper than florastor but a very good name brand.
My daughter used to get colds all the time. Once I started the vitamin D3 she hasn't gotten any.

Taking her off milk and stopping immunizations helped which is great. Milk is very mucous forming and the number one allergen. You didn't say but does she have any developmental delays? There are so many things that could be going on here. Did she have reactions to any vaccine? Never mind with her being sick so often and vaccinating so often it is likely. She is little so you'll want to work closely with your ND on using naturals. Through your MD you might consider IgE food allergy testing IgE, through your ND IgG food sensitivity testing. Alletess has a test kit for $85. Kirkman sells liquid colostrum for the immune system which can be helpful but you'll likely need more than that. A comprehensive diagnostic stool analysis by Genova may be helpful too. It will show you the bacteria you are dealing with and the agents, scripts and naturals that are sensitive or resistant. Have the MD check her ASO and DNASE titers to see if she has a chronic strep infection and look into PANDAS too.

Please do not blame this on formula. I formula fed my two boys and they are extremely healthy. Much more healthy than MANY of the breastfed children that I know.

Can't your naturopath advise you on how to boost hte immune system-I was under the impression that is what they specialized in.

I would make sure she is taking a daily multi-vitamin with extra Vitamin C and other antioxidants. I would not be so quick to blame the formula you gave her as an infant - my DD was fed only formula (I had to stop breastfeeding after 2 weeks because of medication I was put on for blood clots) and she is now 3 and hardly ever gets sick at all. Plus you were still giving breastfeeding her so it's not like the formula was going to negate the benefits of the breastfeeding.

As much as people don't want to give their kids so much juice, 3 yo DD gets a fair amount (watered down 50/50, but sometimes 3 or 4 cups a day) and it's the Minute Maid Kids O.J. with added Vitamin E and D and calcium - she also gets her teeth brushed twice a day so I am not as worried about cavities (and she doesn't continually sip on it all day either). Sometimes I wonder if that's what is helping with her immunity. She eats a lot of yogurt too.

We have been giving our 2 yr old a 4 oz cup of OJ every day since the beginning of cold and flu season...it definitely helps! He also eats 1 yogurt every day on a "normal" basis; 2 yogurts when he's on on antibiotics.

Another thing to keep in mind, all these little bugs they get now is building thier immune system for when they're older. I don't shelter my son from getting colds and other minor illnesses because ultimately it means he will miss less school because he will have already built up immunities to common viruses.

up her antioxidant and vitamin C intake.

Probiotics! I saw another M. posted that as well. We have my son on Cutrelle for Kids he is 3. Not only is it good for thier immune system but also for their digestive health. I started my son on it after he was very sick and had diarrhea for almost a month. Since, he hasn't gotten sick and he is in preschool 2days a week. so he's around kids all the time. You can get it at the pharmacy or at the grocery store in the pharmacy section. It's worth a shot. And there aren't any bad things that could come from trying, hopefully just a healthier baby!

I'm sorry to hear about your daughter. I can imagine how this must be a strain on you. I usually give my daughter infant liquid vitamin D drops in juice. A good chewable toddlers probiotic is good. I give my 3yr. old a teaspoon of raw organic apple cider vinegar in 4 oz. water with a little raw honey twice a day while sick. And once a day for preventative measures. You can google the benefits of raw unfiltered apple cider vinegar. Make sure the vinegar has the mother in it. Stay away from sugar while your little one is sick.Sugar feeds bacteria. Hope you find some relief.

Have you tried Enfamil's toddler formula? Enfagrow Premium provides a lot of the vitamins your daughter needs to keep her immune system strong - vitamin c, vitamin d, prebiotics, etc. There are other ways to get her these vitamins, but I've found this to be easy for my son. He loves the chocolate flavor. It does contain milk though so if she has a milk allergy, this might not be a good idea.

Is she still following the diet prescribed by the naturopath? If not, get her back on it. Grains and dairy can cause a lot of problems so you could try cutting those out and see how she does. Eggs and nuts can cause problems too. I know, what's left? Fruits, vegetables, meat and fish - give it 30 days with a variety of these foods and see how she does. Then you can start adding one thing at a time back into her diet to see if they cause any problems.

Also, please please please get off the antibiotics and don't use antibacterial soaps! Plain old soap and water is all you need for your hands and your household cleaners. The exception to this being if that pesky MRSA won't go away. With that, she'll probably need a cocktail of strong antibiotics by IV for a while. Hopefully it's gone though. Those drug-resistant bacteria are scary!

Finally, one last thing to try for the colds and ear infections. I just read this morning that putting a capful of a 3% hydrogen peroxide solution that you can buy at the pharmacy in each ear helps. Pour the small capful (may want to use a dropper instead of the cap for a toddler) into the ear, let it bubble and then drain into a towel. Repeat on the other side.

Good luck! It's heartbreaking to see your kid so sick! :(

Back to the naturopath! And see a chiropractor, the kids I know that do (including my own) are the healthiest ones I've seen! Also probiotics, omega 3s, vitamins, limit hand sanitizer use, and allow her exposure to naturally occurring dirt and allergens.. obsessive cleaning, good excuse for you to relax a little :)

Dear C.:

I'm very sorry to hear that your daughter has been dealing with these infections. I know that you are examining natural ways, but in addition, have you considered asking about tubes in her ears? I know many children who have had a very positive experience with tubes. Also, please consider getting a second opinion about stopping the immunizations. Immunizations help to stop the spread of serious and contagious disease.

It's really difficult to wade through the sea of health information to find what's best for our children. I applaud your dillegence and wish you and your daughter all the best.

If you are seeing a qualified ( meaning they graduated from one fo the 7 school sin North America that can legally produce NDs ) your ND should be able to point you in the right direction. I would assume youd have her on a high quality multivitamin, probiotics to compensate for all the antibiotics at the minimum. Id seek out a proper ND if this ND is not able to provide you with the info you are seeking

probiotics like culturelle or a generic!! Helps a lot. You take the powder out of the pill and put it in her drink in the morning. :) did you check for a gluten/wheat allergy?

Our doctor recommended a mulit-vitamin for our daughter who was getting sinus infection after sinus infection. I'm not sure if it's helped, but she hasn't been back to the doctor since we started and that was 2 months ago. We just got the gummy toy story mulit-vitamin.

We're giving kefir a shot this winter. It's like yogurt, only with more probiotics. You can find it at Meijer and Dominicks (and I'm sure other stores too). We give it to our son once a day in place of milk. (We call it a yogurt smoothie and he thinks it's a special treat.) My attitude is it can't hurt and it might just help. Good luck!

Hi C.,

I just read about something yesterday called Primary Immune Deficiency Disorder and while I am not a doctor, it seems like you may want to look into this at least to understand what types of doctors/treatment are out there to help with a low immune system.

http://www.familyvillage.wisc.edu/lib_immu.htm

http://www.pediatriconcall.com/forpatients/commonchild/Bl...

Best wishes for a healthy outcome. :)
K.

I use Echinacea and especially Astragalus Root during cold months and when I see a possible cold coming on. So far other kids at my son's pre-school are sick - but not him. Definitely chiropractor too and healthy eating, little or no sugar and LOTS of sleep!!

For more on herbal healing and immune boosting I highly recommend Aviva Romm's books: http://avivaromm.com/books

you can get infant drops of vitamin D.

You know - my daughter had a lot of upper respiratory infections before the age of 2. Seemed like we were spiking high fevers and on antibiotics every other month. Never once did my doctor suggest food allergy testing.

But it might be worth a try to find out. My daughter has serious food allergies and since we know what foods to avoid (cross contamination of those allergens too) she has improved greatly. Now 6 and she hasn't missed a day of school this year for illness. I also supplement her diet with Vitamin D drops and Vitamin C.

Sometimes those allergy tests can come up with false positives - so take an allergy test with a grain of salt. Use it as a guide to avoid certain foods and maybe even work with your doctor to reintroduce things later.

Good luck.

I just read an article about the overuse of antibiotics disrupting the digestive system leading to more illnesses. I would definitely try and hold back on the antibiotics. You should not need them for every ear infection. I put drops of Vitamin D3 in my son's juice every day and give him a multivitamin with probiotics.

Here is a link to the article:

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE68C57W20100913

I also use a product called Ambrotose from Mannatech that is an immune system builder. My son is almost 4 and he's been in preschool for almost 2 years and has been pretty healthy the whole time. I don't know if its any one thing we're doing or just a combination of everything. I breastfed him for 10 months and he had 1 ear infection when he was about a year old which I let run its course without antibiotics and he hasn't had one since (knock on wood).

Good luck!

Look into Shaklee or Juice Plus as even the most healthiest of diets are lacking. An apple even organic is not what it was even 30 years ago. I know of 2 people who do both products if you are interested in learning more. Are you still at the naturopathic dr?

C.,
I urge you to check out Shakleebaby products.
Let me know if you want more info.
Victoria

I'm so sorry about what you are going through, unfortunately that can happen with formula and vaccinations for kids that are just not strong enough to fight it...and the worse part is that MDs don't want to tell you the truth. I would definitely keep staying with the naturopathic dr or I would recommend Homefirst...though I don't think there is one close to you. But they also sell supplements including D3 and probiotics which are great for EVERY immune system. In fact I just saw that they are having one of their very best sales today thru Friday at 30% off and free shipping. On the site it tells you to give children 1 - 5,000 Iu of D3 every OTHER day. My 4 year old loves it. She pulls the capsule apart and sucks down the powder. It's hard to make her wait that extra day. The D3 also contains probiotics as Homefirst thinks this is super important.

I wish you the best and just keep giving her the healthiest, purest foods that you can afford.

H.