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One of the saddest things for a new parent is watching their baby suffer through his first cold. Your baby will be uncomfortable, snuffling, and probably will have trouble feeding. It’s hard to watch, but there’s a lot you can do to alleviate the discomfort. And you can be assured that it’s called the common cold for a reason, and it’s usually not serious. Experts estimate that your baby will get between eight and 10 colds in his first two years alone. That’s a lot of tissues and long nights.

What causes colds?

Colds are upper respiratory tract infections caused by one of many different viruses. They’re most commonly spread when someone with a cold sneezes or coughs and unleashes a cold virus into the air to be inhaled by someone else. They can also commonly be transmitted through hand-to-hand contact, so always wash your hands after blowing your nose. Babies tend to get a lot of colds because they’re born with immune systems which function at about 60% of capacity.

How do colds affect babies?

Few things are more frustrating than a baby with a cold. A sick baby will probably have a fever (up to 101 degrees F / 38 degrees C), cough, reddened eyes, a sore throat, and runny nose. Your child may also be irritable and lose his appetite. Babies under six months old can’t breathe through their noses when they’re all stuffed up, so they have trouble breathing and eating. Children aren’t usually developmentally ready to blow their own noses until about the age of four, so you’ll have to help younger children clear the mucus.

If your baby has been sleeping through the night, you’ll be reminded of those first few weeks of life. He’ll probably wake up several times during the night due to his discomfort and difficulty breathing. Expect to be up with your baby, comforting him and wiping his nose.

How long do colds generally last?

Symptoms generally abate after three to 10 days, though in very young babies they may last up to two weeks. Most babies who have some exposure to older children will experience six to 10 colds during their first year; it may seem as if his nose is runny all winter long.

Can I help prevent my child from getting colds?

Breastfeeding is one of the best ways to protect your baby’s health, since as long as he’s breastfeeding, he’s getting your antibodies and your natural immunities. This isn’t a foolproof way to protect your baby’s health, but when breastfed babies do become ill, their cold symptoms are generally mild.

You can also try to protect your child by keeping him away from those who are ill and by asking all sick family members to wash their hands thoroughly before handling your baby or his things.

If you or your partner smoke, give it up, and refrain from taking your baby to areas where someone has been smoking. Children who live with cigarette smokers have more colds and their colds last longer than their peers who aren’t exposed to smoke.

When should I consult the doctor?

Do so at the first sign of illness if your child is less than three months old. In an older baby, call your doctor if a cold persists for more than five days; if your child’s temperature climbs above 102 degrees F / 39 degrees C; or if he has an earache, breathing problems, wheezing, a persistent cough, or a persistent, thick, green mucus running from his nose.

How do I treat a cold?

• There’s little you can do except ride it out, and help your child get plenty of rest and liquids (increase the amount of vitamin C-rich fruit juices). If he’s feverish, you can give him paracetamol suspension under a doctor’s direction. Don’t give him any cold remedies without consulting your GP or local pharmacist. In children under one year old, over-the-counter cold medications often do more harm than good, and cough medicines have been shown to be no better than a non-medicated syrup for easing symptoms. Nonetheless, there are some remedies to ease his discomfort:
• If your baby is congested, elevate the head of the mattress with an old towel or two. Sleeping at an incline may help relieve your baby’s postnasal drip. (Do not use pillows to prop your baby up — they can pose a suffocation hazard — or pillows under the mattress.)
• Because babies are too young to blow their noses, the best way to help them breathe more easily is to wipe their noses. You can also apply petroleum jelly to the outside of your baby’s nostrils to reduce irritation. If your child is having trouble breastfeeding with a stuffy nose, you may like to ask your GP to prescribe saline drops to apply to each nostril 15 minutes before a feed. Some parents then use a suction bulb to clear the nose of salt water and mucus.
• Try a cool mist vaporiser to moisten the air. Or take your baby into the bathroom with you, turn on the hot water or shower, close the door, and sit in the steamy room for about 15 minutes. Remember to change your baby into dry clothes after the steam bath.
• If your child has a stuffy nose without any other symptoms, check his nostrils for foreign objects. You never know: even little ones are capable of putting things up there.
  
  

Colds are a fact of life. Once you’ve survived your baby’s first one, you’ll know what to expect with the next.

Tags: baby cold medicine, baby cold cough, baby cold symptoms, infant colds, baby cold, baby cold remedies

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Can running a fever while I’m pregnant harm my baby?
I’m pregnant and have a fever. How can I treat it safely?

Thomas Easterling, professor of obstetrics, University of Washington Medical School, Seattle answer:

Well, if you have a high fever in the first trimester when the baby is forming, it can cause neural tube defects. After the first trimester, having a fever puts a certain metabolic stress on the baby — you’re both burning up calories and oxygen faster, so it’s like the baby has a fever too. But it’s not dangerous unless the pregnancy is already on the edge. If you have cystic fibrosis or heart disease, for instance, a fever at that point could tip you over into more serious complications. A fever from the flu won’t directly hurt your baby after the first trimester, although pregnant women can get very sick from the flu and should be vaccinated against it. But if you’re totally healthy, a routine cold with a fever isn’t going to have much effect on either you or the baby.

photo credit: cc511 Read the rest

It’s hard not to worry when your baby is crying and her temperature is soaring but fever seldom does harm. A fever is simply the elevation of the body’s temperature above normal. Normal body temperatures in a well child can range from 97.7 degrees F / 36.5 degrees C to 100 degrees F / 37.8 degrees C. Babies have higher temperatures than older children, and everyone’s temperature tends to go up during the day and down after midnight. In general, a baby isn’t considered feverish unless her temperature is over 100 degrees F / 37.7 degrees C in the morning or over 101 degrees F / 38.2 degrees C in the evening.

Sooner or later, your new baby will develop a fever. It would be a rare child who does not come down with some kind of illness that elevates their temperature. Babies can get fevers for a variety of reasons, and understanding the whys, can help you determine if you should call your doctor.

On a warm day, and over-dressed baby, particularly an active or squirmy one, can become flushed and hot. When their temperature is taken it is up. The first thing to do is remove some of the clothing, and place the child in a cool spot to rest or play quietly. Take their temperature again in 20-30 minutes, if there are no signs that their distress is increasing. Chances are, it will be headed back towards normal. Sometimes just a very active play session in hot weather, can make a toddler’s temperature go up, and the cure is the same: remove some clothes, and cool down by taking a break.

Why do baby get fevers?
Most fevers are the result of a child’s body fighting off an infection of some sort. As white blood cells become active and mount a defense, their temperature will rise, and they may develop other symptoms, including coughing, excessive crying, restlessness, listlessness, lack of appetite, unwillingness to drink, diarrhea and vomiting. But occasionally, fever is the only symptom, and many times, it does not seem to interfere with their activities or behavior. Read the rest »

Of the joys and challenges you face in life, none is more extraordinary than having your first baby. From the moment you find out that you are pregnant to the day you give birth, you will experience many changes and learn new ways to take care of yourself and your growing baby.

We want you to thrive on this journey to motherhoos, and we have developed a special approach to care around your unique needs as a first-time mother.

Mother and baby experts from our hospital have shared their knowledge and expertise with others in the Sutter Health network to provide you with the best possible care. Together, we have established quality guidelines based on the experiences of more than 20,000 first-time mothers across our network and drawing upon scientific evidence of best practices for healthy pregnancy and safe delivery. As part of this effort, we have compiled the following information about childbirth and created these “First-Time Mothers Delivery Tips,” to recognize and support this magnificent time in your life:

For Early Labor

Because you have never experienced labor before, you may find it difficult to know if you are in labor. Before heading to the hospital, call your physician or midwife to discuss your labor symptoms.

It is common for first-time mothers to make more than one trip to the hospital. If you are in early labor (cervix is less than 3 centimeters) and sent home, the following activities may be helpful: walking, showering, resting, drinking fluids, renting a video, listening to music, etc.

Once you are in active labor, literature shows and we have found that admitting a first time mother to the hospital at this time is best for helping labor progress with minimal interventions and having a vaginal delivery. In active labor, the contractions are less than 5 minutes apart, lasting 45 to 60 seconds and the cervix is dilated 3 centimeters or more. Read the rest »