My baby has oral thrush what is it and how can I get rid of it?.

A Oral thrush is also known by the medical name oral candidiasis. It is caused by a type of fungus called candida which means white. If you look into your baby’s mouth you will actually see spots or patches of white which is why the fungus gets its name. Often when the patches are scrapped off you will see that the skin underneath is red and inflamed. It can be very sore for your baby to have oral thrush and you may have noticed that they may have gone off their feeds because of the soreness? If you have not already received a prescription from your GP to treat the thrush don’t worry you can either see your GP, health visitor or buy a treatment over the counter from your pharmacist. If you go to your pharmacist take your baby with you so they can look at her mouth.

Miconazole oral gel is recommended as first-line treatment in all children under 2 years: the dose is Use 2.5 ml twice a day (dose licensed from 4 months old) or 1 ml four times daily (off-licence dose) for 7 days.

It is not contagious but it is important to not reinfect your baby, so during treatment it is important to keep all dummies, mouth toys and feeding equipment sterilized. If you are breastfeeding you too may have thrush on your nipples (see the FAQ advice under the breastfeeding section on how to deal with this)

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