Hives or urticaria affects babies and children as much as they do adults. In babies, this condition is mild and goes away on its own, so treating babies for this condition is all about making them as comfortable as possible.

Typically, it is identified by a number of bumps resembling mosquito bites that itch and swell up, due to their exposure to a particular allergen. For babies and infants under one year of age, it’s best to use natural treatment methods to ease them of the skin irritation.

Causes

There are several causes of hives in children. These are:

• Environment: When children are exposed to detergents, soaps, air fresheners, toys and new mattresses, they could react to them and this could result in the development of hives.
• Viral infection: Viral infection is a cause of hives, particularly when accompanied by fever, cough and cold. In such cases, hives lasts for three days.
• Medications: Antibiotics, painkillers and NSAIDs are known to cause hives.
• Food: Gluten intolerance as also food dye intolerance lead to hives among children. If the food in question is peanuts, then the child should be taken to a food allergist. Hives from food is usually treated in six hours.
• Sunlight: Some children are allergic to the sun, a condition known as solar urticaria. Such children display symptoms like burning, itching and rash within a few minutes of being exposed to the sun. Hives result as an over-reaction of the child’s immune system to sunlight.

Treatment

Here are a few ways of treating your baby of hives:

• Think about any changes you’ve brought in your baby’s routine in the last 24 hours that could have brought about hives in him. This could be medication, allergies to certain foods, insect bites or just being overly hot.
• From all the causes that you might zero down on, remove all the possible causes and stop using soaps or lotions that you’ve just started him on. If you nurse your baby and have just added something new to your diet, it’s time now to throw it out of your diet.
• Reduce the itching, your baby experiences by dabbing the welts with calamine lotion.
• Dress your baby in cotton clothes till he is absolutely relieved of hives.

Hives in children: Hives is common among children. It occurs as a reaction to foods, medication, insect bites or latex. Though hives usually go away within just a few days, yet others may be chronic and go on for weeks or even longer. They are red bumps that itch the child a lot. Sometimes, some bumps can merge to form one red patch. There are several ways of treating hives in children, such as:

Medication

1. An antihistamine usually does children with hives wonders. It blocks the histamine that brings about allergies and relieves skin inflammation and itching. Your child may sleep a lot with this medication as it has a sedative effect.
2. Give your child histamine or H-2 blockers in the form of an injection or oral medicine. However, take care that your child may suffer headaches or digestive problems as side-effects.
3. Your doctor may prescribe a topical corticosteroid to get rid of your child’s hives.
4. Your doctor might prescribe immune system suppressants. If your child suffers from chronic hives and doesn’t improve with other treatments, your doctor might prescribe drugs that have a negative impact on his immune system. These suppressants relieve chronic hives.

7 Must Know Home Remedies for Hives in Children

1. Warm Water: Wash off the allergens from your child’s body with soap and warm water. If your child has hives on one side of his body, wash off the allergen using soap and water to ease the itchy hives.
2. Calamine: To treat your child’s itch, cover his welts with calamine lotion or a solution of baking soda and water.
3. Ice Packs: Give him a cool water bath for a few minutes. Then, apply a cold pack on his bumps.
4. Aloe Vera: One of the most natural remedies for hives in children is to apply aloe vera to their skin. Aloe vera’s anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties help relieve the child of pain, redness and the itching sensation. To use it, cut an aloe leaf-lengthways and squeeze the gel out of it. Rub it on the affected parts of the child’s body so that it cools down and eases him of pain and itching. It is known to be a superb remedy for hives and is perfectly safe for use on children.
5. Green tea: Everyone knows that green tea has many health benefits, but perhaps few people know that it can be treatment for hives too. The fact is that green tea is abundant in antioxidants like flavonoids and polyphenols that can improve your child’s immune system. Besides, its anti-histamine and anti-inflammatory properties are instrumental in treating hives. By giving your child 2-3 cups of tea a day or apply the wet tea bags to the child’s scabs for quick relief.
6. Cold compress: By applying a cold compress on the itchy skin of your child, his blood vessels will shrink and prevent histamine release which gets rid of the itch and accompanying pain and swelling. By wrapping a few ice cubes in a washcloth and applying it onto your child’s irritated skin several times a day, he can benefit hugely from this.
7. Oatmeal: The unique and exceptional anti-inflammatory and soothing properties of oatmeal help children recover from oatmeal when used in combination with baking soda.Add two cups of oatmeal and a cup of baking soda to your child’s bath and let him soak in it for 30 minutes each day until his scabs heal.

Conclusion

As a parent, you are now aware of hives among children. Don’t forget to take your child to the nearest hospital’s emergency room if your child has hives.