A sudden temperature contrast triggers a seizure or even collapses the cardiovascular system
One of the first things you may do as a parent if your child is suffering from a high fever is to reach for a cold flannel for an obvious fix. Cold-water sponging, as it is popularly known, is believed to be able to naturally lower your body temperature. However, doctors are advising against it, as it can sometimes make the fever worse or trigger fatal complications.
The warning comes after Dr. Christabel Akinola shared an experience about a mother who sponged her child with cold water after he was burning up. As she tried to cool down his chest, back, neck, and head, the doctor said he began shivering violently and stopped moving—he was then rushed to the hospital.
“Do you know that you should not use cold water for tepid sponging during a fever?” Dr. Akinola said on his Instagram channel.
Why does a cold sponge worsen the fever and symptoms?
According to Dr. Akinola, a sudden temperature contrast triggers a seizure or even collapses the cardiovascular system. It happens because applying something cold to the skin leads your blood vessels near the surface to constrict—also known as vasoconstriction, which traps heat in deeper tissues.
While effective in rapidly lowering temperature in some cases, it certainly does not provide long-term relief and may be uncomfortable—sometimes even leading to life-threatening issues like seizures and fainting.
Experts say high stress levels in the body during fever also impact the heart. Cooling the skin too quickly also pulls blood away from the heart, causing instability, shock, hypothermia, and even the heart to collapse. Rapid cooling can also confuse the body’s thermal regulation system. According to experts, younger children are particularly vulnerable, as their bodies are less able to regulate sudden changes in temperature.
How to naturally lower fever in kids?
Doctors advise that instead of using a cold sponge, it is better to keep the child cool and not cold. For that, you may:
Drink fluids
Since fever makes your body much warmer than usual, causing your body to sweat to cool down, it can lead to fluid loss and dehydration. Try to make the children drink as much as you can to replenish lost fluids. It doesn’t have to be just water, either. Any of the following can provide hydration:
- Fresh fruit juice
- Sports drinks
- Broths
- Soups
Apart from that, you can also try to make them:
- Sit in a bath of lukewarm water, which feels cool when you have a fever
- Give yourself a sponge bath with lukewarm water
- Wear light pajamas or clothing
- Try to avoid using too many extra blankets when you have chills
- Drink plenty of cool or room-temperature water
- Eat popsicles
- Use a fan to keep air circulating
Let the fever run its course
According to doctors, it is sometimes important to let a fever run its course, as it is a natural and important part of your body’s immune response. When your body detects an infection, it raises its internal temperature because many bacteria and viruses cannot survive at higher temperatures.
It works as a defence mechanism, helping your body fight off infection more effectively. Automatically suppressing every fever sometimes prolongs illness by interfering with this natural response.
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