Hello!

Has anyone else had experiences with HFM? My son has it at the moment. It’s now been 7 days and he’s hardly eaten anything because his mouth is full of ulcers. Hoping to hear about other mums experiences and advice for making my 2 year old more comfortable. Thanks


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  • Yes my youngest had it.
    In regards to food;
    Suck on ice pops or ice chips.
    Eat ice cream or sherbet.
    Drink cold beverages, such as milk or ice water.
    Avoid acidic foods and beverages, such as citrus fruits, fruit drinks and soda.
    Avoid salty or spicy foods.
    Eat soft foods that don’t require much chewing.
    In general;
    If your child is in pain or is uncomfortable, give them pain relief, such as paracetamol or ibuprofen. Do not give aspirin. See our fact sheet Pain relief for children.
    Give your child frequent sips of water or an oral rehydration solution to stop them becoming dehydrated.
    Leave blisters to dry naturally. Do not pierce or squeeze them.
    If your child is unwell with a fever and a skin rash (small bright red spots or purple spots or unexplained bruises) that does not turn to skin-colour (blanch) when you press on it, this may be a sign of meningococcal infection
    See the Gp when you have concerned and to have it cleared as it’s contagious.


  • YES! But only a mild case so didn’t have too many problems – just panadol for the pain and flu like symptoms.


  • yes it’s horrible!
    We made water icy poles, they loved them. Hydrolyte icy poles are great if you’re worried about fluid intake or energy levels. Yogurt, custard, jelly. Anything they’ll eat or drink really. Don’t worry about nutrition for the time being, if all they want is ice cream then so be it!
    We used bonjella mouth ulcer get from the supermarket to rub on ulcers too. And panadol for pain relief.


  • There’s not a lot you can do, just comfort them:)


  • we are lucky but I do hear of it a lot these days


  • yep mine have had it it will pass


  • My 2 girls and husband had it. We were told there was no treatment as such and to give panadol for pain and discomfort. I think that spicy and acidic foods may have made it hurt more. I hope he has now recovered


  • i haven’t had experience with this – i hope its gotten better


  • My best friends daughter got it, poor little girl. Similar to others try to keep fluids up. He little girl lived on smoothies for a week


  • Just soft foods, ice cream, yogurt, jelly & icy poles. Try and keep his fluids up and encourage him to sleep. You just have to get through it!


  • My two little ones had this and all I can say is give them plenty of yogurts and ice cream.


  • My daughter has this at the moment. We were told to stay away from anything which is acidy like fruit juice and we found last night strawberries. Ice cream and milk is what my doctor suggested.


  • This sounds awful, poor boy. Make sure you give him soft food and something that won’t sting his mouth. maybe custard would be good or maybe even milk drinks. If he has these then at least he has something in his belly.


  • Hand foot mouth is horrible and you feel so bad because there is really nothing you can do for them! Lots of cold yoghurt, jelly, ice cream etc. But if you are going to try liquids, just keep in mind that sucking can be very painful on the ulcers too.


  • This sounds horrible, i hope something has helped


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