Along with the joyous experience of motherhood and breastfeeding, comes the traumatic experiences of sore nipples and painful thrush in new mothers. To make things worse, thrush is transmitted from mother to baby and vice versa. This only indicates that both the mother and the baby should be treated for thrush to break the vicious cycle.

Thrush is nothing but a yeast infection caused by Candida albicans and generally affects the mothers on her nipples. Numerous reasons cause thrush in both mothers and babies. However, there are several remedies to tackle thrush in an effective manner.

Read More: 11 Home Remedies To Treat Thrush In Baby Tongue

Home Remedies to Treat Nipple Thrush

There are several over the counter treatment options available for thrush. But these medication can cause other side effects that are not safe for you and the baby. The good news is that there is an easy fix for this. There are many natural remedies to treat nipple thrush effectively. Some of them are:

Read More: 5 Thrush Symptoms in Mom

1} Bicarb soda and vinegar

Vinegar and bicarb soda are wonderful ingredients that have numerous uses. They are one of the excellent remedies for nipple thrush. All you need to do is add a few drops of bicarb soda and vinegar on to your nipples and allow for few hours. Do this immediately after a feed so that you can wash it off before the next feed.

2} Wear loose undergarments

Keeping your breast aired will help it stay dry and clean. It is ideal to wear loose undergarments and spend more time in sunlight. Yeast loves dark and damp places to thrive making the environment unfavourable.

3} Coconut Oil

Coconut oil is used to treat various infections and is a great remedy to reduce thrush in nipples. Use virgin coconut oil in your cooking or simply apply pure coconut oil on your nipple after every feed and rinse before the next feed. You can also mix bicarb soda and coconut oil to make a paste and apply it on your nipples.

4} Probiotics

Good bacteria is extremely important to fight bad bacteria and maintain a healthy immune system. Probiotics are rich in good bacteria that maintain a healthy gut and prevent yeast infections. Good sources of probiotics include kefir, yoghurt and cheese.

5} Grapefruit Seed Extract

Known to be one of the best remedies for treating thrush, grapefruit seed extract can be safely used on mother’s nipples without the worry of any side effects. This extract contains the active ingredient “citricidal” and comes in either capsules or tablets. Taking 2 tablets of 125mg each about 3 to 4 times a day effectively helps in eliminating thrush on the nipples.

6} Good Water Filtration System

Although not directly related to thrush, clean water plays a major role in maintaining a healthy immune system. Chemical additives and pollutants in water are harmful to good bacteria and weaken the immune system making it prone to bacterial and yeast infections. Hence drinking clean and hygienic water is important for a healthy immune system. Hence, get your water filtration system checked regularly to ensure you are drinking clean water.

7} Cinnamon

Cinnamon is a yummy food additive that can also cure thrush. It possesses anti-fungal properties that help fight yeast infections and prevent it from spreading to your baby.

8} Green leafy vegetables

Green leafy vegetable are rich in vitamins and minerals. They provide the body with essential nutrients which help the body make its own probiotics and good bacteria. Ensure to include plenty of green veggies to your daily diet.

9} Garlic

Fresh garlic is considered to be the best while treating nipple thrush. The pungent smell of the garlic is a reaction that emits anti-fungal and antibiotic properties. You can either include garlic into all your dishes or make a paste of it and apply it on the nipple area after every breastfeed.

10} Anti-fungal creams

As prescribed by your doctor anti-fungal creams like myconazole, clotrimazole, and mycostatin are effective topical applications that help get rid of yeast infections on the nipples.

11} Gentian Violet

If yeast infection is persistent even after applying the remedies mentioned above, then upon consultation of your doctor you can apply 0.25 to 0.5% solution of gentian violet on your nipples after every feed. Regularly apply this solution for about a week to get best results.

Thrush can be persistent. Hence make sure you take the full dose of the prescription given by the doctor. Keep trying the above mentioned home remedies along with the standard treatment to get quicker and effective results. It is important you also notice if your baby is contracting it and take immediate action to treat thrush in your baby. Remember it is important to break the vicious cycle.

Read More: 5 Signs of Thrush in Babies

References

http://www.webmd.com/oral-health/tc/thrush-topic-overview#1

http://www.medicinenet.com/thrush/article.htm