Hello wise teachers! This is a much more general question, but I am wondering, in your experience, if you have ever successfully been able to lower and/or support a fever from cold viruses in children with herbs? I have been trying to do this for the last 10 years as a parent and can never successfully do it and I don't really understand why, and its one area of herbalism that leaves me so discouraged. I feel like I have a pretty good understanding of diaphoretic and febrifuge herbs, but they never do anything when one of my kids has a fever. I try to pick herbs that are energetically supportive for what is going on with them at the time and them as an individual, but they just continue to fry, and my son (now 10) has a natural tendency to have really high fevers with just about every cold he gets, and I reluctantly end up having to give him an OTC fever reducer. I want to be able to feel like I can successfully support them through illness with herbs alone and I never feel like I can. Ive tried in the forms of teas, tinctures and herbal popsicles and jellos, herbal baths, foot baths, ACV wraps on the feet, etc.. I should also note, the majority of my training up until this point has been in wise woman tradition and Appalachian folk herbalism, so maybe im missing some puzzle pieces there. Thanks in advance!

David said: Yes I have used herbs to lower fevers, although they do not always work. I think the key is fever management, if the child is hot and throwing off the covers with a fever of 102 or less, then you use febrifuge herbs (Meadowsweet, Black Birch, Huang Qin, Honeysuckle Flower, Mulberry Bark ), if they are cold, chilled with a fever of 102 or less then you use diaphoretics (Yarrow, Pleurisy root, Saffron, Cayenne in Lemonade, Safflower). If the fever is over 102.5 and they are still cold, then the body wants the fever to go higher and that is when you use OTC antipyretics. In addition to herbs, cool baths, cold foot baths, cold compresses can help, here is a Naturopathic guide to hydrotherapy for fever management https://sa1s3.patientpop.com/assets/docs/158511.pdf

thank you so much! after I wrote today, I actually ended up having some success today for the first time (my youngest has a cold with a fever, and is hot. she drank some meadowsweet tea with lemon balm (because she likes lemon balm), and I used some elderflower and meadowsweet as a forehead compress and foot bath and she's down to 100 now from 102.4 this morning). after reading your response, I was happy to see I was correct with my choice of meadowsweet here the only link that was active was the naturopathic guide to fever management . the Chinese herbs for fevers and Aviva's articles were missing. id love to read those too if they are available. thanks!

ok here they are (the first from Aviva isn't there anymore, sorry), but this one's great as well: https://avivaromm.com/natural-fever-treatments/ https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphar.2021.583279/full