Baby Health Questions

Taiwan Parenting
#1

There seem to be quite a few parents out there. Anyone have advice for this situation?

Our girl is 8 months old. She’s had what seems to be just a regular cold for at least a week now. Really the only symptom is that her nasal passage is clogged with snot. I’m not worried that her condition is dangerous, but it bugs the heck out of her, particularly when she’s trying to sleep, so my wife puts the snot sucker up her nostrils and sucks it out from time to time (which she hates, so I have to hold her down for those sessions), but her condition persists.

If an adult had her condition, one could blow ones nose and take anti-histamines, but she can’t do the former and I suspect she shouldn’t do the latter either.

Tomorrow we go to a doctor. I’m sceptical because I know there’s no cure for a common cold and, as I said, I suspect that anti-histamines are a bad idea for babies. But our doctor is US trained, seems to be pretty good and I’m hoping maybe he’ll have some natural remedy I wasn’t aware of.

Is anyone aware of a good remedy for such a situation?

#2

[quote=“Mother Theresa”]There seem to be quite a few parents out there. Anyone have advice for this situation?

Our girl is 8 months old. She’s had what seems to be just a regular cold for at least a week now. Really the only symptom is that her nasal passage is clogged with snot. I’m not worried that her condition is dangerous, but it bugs the heck out of her, particularly when she’s trying to sleep, so my wife puts the snot sucker up her nostrils and sucks it out from time to time (which she hates, so I have to hold her down for those sessions), but her condition persists.

If an adult had her condition, one could blow ones nose and take anti-histamines, but she can’t do the former and I suspect she shouldn’t do the latter either.

Tomorrow we go to a doctor. I’m sceptical because I know there’s no cure for a common cold and, as I said, I suspect that anti-histamines are a bad idea for babies. But our doctor is US trained, seems to be pretty good and I’m hoping maybe he’ll have some natural remedy I wasn’t aware of.

Is anyone aware of a good remedy for such a situation?[/quote]

MT…all the best to you an yr little one.
Babies are amazingly resillient. Their immune systems, given that they have the right nutrition, are developing at an astounding rate.
Many years ago, I had a friend who was a very well experienced nurse. She was also heavuy involed in ‘baby nursing.’

She relayed to me the fact that the immune system of a baby would metabolize a lot of ‘bodily insults’ and quickly remove this from their system. This payload even had an informal name amognst baby nurses - Baby Crap Type II. It was basically the babies body removing stuff that was not good for their body. Grown ups do it also thru their barious eliminative systems.
A lot of this stuff came out thru their noses as a whitish, gooey fluid.

As I said, all the best, I hope the deal with yr daughter turns out ok and its nothing more than just BC Type II.

#3

Our eldest went through a phase like this and I was for ever digging dried snot out of her nose because she couldn’t breathe properly. After many hours/days/weeks it went away and another health issue came along to replace it…ear infection…fall down stairs…finger caught in toolbox lid…it seemed endless. She is now a happy 8-year-old and seems to have survived intact my apprentice years as a parent. Why don’t they come with owner’s manuals??? You could try a really steamy bathroom if you can to loosen things up.

#4

I vote for the steamy bathroom too- nicer than the nasal thing- albeit rather hunid

Also, is she eating alot of dairy products? Could be a sensitivity

Good luck
I hate it when my two wee kids are sick

#5

MT, sorry to hear your daughter is ill. When they’re all stuffed up like that and can’t breathe comfortably I know it makes me really nervous. A couple of things that others haven’t mentioned yet: there’s an electric vacuum-like machine that works like one of those nasal aspirators only better at neighborhood clinics. It takes a lot of the stuff out in one shot so she can breathe more easily and rest better (you and your wife too). I know at first, I was hesitant to let the doctor do it because it probably feels weird but it made such a huge difference in how my daughter rested that night that I do it now whenever I feel they need it, which isn’t very often anyway.

Another thing is to keep her from laying on her back. If she’s in a crib, you can lay something like a big book under one end of crib mattress to elevate the end where her head is. I’ve also had nights where I put the baby in the sling and then slept while sitting in a comfy chair. Or if you have one of those carseat carriers, you can let her try sleeping in that too.

Have also done the steamy shower (I put a few drops of eucalyptus oil in the tub water then just let the hot water run from the shower head but there must be a better way).

I’ve squirted breast milk up the nose (like saline) and the baby might sneeze the gunk out, or it will at least be loosened.

Hope your baby is feeling better soon!

#6

Just put a cork in her throat, stick a hose from an air compressor in her mouth, and hit the switch. That’ll get all the goo out at once. Oh yeah, remember to remove the cork afterwards.

#7

i’m not a parent, but my mom always ran a cool-mist humidifier when i was stuffed up and couldn’t sleep well. it helped a lot and kept my nose clear. most cold medications dry you out too much but the humidifier helped.

#8

That’s a great idea. I’ve never used one of these things… it’s just always been humid enough where I’m from so I’m still not all that clear on what these are for. I have a couple of friends who say they add essential oils (eucalyptus, tea tree oil etc) to their humidifiers which sounds like it would be really nice. Anyone tried this or use a humidifier?

#9

While we’re talking about baby health in Taiwan. Is it common for children to get sick very often in their first 12-14 months. Tiff has had a fever, runny nose, cough etc about 5 different times already. My wife blames Taiwan’s inclement weather and while the doctor says it’s normal, I often wonder.

#10

Amos, I suspect it is fairly common. . . though you’ve got slightly more experience as a parent than I do. I think it must be as pjdrib says: a cold, followed by diaper rash, by a large bump on the head, by coughing fit, etc. They’re not as tough as we are and haven’t encountered and become immunized to so many germs. Heck, when my brothers and I were growing up my parents took turns driving one of us then the other for stitches, broken bones, concussions, etc, encountered in everyday play.

As I said, I’m not worried about my daughter’s snot filled sinus. I know it’s nothing serious. But if there’s something I can do to make her more comfortable, I’d like to do it (sign of a first child, from what I’ve heard – everyone tells me with later children the parents are tired of it all and just let them fend for themselves).

The steam suggestions sound good. We’ll try that with a tub of hot waters. As for your tip, Maposquid, thanks but I’m afraid her diaper might explode, so I’ll pass.

#11

Amos, Tiffany’s about one year old already, right? Five colds in 12 months, in my humble opinion and from observation, is not bad and is probably better than most Taiwanese children. There are some kids I know who always seem to have a bug whenever I see them, sneezing, coughing, oozing green stuff.

I’ve read and been told by my trusted pediatrician at home that even breastfed babies can get as many as 10 colds a year; depends on the kid.

One of my sons who was exclusively breastfed got his first cold at 2 months. The other son, who got less than a week’s worth of mother’s milk, rarely got sick as a little one. One daughter got her first cold at 10 months, and it was a doozie. The baby, now 15 months old, has had at least five or six by now.

#12

thanks for that braxtonhicks. Yes, Tiff’s just gone 13 months (must update the avatar). I usually don’t worry but my wife does a lot. Thanks again. Hope all’s well with your little girl too MT.

#13

Truly the wish of every parent. When they come home from school and say “X called me stupid” you’re heart breaks because you can’t fix that other nasty kid and you want to protect them from hurts that they can’t see coming…sigh.

They are quite robust though. Our number two has been neglected and not fussed over compared to #1 and as a result is a talkative independent young lady who is sure of her own opinions. She never had the same health issues as her sister…or did we not notice or react in the same way as with #1? I think you overreact to #1, neglect #2 and get it right with #3??? #3 isn’t here yet for us. The suggestion of breast milk up the nose is good too. Breast milk in the eye for conjuctivitis works too and also for mosquito bites.

You are doing a wonderful job and your baby is beautiful and don’t let anyone tell you you’re not!

We need a Spanish-language forum!
#14

Yeah, five times in a year is definitely not a lot for a baby/toddler. I can’t remember all the times that my daughter has been sick, but it’s way more than five times a year. Fortunately only one time was serious enough for hospitalization, but even a cold can make the whole family miserable fussing over her. Lately she’s starting to get more physically adventurous, so the injuries are starting to happen more frequently. In the last month she crushed the toenail on her big toe by jamming it under a door and then about a week later she dove off the couch onto the tile floor and got a bloody nose and lip (that could have been much worse!).

Damn, guess I’m not being too encouraging. Welcome to parenthood, MT!

#15

the snot sucker was my first choice, kids don’t like it, but…
another secret to get rid of the snot, no medicine and not painful…this is a trick my mom used to do on us…when it was -40 and your snot instantly freezes to your face…works like a charm.
at bath time, when the baby is in the water, run the shower extra hot, but have the water hit the floor, no where near the child of course. The steam from the hot water will turn the bathroom into a little sauna, safe of course. this will cause the baby to breath in the steam and effectively melt the boogers and snot and cause a waterfall of mulicolored mucus to come out of the nose. the baby will feel much better all cleared up and will breath easily at night. this is safe, not painful and there is no medicine.
you mentioned this is persistent, then you should put some oranges in the blender, add a little honey and presto the baby will have a vitamin boost to help fight those pesty snot demons. keep it natural, and most kids will get rid of the runny nose in a few days rather than a few weeks…and there is no visit to the doctor…kids will get runny noses, that’s a fact, but keeping it under control is the key.

#16

Not only is this thread YEARS old, (there are rules against grave digging) but your advice about adding honey to the juice is actually very dangerious.

[color=#BF0000]IT IS VERY DANGEROUS TO GIVE HONEY TO BABIES!! DO NOT GIVE HONEY TO BABIES!![/color]

Honey contains bacteria that a baby cannot digest and that will make the baby sick [color=#000040]
unto death
 [/color]if it eats enough of it.

Besides this, raw OJ isn’t recommended for babies, either, as their tummies can’t yet handle such acidic juice.

#17

Not only is this thread YEARS old, (there are rules against grave digging) but your advice about adding honey to the juice is actually very dangerious.

[color=#BF0000]IT IS VERY DANGEROUS TO GIVE HONEY TO BABIES!! DO NOT GIVE HONEY TO BABIES!![/color]

Honey contains bacteria that a baby cannot digest and that will make the baby sick [color=#000040]
unto death
 [/color]if it eats enough of it.

Besides this, raw OJ isn’t recommended for babies, either, as their tummies can’t yet handle such acidic juice.[/quote]
i didn’t mean to give such bad advice, i was trying to pass on my experience…while we are here, strawberries, mangoes and carrots also have that same stigma as well…