{"id":118686,"date":"2025-11-06T13:51:09","date_gmt":"2025-11-06T13:51:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/118686\/"},"modified":"2025-11-06T13:51:09","modified_gmt":"2025-11-06T13:51:09","slug":"should-you-treat-a-kids-fever-what-doctors-say-as-trump-tylenol-comments-spark-flu-season-debate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/118686\/","title":{"rendered":"Should you treat a kid’s fever? What doctors say as Trump Tylenol comments spark flu season debate"},"content":{"rendered":"

Treating childhood fevers has long been a source of parental angst. Do you feed a fever or starve it? (Spoiler: Kids who are sick need to eat<\/a> and drink enough to keep their bodies hydrated and well-nourished, doctors say.)<\/p>\n

But in September, when President Donald Trump told pregnant women to \u201cfight like hell <\/a>not to take\u201d Tylenol over unfounded claims it was linked to autism, the ongoing debate over what\u2019s long been considered a standard of care for kids\u2019 fevers bubbled up again. <\/p>\n

\u201cA friend\u2019s baby (7 months) was running a 101 fever on Friday night and she texted me, \u2018of course now I\u2019m scared to give him Tylenol,\u2019\u201d one Reddit user posted<\/a> recently. <\/p>\n

A person identifying as a health care worker posted in a different Reddit thread<\/a> last month that a patient \u201cbrought their infant in with 103 fever and said they were too afraid to give acetaminophen.\u201d<\/p>\n

The president, who has no medical training, said multiple times that pregnant women and their children should \u201ctough it out\u201d instead of taking the pain reliever.<\/p>\n

Acetaminophen is the generic name for Tylenol and is an ingredient in a variety of medications. There is no credible data, experts say, showing the fever-reducer isn\u2019t safe when it\u2019s used correctly. The American Academy of Pediatrics wrote last week that studies don\u2019t find a \u201ccausal link\u201d between acetaminophen and autism in children or during pregnancy. \u201cMisleading claims that the medicine is not safe and is linked to increased rates of autism send a confusing, dangerous message to parents and expectant parents,\u201d the group wrote<\/a>. <\/p>\n

What\u2019s the point of a fever?<\/p>\n

When a new and potentially harmful germ invades our immune system, the body reacts by raising its core temperature. Viruses and bacteria tend not to thrive in warm environments.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s not necessarily a bad thing \u2014 within reason, said Dr. Molly O\u2019Shea, a pediatrician in Michigan and spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics.<\/p>\n

\u201cFever has value in fighting infection,\u201d she said. \u201cBut there is a tipping point where that value is lost.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s when the child is so uncomfortable that they don\u2019t want to eat or drink. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s when reducing the temperature makes sense,\u201d she said. \u201cMore harm may come from dehydration.\u201d<\/p>\n

Is a high fever always dangerous?<\/p>\n

When Seth Creech caught the flu during the 2009 H1N1 pandemic, age 6 at the time, his fever soared to 106 degrees Fahrenheit. <\/p>\n

\"SethSeth Creech in 2009 at age 6. A bout with H1N1 sent his fever soaring to 106 degrees. Courtesy of Buddy Creech<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a frighteningly high temperature that would send most parents into a panic. <\/p>\n

Seth\u2019s father, Dr. Buddy Creech, a professor of pediatric diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee, had a different view. <\/p>\n

\u201cAs a pediatrician, I knew that 106 wasn\u2019t going to hurt him,\u201d he said. \u201cIn a normal, healthy child, the body is really well calibrated to keep that temperature in a range that\u2019s not going to be harmful to the child. That\u2019s important for parents to realize.\u201d<\/p>\n

What was concerning, Creech said, was how his son was acting while sick. \u201cHe looked terrible,\u201d he said. \u201cHis eyes were glassy. He didn\u2019t want to move.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fever-reducing medications like acetaminophen and ibuprofen brought Seth\u2019s fever down to about 101 degrees. \u201cHe was totally fine at that point,\u201d Creech said. \u201cHe was gold, playing Legos, video games.\u201d <\/p>\n

Seth Creech recovered and is now a 22-year-old college senior.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the child looks well and is feeling fine, is playful and is active, you really don\u2019t have to do anything,\u201d Buddy Creech said. \u201cYou can ride that out in part to see how they\u2019re doing and to let the fever increase the pressure on the germ to die.\u201d<\/p>\n

O\u2019Shea supported the stance that a child\u2019s behavior is key in determining how to react to high temperatures. Signs to treat fevers include being unusually sleepy, cranky and refusing food and drinks.<\/p>\n

Still, the AAP recommends calling the pediatrician for advice when a child\u2019s fever reaches 104 degrees.<\/p>\n

The threshold for babies younger than 3 months old is much lower, according to the group, at 100.4 degrees.<\/p>\n

Creech said there\u2019s no evidence that giving kids Tylenol or other medicines to ease their pain or fevers would prolong their illness.<\/p>\n

\u201cParents should feel very safe giving their kids Tylenol when they need it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Treating childhood fevers has long been a source of parental angst. Do you feed a fever or starve…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":118687,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[163,85,46,482],"class_list":{"0":"post-118686","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-medication","8":"tag-health","9":"tag-il","10":"tag-israel","11":"tag-medication"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118686","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=118686"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118686\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/118687"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=118686"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=118686"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=118686"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}