Tips for Helping Your Child's Cold
By Randi Morse
There's nothing worse than watching your child suffer with a cold. Cold viruses are a fact of life and even if we are vigilant, wash our hands regularly, and try to stay away from others who are ill, there is no way to avoid a cold permanently. The best thing that you can do when your child has a cold is to know the different tricks you can use to help ease their symptoms while possibly also shortening the lifespan of the cold.
Problems Breathing
When my children were young and had colds, the first thing they'd complain about was difficulty breathing. This makes sense, as no one likes to struggle to breathe. It can be extremely frustrating for children to find no relief from blowing their noses. This is because the problem at that point isn't mucus, it's swelling. The nasal passage can swell during a cold, making it difficult to breathe easily. The good news is that there are a few tricks you can use to help your child breathe easier.
Shower - A hot shower can be great for a wide array of things, including soothing any aches the cold brings on. But one thing it's great for is helping to clear stuffiness. Run a hot shower and make sure the door to the bathroom is shut and any ventilation is shut off. Allow the room to fill with steam. The steam helps thin any mucus in the nasal passages and also helps to lower the swelling in the nasal cavity as well.
Saline - Another old school trick is to use saline to help relieve congestion. By adding a few drops of saline in the nose you're again thinning the mucus, which can make it feel much easier to breathe.
Humidifier - A cool mist humidifier that is set to run in their bedroom while they are sleeping can go a long way to help make breathing easier. The humidifier keeps the nose and throat moist, which soothes the cavity.
Petroleum jelly - After you've blown your nose, or had it blown for you, dozens of times, it starts to get raw. Dabbing a bit of petroleum jelly under the nose can help soothe the rawness. Just remember to reapply it a few times a day.
It's never easy to deal with a cold, and it's even more difficult for parents to see their children suffering without being able to cure the problem. These few tricks, however, will help to ease their symptoms, and spending some quality time cuddled up with Mom or Dad won't hurt either.
To learn more about your health, wellness and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Bountiful, Utah.