About worms in children

Thread worms can spread very easily among preschool kids,especially because these children are still not used to wash their hands beforeevery meal. So, if one child happens to have worms it is very likely that atleast some of his or her kindergarten friends will also have these.

Does Your Child Have the Symptoms?

Child infected with worms will suffer from extremely itchybottom. They will try to scratch their bottom every chance they get, so you may seethem trying to take off their nappies or clothes in order to get to the bottomand scratch some more. You may notice some strange walking, more frequent pees and they may even wet the bed at night.

For some, worms may be the cause of personality changes andyour peaceful loving and calm child might become irritated, frustrated, angry,argumentative, crying all the time and extremely uncomfortable. These kids oftencan’t sit or concentrate and they are certainly not cooperative.

If you notice these symptoms, look your child’s bottom. Ifyou see pink or red rash around genital area it may be worms. To confirm, keepthe room dark and use a torch light to look into exposed bottom and vagina (ingirls). You will notice worms coming out to lay eggs, which causes irritation anddiscomfort to your child.

Get Rid of the Worms

Collect the worms that have come out and throw them away. Thissimple process will surely ease the irritation and itchiness in your child. Applythick layer of Vaseline to genital area, to catch some of the remaining wormsthat will come out at nighttime. Make sure to wash all clothing, towels andlinen your child has used. Use hot water and dry the laundry on the sun or inthe dryer and do the same process for the rest of the family to avoid spreadingthe worms to anyone else.

Seek for advice from your pharmacist and choose suitable medication.There are liquids, chewable tablets or even some chocolate squares wormmedications. Whole family should use it on the day you have found the worms andagain a week later if someone got infested or re-infested in the meantime. Ask thepharmacist about the dose and age appropriateness of the medications.

Make sure to always have these medications at home, to beable to get some sleep after you have seen the worms. Inform your child’steacher so they would know and prevent spreading of the infestation.