There is good reason to avoid treating every little fever. A fever does a job for the body. It is part of the immune response, creating an unfavourable environment for germs. Germs like 98.6, fevers up to about 101 in infants, arguably 102, shouldn't be treated with antipyretics such as Tylenol (acetaminophen) or Motrin (ibuprofen) in the absence of suspected pain.

Such medications can actually harm the liver with chronic use, Tylenol specifically (and Motrin isn't recommended for infants less than four months of age). So using them judiciously is a good idea.

That said, I DO treat when I suspect pain in my child. There is no reason to leave a child, especially an infant who cannot communicate well, in pain. I've seen research to indicate that pain can even prolong an illness (although at my fingertips I do not have the references to back that assertion up... maybe I'll post a follow up when I have to time to do the literature search).

Finally, on rare occasion I have used Tylenol and Motrin synchronously, and that was when a fever reached dangerous levels, and wouldn't respond well to only one medication. Such was the case when my first daughter had a febrile seizure. Her temperature rapidly reached 105.7 and was difficult to break. We treated her for a couple of days with both medications to try and keep her under 103.

Final note, in a newborn, seek care if a fever exceeds 101 rectally. Some bloodwork to rule out serious infection may be warranted.

I don't mean the "goo-goo-ba-ba" kind of baby talk. I don't mean toddler-speak, either. I mean the preverbal communication that mom's get to know of their babies from birth. The slight variations in pitch in their cries that differentiate "I'm hungry" from "I'm tired", the posturing that means "I'm pooping now", and some even more subtle methods of communicating.

The above listed examples I consider sort of a "micro-speak" - it conveys a message about what's going on right now, something mom and dad need to do something about in the present. Then there's a "macro-speak", that communication which is a little more broad, not as urgent. In my experiences now with Chloe, the macro-speak is what tells me when she's sick, or getting sick.

When she had strep throat (following in the footsteps of the rest of the family) the only symptoms she outwardly exhibited was that she was waking at night suddenly. She didn't have a fever, she wasn't fussy, nothing. Yesterday I knew something was up as she refused to use the potty, preferring to pee in her diaper the minute I put it back on her, and refusing to nurse in the morning - then snacking all afternoon. This followed one episode of projectile vomiting first thing in the morning, so we could have attributed it to an upset stomach, but I knew that was not it. Sure enough, I'm awake now at 2:15 AM, (after being awake - right after I fell asleep - at 10 PM for half an hour, and 11:30 PM for over an hour) with a girl who's nose is totally occluded, doing the old saline and suction routine. In retrospect, she was probably even coming down with it the day before THAT even, as she took 3 naps, about 2 hours in length each. Then yesterday she only took short sporadic naps, only one 30 minute nap total in the afternoon. All behaviours very much unlike her.

The communication is there - too bad the language isn't one you can learn in a classroom!