Are Herbal Supplements OK for Kids?

Are Herbal Supplements OK for Kids?

Some Might Help, but Questions Remain By Miranda Hitti
WebMD Medical News Reviewed By Brunilda Nazario, MD
on Tuesday, March 08, 2005

Sifting Through the Evidence

The researchers pored over herbal medicine studies done from 1960-2003. Here's what they found:

• Andrographis paniculata, a traditional Chinese and Indian medicine, may help prevent and treat kids' upper respiratory infections, such as the common cold. In the small study, 107 kids took a placebo or 200 mg of the herbal extract daily. After three months, the extract users had significantly fewer colds.
• Cranberry cocktail juice didn't help avoid urinary tract infections in children at risk for bladder infections.
• Echinacea may cut the length and severity of a child's cold. In that study, kids took 2.5 to 5 milliliters of echinacea two or three times daily, depending on their age, with few side effects.

But that study didn't compare echinacea with a placebo. Another larger study comparing the herbal extract to a placebo showed that echinacea didn't help kids' upper respiratory symptoms. However, its use was associated with an increased risk of rash compared with a placebo.

• Evening primrose oil may have some benefit for kids with dermatitis, a skin disorder. Studies comparing its use with a placebo show that the treatment may have some benefit in children.
• Garlic was no help as a cholesterol-lowering agent in children with a genetic predisposition to abnormally high bad 'LDL' cholesterol. In a small study of 30 kids with a family history of high cholesterol, garlic had no effect on blood cholesterol or other blood markers for heart disease risk.
• Ivy leaf extracts are used to treat upper respiratory infections and cough. In one study, it improved breathing in 24 kids with asthma who took the product for three to four weeks. In another study, cough tablets containing 65 milligrams of dried ivy leaf cut kids' coughs by 92%.
• Valerian root extract may help sleep problems in children with intellectual deficits. That study had only five participants, all of whom were boys aged 7-14 years with intellectual deficits. The children had varying degrees of mental deficits, along with conditions such as epilepsy or ADHD, and different sleep problems. They took one dose of valerian or a placebo nightly for two weeks. The valerian takers got to sleep quicker and slept better and longer than those taking the placebo.

No information was available on chamomile, feverfew, ginger, gingko, or products with a combination of herbs.

The study was conducted by researchers including Gail Mahady, PhD, of the University of Illinois' College of Pharmacy. Their report appears in the March edition of The Journal of Pediatrics.

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SOURCES: Hrastinger, A. The Journal of Pediatrics, March 2005; vol 146: pp 311-317. News release, The Journal of Pediatrics.