Paraffin boots for children at home: how to make, indications, contraindications, reviews

Unfortunately, today many more children are born with various health problems than at the end of the last century.

Already at birth, doctors stun the young mother with the news that her baby has physical health problems. Even though sometimes they are frivolous, but mom has already screwed herself up so much that you wouldn’t wish it on your enemy.

A huge proportion of these children are children with problems of the musculoskeletal system, who have strong tone in the legs or arms. Not to mention those children whom doctors give a terrible diagnosis - cerebral palsy (cerebral palsy) with paresis of various types, often with increased tone.

It is not always possible to undergo physical treatment in a medical institution (queues, paid services, etc.), so we will learn how to make paraffin boots for children at home.

What is special about paraffin therapy?

Today, paraffin therapy (treatment using paraffin) is actively prescribed by orthopedic doctors who are adherents of traditional medicine, but do not reject popular recommendations.

In combination with medications and physiotherapy carried out by specialists, home paraffin therapy works wonders, bringing not only relief to the little patient, but also the opportunity to get rid of the problem forever.

Paraffin therapy - the OBS method (“one grandmother said”) or the “grandmother’s” method, tested on many generations of children, is still actively used today in the treatment of small patients at home with varying severity of diseases of the musculoskeletal system, including cerebral palsy.

The main healers who use paraffin therapy are the parents of the baby who requires immediate treatment.

In addition to paraffin boots, they also make paraffin mittens and warming compresses (for example, for bronchitis and ARVI WITHOUT raising the TEMPERATURE). It all depends on what is bothering the baby.

The main properties of paraffin that allow it to be used for treatment:

• latent heat, that is, compression effect;
• very low thermal conductivity.

Contraindications

Paraffin for children (ozokerite) is not used

1. If there is a rash or damage on the area of ​​skin where it is supposed to be applied.
2. In the acute period, in the first 3 days from the onset of the disease or after injury, at elevated body temperature, if there is suppuration.
3. For disorders of thermal sensitivity of the skin.

Paraffin (ozokerite) is used in children in the form of applications or in the form of paraffin boots (mittens). If a child is being treated in a hospital or sanatorium, warming with paraffin is carried out in a physiotherapy room. If the child is treated on an outpatient basis, it is preferable to carry out the procedure at home. Since, after it, it is recommended to dress the heated area warmly (wrap it up). And going outside after warming up is not advisable.

How to prepare paraffin for children at home

Because The procedure for warming up with paraffin is very simple; parents do not encounter any difficulties.

Paraffin and ozokerite are sold in pharmacies. Paraffin looks like melted and frozen white candles. Ozokerite has a dark brown, almost black color. It is not convenient to use cosmetic paraffin for applications, because... it contains petroleum jelly and other components which make it less plastic.

Paraffin (ozokerite) or a mixture of paraffin and ozokerite in a 1:1 ratio is melted in a water bath. Pour some water into a larger saucepan and place it on the fire. Paraffin (ozokerite) is immersed in another pan (smaller). And then the pan with paraffin is placed in the first pan. So that the bottom of the first and second pans do not touch each other. To do this, you can put a cloth or plank on the bottom of a large pan.

A small pan with paraffin must be covered with a lid. When the water in the large pan boils, the paraffin (ozokerite) in the small pan will begin to melt. It is necessary that all the paraffin melts to a liquid state. It is recommended to stir it periodically with a wooden stick and, at the same time, check whether it has completely melted or not.

When all the paraffin has melted, you need to take a baking sheet and lay cellophane or oilcloth on it. And then pour melted paraffin (ozokerite) onto the cellophane. A layer 1-1.5 cm thick is required . You need to wait until the paraffin (ozokerite) hardens but remains warm. And then separate the paraffin (ozokerite) from the oilcloth. Cut a piece of the required size with a knife. Check your temperature (the paraffin should be warm, but not scalding. And not cause any discomfort in the child). And apply paraffin (ozokerite) to the desired area of ​​the body. The paraffin is covered on top with cellophane or oilcloth, the size of which is 1.5 - 2 cm larger than the size of the paraffin cake. The child is covered with a blanket or warm diaper over the cellophane.

The duration of the procedure is 15-20 minutes. The number of procedures is 5-20. You can do it daily or every other day. It is recommended to do this before bed. After the procedure, wrap the child up and put him to bed. After the procedure, paraffin (ozokerite) can be folded into a bag and then used repeatedly.

Indications for paraffin therapy

One of the most common problems of the present time is congenital hypertonicity of the limbs. Moreover, all four limbs (legs and arms) and any one limb, both an arm and a leg, can be affected.

It is known that paraffin is an effective remedy for the treatment and prevention of many diseases in children:

• damage to the musculoskeletal system (dysplasia, hallux valgus, clubfoot, etc.);
• neuralgia;
• hypertonicity of the muscles of the arms and legs;
• bronchitis, ARVI without fever (in this case, the paraffin mixture is applied in the same way as a regular mustard plaster);
• with an inflammatory process without suppuration;
• consequences of injuries/bruises/sprains;
• spastic muscle paresis in newborns.

The paraffin mixture is applied only to the affected area.

First-time new parents should only do this procedure under the supervision of an experienced physical therapist.

Paraffin boots + massage at home, tested by trial and error.

Paraffin boots + massage at home (tested by trial and error) Very often, doctors prescribe paraffin boots and massage to a child with hypertonicity of the leg muscles. Indeed, this product greatly increases the effect of the massage if the wraps are done immediately before the massage. How to make paraffin boots correctly at home yourself? Very simple! But there are nuances...

We buy paraffin at the pharmacy (500g if the child is 4 months old). You can mix paraffin with ozokerite (1:2), the paraffin crumbles a lot. Some people add a spoonful of Vaseline, but I haven't tried it. Then we break the paraffin into large pieces and put it in an old saucepan, which from now on we will only use for preparing the paraffin mass (I use a baby food jar). The saucepan must be dry. Now we build a water bath - pour so much water into a saucepan of a larger diameter so that the saucepan with paraffin, immersed in this one, touches the surface of the water, or is slightly recessed in it. The smaller pan should not touch the bottom of the larger pan; it seems to hang, washed by water (I put a cloth folded in several layers on the bottom). We put this structure on the fire, bring the water to a boil (Make sure that drops of boiling water do not fall into the paraffin. When water hits the superheated paraffin, it instantly evaporates and captures paraffin particles, spraying them in the air, igniting, these particles create a column of fire. Then The same thing happens when you try to pour water on oil that is burning in a frying pan). Cover with a lid and wait until all the paraffin has melted. We wait 25-30 minutes. You cannot heat paraffin over an open fire, without a water bath, because, having reached a certain temperature, it begins to burn, emit a suffocating fume and can ignite. The pieces melted and turned into a homogeneous mass. Place medical oilcloth in a dry, shallow container (baking tray) (it is sold in pharmacies, thick, covered with fabric on the reverse side). Cellophane is absolutely not suitable - it will melt. Now carefully remove the saucepan with melted paraffin from the water bath, and carefully pour the paraffin into the oilcloth. The thickness of the layer is 1 - 2 cm. We wait until the paraffin cools down (40-45 degrees for children) and a dense cake forms. This is another 30 - 40 minutes. Be sure to cool at room temperature (because if the window or balcony is open, the inside may remain liquid). You cannot use semi-hardened paraffin - the crust will burst and the hot paraffin will burn the skin. Therefore, slowly try the top crust, only by trial will you be able to understand when the cake is ready, it should become dense, the inside should be evenly homogeneous. The temperature of the resulting substance should be higher than body temperature, but not burn it. (I applied it to the inside of my elbow, checked that it didn’t burn, but it should be tolerably hot). Cut the paraffin into layers of rectangular sized legs. We wrap the resulting rectangle with oilcloth around the leg (with paraffin directly to the body), more on the back and inner surface, bend it over the foot along the back surface, so that the toes are as straight as possible, bend it on the side, that is, a small space remains uncovered along the front surface of the leg and the back of the foot a little bit. We fix this structure with oilcloth, wrap it in a diaper and cover it with a blanket. The child should remain in this state for no more than 20 minutes. Start increasing from 10 minutes. The effect should be after removing the structure - droplets on the legs. Then everything worked out and you can start the massage. With hypertonicity of the legs, the posterior group of muscles is toned, so we give it a relaxing massage. But at the same time, the anterior muscle group is weakened and stretched, so we strengthen it. Also, the massage complex for hypertonicity of the legs includes stretching techniques for the Achilles tendon (since with hypertonicity it contracts strongly), and exercises for both the anterior and posterior muscle groups in order to enhance the effect of the massage. It's better for someone to show you how to do it at least once. Go to the physical office at the clinic, ask the nurse to tell you how to do it, how long it will take, maybe she will show you right there on patients or come to your home a couple of times (for money) and show you. This is also a treatment, although it seems harmless, so you need to consult a physiotherapist.

This is also important

1. After paraffin therapy, you should not go outside for a long time. About five hours.
2. You cannot bathe your child for five hours after warming up.
3. The temperature of hot paraffin should not be higher than 42 degrees. You can check it with your wrist - whether it burns or not.
4. If the child asks to drink during the procedure, this is normal and water should be given.
5. The paraffin boot/mitten/bath procedure can be performed daily.

Making paraffin boots

To make paraffin boots you need to take:

• 2 saucepans of different sizes for melting paraffin in a water bath,
• 1 jar of paraffin or ozokerite. It is allowed to mix the two components in a ratio of 1 to 1,
• a piece of gauze
• scissors,
• packaging film or polyethylene,
• long warm socks.

You should prepare wide and long layers of gauze that are folded in three or four. The paraffin is placed in a saucepan, the volume of which is smaller, water is filled into a large saucepan, and it is placed on low heat. Do not melt paraffin directly or in a microwave, as this may result in unexpected fireworks. You need to make sure that no water droplets get on the paraffin, otherwise it will start to “shoot”.

When the paraffin melts, you need to completely immerse the gauze in it so that it can soak well. Then, to make paraffin boots, the gauze needs to be removed, straightened and laid out on a plate or baking sheet to cool. Before you start applying fabric to the child’s leg, you need to do a test on the bend of the elbow to eliminate the possibility of skin burns. The fabric should not be too hot.

Gauze is wrapped around the required area, it is wrapped around it in several layers. If you need to make paraffin boots for the entire leg, then you should start with the foot - the toes, arch of the foot to the heel of the child are covered with one piece of gauze, then the next piece of gauze is applied to the lower leg. The knee is passed through, then the fabric is placed on the thigh - above the knee. The gauze must be wound tightly so that the fabric cannot slide off as the child moves.

The top of the paraffin boots is wrapped in a plastic bag or packaging film, due to which the paraffin will cool more slowly, and a warm sock is put on top. If the baby does not refuse to lie under a warm blanket for 10-20 minutes, then the legs can be covered with a blanket.

Effect on joints

Paraffin therapy for joints is a common treatment method in sanatoriums. This is due to its high heat capacity and low thermal conductivity. Paraffin melts at a temperature of 52 degrees. As a result of its application, the temperature of the treated joint increases by 2 degrees. The use of paraffin reduces the risk of burns, and the therapeutic effect is due to the ability to retain heat for a long time.

After applying paraffin to the skin, it instantly hardens, which leads to the formation of a kind of film that prevents the area from overheating. Inside the film there is a rather hot substance, and outside it is cooled and solid. Therapeutic paraffin gives the following results:

• Relieves swelling. This is achieved due to the generated, non-evaporating moisture that is absorbed into the skin. As a result, pores expand, intercellular space increases, moisture evaporates,
• Strengthens joints. Treatment implies the possibility of removing toxins formed as a result of exposure to pathogenic microorganisms and long-term use of medications,
• Pain relief
• Restoring joint mobility.