# Gentian violet - "dangerous" ???



## naturegirl7 (Jan 27, 2005)

Okay, I finally caught on that I have a nasty case of thrush - and started GSE last night while trying to locate some Gentian violet.....

After calling over a dozen pharmacies, I finally one that carried Gentian Violet (the other weren't even willing to order it for me!) - only to be told by the pharmacist that it is dangerous to use for thrush. I tried explaining to him that it is a common treatment for thrush - but he kept telling me that it was alcohol based, and that he isn't sure the type of alcohol used, and that depending in the type - it can be very dangerous to put into baby's mouth. Strongly encouraged that I get my pediatricians ok before he would feel comfortable selling it to me.







: Yeah, my ped will insist on seeing DS - who has no symptoms - and then prescribing a antifungal cream for us, and then I have to go visit my own doc and get it for me too. Exactly what I don't want to do.

Is he just covering his own butt, or does the type of alcohol really make that much of a difference. I am not going to be making DS drink the darn stuff, just a quick swab - besides *I* am the one with the actually symptoms, not DS. I could probably just use it on myself and continue with the GSE for DS. Or call the healthfood store back and have them order some and wait until next Wed. for it to get here. BUt I was hoping to have this under control and on teh way to being resolved by this time next week.....







:

What is the truth about G. violet???







:


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## Jane (May 15, 2002)

Well, I have concerns about it because it is a petrochemical (coal tar dervived) and a potent cellular dye. But not the alcohol. I think it has it's place, as all treatments have potential side effects.
From Dr. Newman, http://www.bflrc.com/newman/breastfeeding/gentviol.htm"
"Please note: Gentian violet 1% in water also contains alcohol. Apparently some pharmacists are now dissolving it in glycerin, thus avoiding the use of alcohol. "


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## Jane (May 15, 2002)

One more thought - try the health food stores or suppliment stores instead of the pharmacy.


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## robin4kids (Jan 20, 2004)

I hate the stuff and i get very angry when people suggest it for me. the reason is, I get thrush non stop with each child i breastfeed. It does not stop me from breastfeed, through all the pain. I use something that i just disoved with #4 baby. It is called nipple ointment. It needs to be mixed by a real pharmacist. I would ask your OB about it, or look it up on the internet. It is the BEST.

GV turned my beautiful baby girl purple for 2 weeks, while i had cracked, bleeding, nipples. I had thrush up to my neck!!! It spead everywhere. My dd had never had a bottle so when we tried to give her one to give me a break, she just cried. The GV did not make my thrush worse, but it delayed me getting better.

Since using the nipple ointment i have never gotten the thrush back like that again. I still get thrush, but i keep it at bay, with the ointment.
Good Luck from someone who knows your pain!


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## Benji'sMom (Sep 14, 2004)

Read Dr. Newman's handout on Candida Protical, it has info on the amount of alcohol in GV, and a recipe for nipple ointment that the pharmacist can mix together:

http://kellymom.com/newman/c-candida_protocol.html


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## TurboClaudia (Nov 18, 2003)

we used gentian violet the first time we had thrush, and it cleared up our symptoms in about 4 days.

i started using it the second time we had thrush, and after 3 days, i was still having no relief from symptoms, so i switched to liquid citricidal grapefruit seed extract and my symptoms cleared up in 1.5 days! are you using the gse protocol from www.drjaygordon.com or something else? i think you are okay with continuing to use the gse and watching for relief of symptoms in the next couple of days. if you don't find relief, go to that pharmacy or find a health food store and go pick up the gentian violet and use the protocol from www.drjacknewman.com to treat it. if a pharmacist asks you about it, tell them it was recommended by your lactation consultant AND your physician.

eta: i was also concerned about the "for external use only" label on the gentian violet bottle, but our LC told us the amount in there pretty much evaporates in the air on its way to baby's mouth so baby really gets very, very, very little in there system at all.

~claudia


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## maxwill129 (May 12, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *robin4kids*
I hate the stuff and i get very angry when people suggest it for me. the reason is, I get thrush non stop with each child i breastfeed. It does not stop me from breastfeed, through all the pain. I use something that i just disoved with #4 baby. It is called nipple ointment. It needs to be mixed by a real pharmacist. I would ask your OB about it, or look it up on the internet. It is the BEST.

GV turned my beautiful baby girl purple for 2 weeks, while i had cracked, bleeding, nipples. I had thrush up to my neck!!! It spead everywhere. My dd had never had a bottle so when we tried to give her one to give me a break, she just cried. The GV did not make my thrush worse, but it delayed me getting better.

Since using the nipple ointment i have never gotten the thrush back like that again. I still get thrush, but i keep it at bay, with the ointment.
Good Luck from someone who knows your pain!

Wow. I could have written that post! We did GV and it didn't work and then did the nipple ointment and it worked great!

Shannon


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## Jane (May 15, 2002)

How much did y'all pay for the ointment? Just curious.

I do know that there is mounting evidence that some "yeast" infections are really bacterial in origin - staph, most commonly. I think there is real value in not assuming every nipple pain is yeast and trying other remedies after several days of no-effect. After all, all the gentian violet in the world isn't gonna help someone with raynaud's syndrome pain.


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## naturegirl7 (Jan 27, 2005)

thank you so much!!!
I picked up a bottle - just in case the GSE doens't work....I will take a look at those links and the ointment. I don't like the external use only label, and now knowing that it is made of tar - yikes!! maybe as a last resort....

thanks!!


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## Maxine45 (Oct 29, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *naturegirl7*
thank you so much!!!
I picked up a bottle - just in case the GSE doens't work....I will take a look at those links and the ointment. I don't like the external use only label, and now knowing that it is made of tar - yikes!! maybe as a last resort....

thanks!!

good for you.
I did a stupid thing, I used it once and *then* read the label. I freaked out and called poison control. as I cried they assured me I had not hurt my baby but I won't be using it again, just because.


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## Still_Snarky (Dec 23, 2004)

We've had thrush a couple times and used GV sucessfully. I diluted it about 3:1. The ped/homeopath, midwife and doula all recommended it.


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## whoamama (Jan 5, 2006)

GV did not work for me, we had to use prescription antifungal stuff both topically and orally to get rid of the thrush. While the GV did no harm, it stained the kids faces for a while, and permanently stained some bedding/clothes.


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## LoveMyLil'B (Dec 19, 2004)

GV worked for me! Someone asked how much it was? I think I paid less than $2 for a bottle, after shelling out $$$ for 3 different failed treatments! For me, the positives (being able to breastfeed my son without pain) outweighed the negatives (being in so much pain that I might want to wean) when I decided to use GV. I knew it was a suspected carcinogen, but I used it knowing I had tried other treatments without success, and thr GV was a last resort.


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## schreiberwriter (Aug 3, 2005)

I broke open a cap of acidophilus, wet my finger and put it in the mouth/cheek/tounge of my ds. It cleared up fast and when it seemed it was coming back, I did it again and no more thrush!

At the same time I was putting Nystatin on me 3x a day (or less if I forgot).

Hard to know what worked.


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## CarolynnMarilynn (Jun 3, 2004)

Like most anti-fungals, GV doesn't get rid of all strains of yeast -- some are resistant to it, about 30%. Other antifungals, like Nystatin, are much more useless, with 80% of yeasts immune. That's why Jack Newman and others are going toward Grapefruit Seed Extract, as it works most effectively. However, as messy as GV is, it is cheap and will work maybe 70% of the time, so it can be worth trying before going to the big guns, or something more expensive.


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## MOM2ANSLEY (May 19, 2003)

Just watching, didn't know it was otc, thought you had to get a script.


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## justplainbecky (Jul 20, 2006)

I've used GV and it cleared our thrush up great. Also acidophilus caplets broken open and rubbed in the babies mouth, and me taking acidophilus worked great for us.


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## Stayathomemommy (Jun 7, 2002)

gv is over the counter, i find it in the mexican/spanish section, usually by the pharmacy but closer to the beauty products. worked for us many times, the baby doesnt drink it you just put a q.tips worth around their mouth and around your nipple.


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## saritabeth (Jun 25, 2004)

I had great luck with the GV. It cleared up ds in 4 days....after 3 weeks of nystatin which didn't seem to touch the thrush. I, however, was asymptomatic.

Good luck, thrush stinks!


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## courtenay_e (Sep 1, 2005)

Yup, I used is successfully on my own vaginal infections after a girlfriend had a recommendation from her family doc. It worked wonders. Then I was in Ireland (family there), and went into the pharmacy looking for some...yowzer! The pharmacist almost passed out that I was considering it! He asked me didn't I know it was a carcinogen, and they were not allowed to sell it, and that he was HIGHLY discouraging me from ever using it again, even when I got home! Sooo, I checked out the alternative measures and have had luck with them as well (GSE, especially). I agree that, if nothing else has worked, you're probably not using enough to really worry about the carcinogenic effects, but, well, better safe than sorry, you know?


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## LeosMama (Sep 6, 2005)

I've had very helpful pharmacists supply me with it. Worked great for us! Nystatin did exactly zilch on the thrush. I only applied it twice a day to myself and only once a day to DS, he would get it from my breast, too. It's very caustic so you don't want to overdo it.

I haven't heard of grapefruit seed extract. I will keep that in mind for next time (for there always seems to be a next time with b/fing and yeast for us!).


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