Babies fall sick a lot in their first and second years of age. The most common illness among young children is cold and cough – a lot of runny noses and sleepless nights.
Are you looking for the answer to how to help your infant? The best answer to this question is to find natural remedies that can help ease your little one's symptoms. Reading the full post will help you to understand the natural ways to reduce the symptoms of cold and cough in your baby.
You are not advised to reach for Over-the-counter cold medicines for children under 2 to ease their symptoms. Because having these medicines can cause serious side effects – even life-threatening effects.
Try the following method in case your baby or toddler is sneezing or coughing. All the suggested home remedies for cold and cough for babies are drug-free and safe for the tiniest of patients.
Home Remedies for Cold and cough for babies
Following home remedies for babies are completely safe and effective. It does not cost a lot and will make your babies feel relaxed.
1. Avoid Giving Cold Medicines
In case of having a cough or cold, we might reach for over-the-counter (OTC) drugs in order to ease symptoms of cold and cough. But the same can not be applied to babies or toddlers.
Babies or toddlers can have serious side effects when consuming the medicines for cold and cough. So, it's better to avoid taking medicines for colds and coughs without consulting a doctor.
2. Try Saline Drops In Case Of Stuffy Nose
If your baby has trouble breathing, sleeping, and eating due to a stuffy nose, then trying saline nasal drops can help you a lot.
The work that saline drop does is to thin the mucus in the nose and shrink the swollen airways. It will make breathing easier, and your baby will feel better and relaxed.
Saline drop will help in removing mucus from your child's nose. It would help if you used a suction bulb or nasal aspirator for your babies. It would be a better option for those children who can blow their noses with their parent's help.
Or you can have the assistance of a second person in holding your baby still while administering saline drops to your baby.
3. Give Plenty Of Fluids To Your Baby Having Cold and Cough
Giving more drinks than usual is one of the best ways to ease the symptoms of colds in your babies. The increase of fluid content in your baby's body can thin mucus and make breathing easier.
It will also prevent the nose from getting stuffy and cough up the gunk with ease.
4. Suction Out the Snot When Your Baby Is Stuffed Up
If your baby is very young and can not blow their nose, in case of being stuffed up. Then using a bulb syringe can clear out the mucus and ease out the breathing.
To make breathing easier, suctioning mucus out of the baby's nose is very helpful. You need to ensure that you clean out the baby's nose before feeding to make them eat easily.
Just squeeze the bulb and insert about a quarter- to a half-inch of the syringe into one nostril. Release the bulb to create a suction and pull the mucus out of the nose and into the bulb.
Now, squeeze the bulb to put the mucus onto the tissue. And wash the syringe after using it.
5. Use a Humidifier To Make Breathing Easier
Running a Humidifier at night will help your baby to breathe easily. Because moisture in the air can help ease coughing and stuffiness. It is safer to use a cool-mist model than to use steam.
Follow the instructions mentioned in the device and change the water daily. This process will prevent the mold and bacteria from growing inside.
6. Serve Easy-to-Swallow Foods When Your Baby is ill
Babies or toddlers with scratchy and sore throats face issues in swallowing the food. To make them eat well, feed them with food that goes down more easily.
It would be better to feed with soft and smooth foods if your toddler or baby can eat solids. You can try freshly made pudding and more options.
For six months or younger babies, it is advisable to stick with breast milk or baby formula.
That’s all about the home remedies for cold and cough for babies. Hope the suggested ways to treat your baby’s cold will help you a lot. Following the process can make your baby breathe more easily and feel relaxed.