How to help those small and helpless children when they have a cold? There are about 200 viruses that can cause a cold in a newborn. Their body is just beginning to form an immunity defense system, and that process starts with developing immunity to viruses one by one, so they are susceptible to a cold. And how can you see if a baby is having a cold, since he or she cannot tell you that?
Symptoms are very much similar to the symptoms that a toddler or a child has. The baby may cough, have a runny nose, the temperature may be above the average, and if desire for milk is decreased and you may be facing with cold. In the case of flu, the symptoms are developing faster, they are more obvious and followed by diarrhea. You have to be careful if the baby is coughing and the eyes are red and itchy. It may also be a sign of some type of allergy. In that case, the mucus in the nose is watery and runny. Don’t treat the cold in newborns in the same way as you treat them in adults with over the counter remedies, since it may cause some serious complications and according to the FDA it may be very dangerous and ineffective.
The experienced mothers and pediatricians agree in the statement that, at first, the best thing to do is to let the baby’s immunity fight against the virus and it will be over in one or two weeks. The mother knows her baby the best. So, if a mother has any shred of suspect that the baby is fighting against something more than just a cold, then she must visit a neonatologist (specialist for newborns) or a pediatrician. You can help a newborn with a cold if you clean its nose before feeding it, because it can’t breathe while eating. As the time passes by, the immunity of your baby is developing and it is becoming resistant to viruses and germs. You can help you baby by bathing it in a medication that relieves congestion in the nasal passages (decongestant). You can also use mist vaporizer in the baby’s room so that the dryness of the air is decreased. It is also important that the baby is getting enough fluid. If a temperature continues and raises above 100º F call a doctor. The nose, mouth and ears are connected in human, so the baby may experience pain in the ear. But, there is no reason for panic, as most colds in newborns don’t last too long, and in just a week or two, your baby will be the old one.
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