It's that time of year again, with the change of seasons, definitely comes the sniffles, coughs and flu-like symptoms. Even with all the precautions you may be taking on a daily basis, sometimes, it's unavoidable. Check out some of our tips to help battle the cold symptoms and get your toddler/child feeling better again!
1. Stay Hydrated
One of the most important things if your child is sick is to promote lots and lots of fluids. Their bodies definitely need the extra fluid to help fight off the cold/flu symptoms. If your child isn't too queen on having lots of water during this time, you can consider juices, popsicles (Pedialyte), soup broths etc.
2. Use a Cold Mist Humidifier
Using a humidifier in your child's room will help to break up any mucus they may have building up. You can even add a few drops of Eucalyptus essential oil to the water to help improve their breathing as well. Be sure to clean your humidifier often before bacteria builds up in the machine.
3. Clear Their Sinuses
The last thing you want is for your child to not be able to sleep because they can't breathe through their nose. You can help promote the reduction of mucus build up by using the humidifier as mentioned above, using saline sprays that are age appropriate for your child, and using nasal aspirators to help remove that mucus from your child's body. When they're young, it's much harder to clear it on their own, so using a device, such as the Nose Frida, will help clear that mucus and allow them to breathe more freely.
4. Minimizing the Disruptive Cough
Coughing is the worst! It attacks in the middle of the night and disturbs your sleeping child and everyone else in your household. There are several cough medicines out there, but one natural way to help combat their cough is by giving them honey. If your child is under one years old, you want to avoid giving them honey at all costs. It is not safe for a child under the age of one. The use of honey in an older child will help to soothe their throat and minimize their cough.
5. Boost Their Immunity
Helping to build stronger immune systems will help your child fight the nasty bug, if they ever get it. Some ways to do this include:
- Ginger Tea (Boil water, add fresh ginger and allow the ginger to steep. Have your toddler or even yourself drink the tea, after straining the ginger. You can add honey to it as well to help it go down a little better)
- Elderberry Juice
- Lemon Tea with Honey (Boil water, add fresh lemon and allow the lemon to steep. After straining the lemon, have a glass with some honey, to make it less sour.)
6. Get Lots of Rest
Promoting rest will help your child to recover faster. Make bedtime a little earlier if needed, have them rest throughout the day and maybe curl up with a book or their favourite show. A warm bath can also help them to relax before bed and use comfortable and light layers.
Getting the cold, especially when the weather changes, is super hard to avoid. Follow the tips above to help manage/try to prevent the cold from taking over.
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