With the change in weather, it’s very common that our kids can get attacked by viral cough and cold. Seeing your loved one in any pain is very hard. Do you know that during the first year most babies can have seven to eight colds? We become very anxious and want to do anything we can do to ease them. Mostly we rely on cold medicines for common cold and cough. But we should avoid giving medicines to kids importantly kids younger than 2 years of age. You can’t cure a seasonal cold with medicine, but to ease them and make them feel better, you can try home remedies that will make your kids feel better, and at least there will be no side effects.
1.Honey.
If your child is older than 1 year of age, you can try giving him one spoon( 2 to 5 ml) of honey during bedtime. It’s an age-old therapy to treat sore throat, and it thins the mucus. It has been seen that honey is far better than the cough syrups we bought from the store. Just one spoon before bedtime can ease them and there will be less cough at night time. And your loved one will have a nice relief from cold and she will have a sound sleep.
2.Keep hydrated.
Give them plenty of fluids. There are various benefits of keeping your kids hydrated during the cough and cold. Drinking water will thin the mucus and also help with a stuffy nose. It will also don’t let them dehydrate. But don’t offer any soda or juices. They are high in sugar content. Rather try that they will drink plain water. Also check their urine, if it’s dark in color means they are not sipping enough. Encourage them to have more.
3.Turmeric Milk.
It’s not any hidden thing. We all know how magical this drink is. Whether it is cold, or in any pain, it is always advisable to have a glass of turmeric milk at bedtime. Turmeric has antiseptic properties, so it will be an ideal drink to give your kid before they sleep. It will help in aching throat and a runny nose. Mix 2 pinch of turmeric in warm milk, strain it and give your baby to drink it.
4.Elevate head.
You must have experienced from your cold, that when you sleep with an extra pillow, it becomes easy for you to breathe rather than lying flat on your back. The same goes for your baby. when he is suffering from a cold put a soft pillow under his head. You will notice that your kid is more comfortable breathing than he was before.
5.Plenty of rest.
Allow your kids to sleep extra hours. Taking rest during cold can help in recovering faster. even if your kid is not sleeping, only taking a rest and lying on the bed can help. Sleeping is the key to a healthy immune system. And help them to fight with cold and cough.
6.Carrom Seeds for cold n cough
Amazing herbs are found in every kitchen in our Indian household. We also know the benefits of Carrom seeds known as Ajwain, but do we know how good it is in cold and cough. Thymol that is present in carrom seed is loaded with anti-inflammatory,anti-fungal, anti-microbial properties. Due to this, it can really be very helpful in fighting with cold.
You can use these wonder seeds in many ways, if your kids are younger than one year or just newborn you can make Carrom seed potli, or keep near the baby’s pillow or you can give them hot chest compression.
For kids older than one year you can crush half spoon carrom seeds and mix with jaggery and give them to eat. It will help in clearing their chest.
You can also boil carrom seeds in mustard oil and give them massage from that oil. Make sure that oil is not too hot, it should be lukewarm. Giving this message before bedtime can soothe them, and they will have good sleep.
You can also try other methods like can give them a lukewarm water sponge bath, but making sure that water should not be chilled. You can also use a “suction bulb” to clear the stuffy nose, but this will be much easier when your kid is up to 6 months of age, after that they start resisting a lot. Also try to keep on “saline drop” with you, and put 2 drops in each nose at night time before bed and also before a feed, this will ease them.
So, next time when your kid gets attacked by the viral cold and cough. Before giving them medicine try to use home remedies first.
When to visit the doctor.
If your baby is younger than 3 months and has a temperature then it is always advisable to visit the doctor.
Also in older kids, if a cough is there for more than 7 days or they have a temperature as high as 102 or higher you should always go to the doctor without any wait.
