How Can I Help My Baby with Congestion?

 

Every child will experience congestion, especially in the Winter months. This can be a hardship for babies and parents. Congestion can lead to poor eating and lack of sleep due to breathing issues. Infants do not know how to blow their nose, so we must help them! To start, it’s not always clear what’s causing congestion. Infants and toddlers often catch the common cold due to their immunity building. On the other hand, there are several other reasons for causes of congestion.

Start with the basics

Congestions may also cause feeding issues when your baby is all stuffed up. Imagine trying to intake food with a huge blockage in your airway?

The cause of congestion could instead be an allergy, which would require an allergy test. Congestion can occur when a piece of food and/or another object gets stuck in your child’s nose. In this case, we recommend bringing your child to the emergency room or their pediatrician. Do not try to remove anything yourself!

Lastly, congestion may be an indication of a more serious issue. A stuffy nose due to a cold can often be treated with saline drops, time, and love! If there are other indications such as a fever and thick, yellow mucus, call your pediatrician as soon as possible.

Safe Remedies

One of the safest and most effective ways to help your baby’s congestion is using saline (salt water) spray or drops. Saline sprays are available without a prescription and will most likely help tremendously.

If you use drops, place 1-2 drops in each nostril to break up the mucus. Use a suction bulb immediately afterward to remove the saline and mucus.

Squeeze the bulb before you place it in the nose to let out any air. Once the bulb is squeezed, place it in your child’s nose and then let go of the bulb. The mucus will then be sucked out of your child’s nose. You do not want to squeeze the bulb while it is in your child’s nose. This will push the mucus in furtherer.

You want to repeat this about 15 minutes or so before a feed and before bedtime. This will help your baby eat better, sleep better, and breathe easier!

You also want to avoid any saline drops that have added medication. Plain saline drops will do just the trick!

Frida Baby has a product that works wonders for most babies! You simply spray the mist into their nostril and suck out all the mucus. No, you will not get mucus in your mouth!

Steamy Solutions

There are other ways to moisten the nasal passages.

A humidifier could be essential for trying to break up the mucus. You may place them in their room out of reach from the baby, usually 4 foot away from their crib or bed.  Place it close enough so that the mist reaches your baby while they sleep or if you are simply just hanging out in their room.

Another quick remedy is placing the baby in the bathroom while you or a loved one takes a shower. The steam from the hot shower will also help break up the mucus.