"2Yr Son Getting Sick Often"

I agree with the mom who suggested applying for assistance- I believe it's available nearly everywhere for people who need it. Try checking with your county's Job and Family Services to see if your qualify. Two year olds can get sick often, especially once they start daycare's or preschool so being able to take them to the doctor when they need it can be crucial! My husband and I were without insurance for nearly 2 1/2 years but fortunately for us then we qualified for assistance with obtaining health insurance for our son.
If he has a bad cough chances are his throat is sore. Perhaps soups and soft food (mashed potatoes, jello, pudding, etc.) would be a good start. His runny nose may be also draining into his tummy and that can cause stomach upset. I would avoid foods high in sodium (which could dehydrate him) spicy foods, foods high in acidity (lemons, tomatoes, oranges- though high in vitamin C they can also irritate a sore throat).
When I was little and not feeling well my mother would make jello for us and let us drink it before it set. Not only did it taste great but it settled our tummies too.

I looked up some information about health care assistance in your area. Hopefully this can help. Just follow the link!
http://www.mihs.org/services-and-programs/financial-assit...

I hope your little one feels better soon!

Hi H., in NYS we have Child Health Plus which is a health insurance progrm for which nearly every child qualifies if he/she cannot be covered by an employer policy. Please look into what your state has that's similar. Also please look for free or nearly free clinics in your area.

There are many meds you can buy at the grocery or drug store for children with cold symptoms. I've used Tylenol, Motrin for a temp and Benadryl for a stuffy nose. Please be sure to follow the instructions carefully, especially with regards to your child's weight.

If his fever is unusually high or lasts more than a few days, please bring him in for care from a doctor.

As long as he is hydrated (from the pedialyte) I wouldn't worry too much about loss of appetite for a couple days. Will he eat soup? Crackers?

If you notice he is having trouble breathing or is lethargic, please get him care right away.

Good Luck, I hope it's just a cold!

You posted not too long ago about him being sick. Did the cold ever clear completely if it didn't then he might have a secondary infection and need antibiotics. Can you apply for assistance at a local hospital or there any clinics near by that you could take him to if that is the case.
If this is his first year of preschool expect him to get sick often you can remind him often to wash his hands and not put them in his mouth but it is hard and takes constant reminding with a 2 yr old. I give my kids extra vitamin C during the school year and I also spray my older son's backpack, jacket, and shoes down with lysol the second he walks through the door and I send him straight to the bathroom to wash his hands. He can have honey for the cough or hylands makes a honey based cough syrup that is also safe for him to have at 2 yrs. I hope he feels better soon!

I just went through this myself. You should completely disinfect your home after he gets sick. This may be why he caught it again, you can use clorox mixed with water to disinfect your home. Some of the middle schools have clinics which only charge five dollars for a visit too.

As far as food goes, sick kids (usually sicker than yours, like throwing up) would go on the BRAT diet:

B - banana
R - rice
A - applesauce (no sugar)
T - toast (plain)

Hope this helps

Give him plenty of Vitamin C. I hear also that Vitamin D helps. I just made my boys some cough syrup, but the younger ones don't like it much so I won't tell you about that one. If you have a natural food store nearby, see if they have elderberries. Mountain Rose Herb has a great recipe for Elderberry syrup which is good for kids coughs. Also you can make a tea with a slice of lemon, a slice of gingerroot, pour boiling water over this and add a good dollop of honey. Let sit until cool. Make sure to use the pasteurized honey (which is honey that is sold in most grocery stores) and not raw honey.

As to what to make him to eat is whatever he will eat. When little ones are sick that is a good time to pamper them and let them eat what appeals to them. My boys lived off chicken nuggets. Also yogurt, just plain vanilla yogurt.

The absolute best insurance is a diet of REAL, traditional foods. If your great grandmother wouldn't recognize it, it's probably not a real food. Include lots of real food probiotics (make your own yogurt, kefir, lacto-fermented veggies). Sunshine for vitamin D. Herbs can be very effective, as well.

When my kids are sick and puking we always go to toast with no butter, just a little grape or apple jelly. Also the eggo waffles same thing no butter just a little jelly. Ritz, saltine, plain crackers. Then I also let them have pretzels and apple sauce.

Then I slowly after a day or to of feeling better reintroduce regular foods in smaller quantities. Just to make sure their tummies are up for it.

All three of my foster children were drug exposed babies and as such are prone to getting sick. We had at least one sickie every week if not all of them (1,2, and 7 yo). As far as diet goes, we use Jena's BRAT diet below. However, we stumbled upon Sambucus and this has really blessed us. We now average about one or two sickies a month. There are a bunch of different versions of the stuff, but we found that Nature's Answer brand kids sambucus (check swanson.com for this...cheapest place I can find viatmins online) works best for our kids.

If he gets sick alot I would start giving him probiotics everyday (I give them to my kids) and have their vitamin D levels checked. If he has the right levels of vitamin D, he wont get sick anymore. If his levels are too low, you need to start giving him Vitamin D3. You can learn more about this by going to Dr. Tenpenny's fan page on facebook.