How to treat a runny nose in infants: tips

A runny nose in a newborn is accompanied by a burning sensation in the sinuses and congestion, dryness and headaches. Babies become lethargic, capricious and lose their appetite, because they have to breathe through their mouths. Most drugs are contraindicated in infants. Then how to alleviate the condition of the child? Consult with a pediatrician, find the causes of a cold and, together with the doctor, select a comprehensive treatment.

Diet for mother and baby

A sick baby cannot be force-fed, especially if the baby has a high fever. A hungry body quickly copes with viruses and microbes, because it does not have to spend energy on the digestion of food.

Sometimes the child wants to eat, but can not suck the breast because of nasal congestion.Mothers are recommended to decant and drink the baby milk from a spoon or bottle. Give as much food as the baby requires. In some cases, it is advisable to replace natural milk with fermented milk mixtures, which normalize the work of the digestive organs, because immunity begins with the intestines.

You can not cure a cold with vitamin complexes if they are not prescribed by a pediatrician. Mom breastfeeding should not eat more greens or citrus, dramatically change the diet. Experiments with vitamins and natural immunity enhancers end with rashes, diathesis and allergic rhinitis.

Ailing baby needs water. Plain, boiled, but in large quantities. A runny nose exhausts the baby’s body and leads to dehydration. Drinking plenty of water gives the body strength to fight and makes the infant feel better.

Important: A small child can be given tea or compote, if earlier he had already tried this drink and reacted normally to it.

Daily routine and water treatments

Grudnichkov with a cold can not bathe. The first 2-3 days refrain from bathing, limited to leaching.In the summer, the child is rubbed with a damp sponge to wash away sweat and dirt. Babies are bathed for 4–5 days if the condition of the small patient has improved and the temperature returned to normal. In a basin of warm water is poured. Too cold provokes aggravation of rhinitis, and a hot bath can start the heat.

Bathe no more than 10 minutes. After water procedures, wipe the baby dry and immediately put on lightweight pajamas made of natural fabric, in which the child will be comfortable and warm. In the water for bathing add chamomile, which has anti-inflammatory properties. Grass is not used if the baby is allergic to it.

Important: No essential oils. Aromatic supplements are powerful allergens, which cause rashes, and the nasal mucosa swells, making breathing difficult.

Contraindicated in the common cold and walks. A baby is taken out into the street, if the weather is warm and windless outside, and the baby itself breathes with its nose. Wind, rain and frost are dangerous for a small patient, and for mother too.

Instead of walking, it is advised to air the nursery to fill it with oxygen. Fresh air destroys bacteria and contributes to the narrowing of blood vessels in the sinuses of the nose, so the baby for a while becomes easier to breathe without special drops and ointments.

Plates of chopped garlic are placed around the room. Spice disinfects the premises, destroying the causes of a cold. You can not put garlic next to the crib, because the substances exuded by the product can burn the mucous membrane of the nasopharynx and eyes.

Important: The air in the room where the baby is located is regularly moistened to make it easier for the baby to breathe. In winter, batteries are covered with wet towels, and in the spring and summer they put basins or buckets of water in the room.

Nose cleansing

Some mothers rush to the pharmacy and buy up all the allowed drops to cure the baby instantly. Pediatricians are advised not to intervene and give the body to solve the problem. A runny nose, like a cold, hardens the child’s immunity and teaches how to fight infection.

What can mom do in this situation? Regularly clean the nose of mucus, which accumulates in the sinuses and makes it difficult for babies to breathe. Infants do not know how to blow their own nose, so you have to use an aspirator. They are of four types:

• syringes;
• vacuum;
• mechanical;
• electronic.

The first most simple and cheap, resemble in shape a rubber pear with a plastic tip.Mom presses the base to release the air, inserts a tube into the baby's nose and an aspirator sucks the mucus. Syringes do not allow to track the amount and color of secretions, so they are not popular.

Mechanical devices are equipped with two tubes: one mother takes in the mouth, the second puts into the baby's nose. Then the air pulls, and mucus flows into a special translucent compartment.

The most convenient vacuum and automatic aspirators that do all the work themselves. They resemble small vacuum cleaners and clean the baby’s nose in seconds.

Brine
Sometimes snot withers and turns into hard crusts. They stick to the nasal mucosa from the inside, interfere with and annoy the child. Crusts can not be ripped off mechanically and pick out with your hands or cotton buds. First, the dried plaque soften. Than? Drops based on seawater or isotonic solutions. You can do it easier and independently prepare a means for washing and moisturizing the nose.

Dissolve in a glass of boiled warm water a spoonful of salt or sea salt. The second option is softer, so it is preferable.Stir until complete dissolution of the dry ingredient. Pipette and inject saline into each nostril. 2-3 drops 4–5 times a day are enough.

When the crusts are softened, gently remove them with a cotton swab or aspirator. Continue to drip nose antiviral or antiseptic drugs. You can lubricate the mucosa with a healing ointment that soothes and moisturizes the inflamed sinuses.

Drops on the basis of sea salt allowed for infants:

• Aquamaris;
• Otrivin baby;
• Salin;
• Marimer.

Not more than 4 drops at a time. Keep the child upright so that the liquid does not flow into the nasopharynx. Soften the crusts and vaseline oil, which moistened with a cotton swab. The tissue is injected into the baby’s nostril, counted for 10 seconds and gently scrolled, and then removed with all its contents. You can replace vaseline oil with sunflower, boiled in a water bath.

Medications

Drops are selected together with the pediatrician, depending on the cause of a cold. It is impossible to treat a child uncontrollably with medical preparations, so as not to worsen his condition.

Antiviral
Drops that contain immunoglobulins are recommended for weak and painful babies. The drugs kill viral infections and simultaneously increase immunity. Infants allowed:

• Interferon;
• IRS-19;
• Grippferon

Funds contribute to the dilution of mucus and the production of antibodies. The duration of treatment varies from 3-5 days to 2 weeks. Terms are negotiated with the pediatrician.

Antiseptics
Drops, belonging to the class of antiseptics, destroy bacteria and dry the mucous membrane. The product is recommended if a clear discharge from the nose has become yellow green or cloudy. 2 drops in each nostril, and the baby will be able to sleep peacefully for several hours. What means to use for the treatment of infants?

• Protargol;
• Albucidine, which are designed for the eyes, but they can be buried in the nose;
• Ophtamine.

Antiseptic drops dry out the mucous membrane and cause burns, so the drugs are prescribed in extreme cases and are advised not to use for more than 3-4 days.

With antibiotics
Pills containing antibiotics have a powerful antibacterial and antiviral effect. These are "Isofra" and "Sofradex", which do not use for more than 3 days.

Infants are contraindicated drops with vasoconstrictor properties. After one use in babies, there is tremor and blanching of the skin. In case of an overdose in an infant, vomiting may occur, seizures or painful cramps begin, due to which the children scream and cry.

Nasal ointment

Not all babies normally belong to the drops and sprays. Some go into hysterics at the sight of a tube of medicine. In such cases, it is worth trying ointments that remove irritation, have soothing and antimicrobial properties. Suitable means based on:

• calendula;
• Hypericum;
• with zinc content.

The main thing is that the child does not have an allergy to the components of the ointment. How to use the drug? Moisten a clean cotton swab or a gauze pad in the product and gently apply it to the nasal mucosa. Repeat 3-6 times a day until relief comes.

Is it possible inhalation

Warming up of the nasal sinuses is prescribed by a ferry if the runny nose is accompanied by a cough. Inhalation dilutes mucus in the nasopharynx and bronchi, contributing to its outflow. Breathe should be over mineral water, heated to 38-40 degrees, or warm boiled potatoes.

Mom sits the child on her lap, covers herself with a towel and marks 8–10 minutes.Longer can not, otherwise the baby will overheat, and the temperature may rise. No medicinal herbs, citrus peels or essential oils are added to the inhalation solution.

Do not Cry

Yes, and extra experiences little patient is not needed. The body is too weakened by a runny nose to waste energy on tantrums and crying.

A child does not wake up for a long time? You need to carefully check his breath and touch his forehead. Full order? Let him sleep and gain strength, because a child's body, exhausted by a runny nose and fever, needs good rest.

Bad advice

Grandmothers give the young mother many recommendations, but not the fact that they are all correct. It is categorically impossible to treat children's runny nose with vegetable juices: carrot, beet, and also kalanchoe or aloe.Homeopathic remedies cause allergies and rhinitis, but do not remove inflammation.

Breast milk, contrary to expectations, does not destroy bacteria. If you drop some baby food in the nose, it will curl up due to the high temperature and settle on the mucosa in the form of a crust.

In infants a runny nose lasts from 3 to 5 days, sometimes it lasts a week. If the amount of discharge does not decrease, and bloody streaks or other strange impurities appear in the mucus, you should see a doctor. Moms are not recommended to engage in amateur activities and buy drops without a pediatrician, because only one wrong drug will cause chronic rhinitis or problems with immunity.

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