Bad news for an Easter weekend!

Yesterday, Maia shouted: "Mummy, look at my hands!!!!" and yeap, 4 blisters on her right palm and immediately I knew that could be HFMD (Hand Foot Mouth Disease), with a dreadful feeling in my chest of course......the minute we reached home, I checked with their kindie's principal if anybody's been down with HFMD the past week....and YEAP! Her own little niece :(

I quickly reached for the torch light and checked both babes' mouths, and off we went to a chinese physician's clinic. Thank God we realized the infection early enough, Dr Lee said that his herbal medicines might be able to suppress the ulcers from 'popping'. FYI, Maia's mouth has got 5 (if not more) ulcers already but they are not reddish and painful YET (I can't tell whether those are painful or not coz she didn't complain till now! Strange, I know).....

So, out of the Dr's office, paid RM160, 5 bottles of herbal meds for both to be taken 3 hourly for the next 3 days or so. Dr said that as long as it's not EV71 virus or Coxsackie, it won't be life-threatening.

Today is the 2nd day both babes are on the medications, so far so good as nobody is complaining of sore ulcers nor developing fever *THANK GOD!*, but I do hope the ulcers will start disappearing tomorrow though....

On top of that, we learnt from a friend about this little green plant that people take for ulcers and many other sickness, called PEPEROMIA PELLUCIDA.

"软骨草" Chinese remedy to heal HFMD(Hand Foot Mouth Disease)
Name: Peperomia pellucida

QUOTED FROM SEVERAL WEBSITES:
"The leaves and stalk of pansit-pansitan (=Peperomia pellucida = 软骨草) are edible. It can be harvested, washed and eaten as fresh salad. Taken as a salad, pansit-pansitan helps relive rheumatic pains and gout. An infusion or decoction (boil 1 cup of leaves/stem in 2 cups of water) can also be made and taken orally - 1 cup in the morning and another cup in the evening.

For the herbal treatment of skin disorders like abscesses, pimples and boils, pound the leaves and/or the stalks and make a poultice (boil in water for a minute or two then pounded) then applied directly to the afflicted area. Likewise a decoction can be used as a rinse to treat skin disorders.

For headaches, heat a couple of leaves in hot water, bruise the surface and apply on the forehead. The decoction of leaves and stalks is also good for abdominal pains and kidney problems.
Like any herbal medicine it is not advisable to take any other medication in combination with any herbs. Consult with a medical practitioner knowledgeable in herbal medicine before any treatment."

Seen here (below), I mixed it with a little honey so that it's easier to coax the babes to take it.

But honestly, luckily it's not bitter to the taste, it smells FRESH, nice scent and has not much 'green' taste.....Maia had no problem drinking it! :D

"Description: Peperomia pellucida is an annual, shallow-rooted herb, usually growing to a height of about 15 to 45 cm. it is characterized by succulent stems, shiny, heart-shaped, fleshy leaves and tiny, dot-like seeds attached to several fruiting spikes. It has a mustard-like odor when crushed.Flowering year-round, the plant is found in various shaded, damp habitats all over Asia and the Americas. It grows in clumps, thriving in loose, humid soils and a tropical to subtropical climate.Peperomia pellucida has been used as a food item as well as a medicinal herb. Although mostly grown for its oriental foilage, the entire plant is edible, both cooked and raw. The analgesic properties of the plant seem to be related to its effect on prostaglandin synthesis. Anti-inflammatory, chemotherapeutic, and analgesic properties have been found in crude extracts of P. pellucida. It may have potential as a broad spectrum antibiotic, as demonstrated in tests against Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa , and Escherichia coli .Chloroform extracts from dried leaves of P. pellucida have been shown to exhibit antifungal activity against Trichophyton mentagrophytes."