What to Do About a Fever (High Temperature) (for Parents) (2024)

FAQs

What to Do About a Fever (High Temperature) (for Parents)? ›

Take paracetamol or ibuprofen in appropriate doses to help bring your temperature down. Drink plenty of fluids, particularly water. Avoid alcohol, tea and coffee as these drinks can cause slight dehydration. Sponge exposed skin with tepid water.

Take paracetamol or ibuprofen in appropriate doses to help bring your temperature down. Drink plenty of fluids, particularly water. Avoid alcohol, tea and coffee as these drinks can cause slight dehydration. Sponge exposed skin with tepid water.

Treating a fever

If your child has a fever, it's important to keep them hydrated by giving them plenty of cool water to drink. Babies should be given plenty of liquids, such as breast milk or formula. Even if your child isn't thirsty, try to get them to drink little and often to keep their fluid levels up.

Call your health care provider if your temperature is 103 F (39.4 C) or higher. Seek immediate medical attention if any of these signs or symptoms accompanies a fever: Severe headache. Rash.

If your child is 3 or older, visit the pediatric ER if the child's temperature is over 102 degrees for two or more days. You should also seek emergency care if the fever is accompanied by any of these symptoms: Abdominal pain. Difficulty breathing or swallowing.

Fever is a sign that the body is combating an infection. It helps kill bacteria and viruses. It also boosts production of infection-fighting white blood cells. There's generally no need to worry about bringing a fever down unless it's causing your child discomfort.

Fevers are a sign that your child's body is fighting an infection and the best way to treat your child is to keep them hydrated and comfortable. Most children will get better on their own in 3 to 5 days. Fevers help the body fight an infection and does not need to be treated all the time.

Does keeping wet cloth on forehead during fever? ›

When a person has fever, his body temperature becomes more than the normal body temperature. If we put strips of wet cloth on the forehead of a person suffering from high fever, the water evaporates taking heat from the body. Thus, moist strips will lower his body temperature.

Cortisol is closely linked to your immune system function. Cortisol is higher during the day, and these higher levels suppress your immune activity to a large degree. When cortisol levels go down at night, your immune system is more active in fighting illness or infection. This is why fevers spike at night.

A lukewarm bath, on the other hand, is gentle on the body and can bring down a high temperature almost immediately. To make a warm bath even more effective add a cup of apple cider vinegar to it. This is one of the most popular natural fever remedies and has been used for decades to treat fever in children.

Toddlers can take ibuprofen and acetaminophen, so you may want to consider dolling out a dose of Children's Motrin or Tylenol before bed to weaken the fever and reduce any aches and pains or general discomfort.

In general, call the doctor if your child is: younger than 3 months old with a rectal temperature of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher. 3 months or older with a temperature higher than 102.2°F (39°C) any age but has a health problem like cancer or sickle cell disease and has a fever.

Healthy adults should go to The Emergency Center immediately with a fever of 105˚F or higher. Also, any fever linked with these symptoms: Trouble breathing, swallowing or keeping fluids down.

However, fever is considered dangerous in adults when your body temperature is greater than 105.8˚F. A temperature that high can be damaging to body organs and particularly dangerous for someone with a heart or lung disorder. This is because fever can cause increased heart rate and breathing.