Cough Suppressant?

Unfortunately NO. There is no evidence that the OTC products really had any effect on children, and there wasn't any solid testing to see what doses would be safe for young children. Too many children suffered from overdoses from confusing dosage instructions, inaccurate dosing methods i.e. using a home teaspoon instead of a measuring spoon to give doses, and the same product hidden in multiple medications.
Call your pediatrician. There may be a specific medication they can recommend or prescribe for you. In the meantime, using saline drops and a suction bulb to clear nasal stuffiness, the humidifier, a product like vaporbath, elevating the head of her crib (place a towel or blanket under the mattress), and lots of extra fluids, along with time are your best bet. Let her sit and play in the bathroom while you take a nice steamy shower.
Hope your little one is better soon, mine is suffering as well.

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I know this sounds odd but it truly works, did it on myself. Rub Vick's Vaporub on the bottoms of her feet & put socks on her. It will stop the cough. You don't always want to stop a cough, sometime they are doing their job & ridding the lungs of mucus. You stop that & she can get worse symptoms.

Try the Vicks on the feet, it stopped my cough.

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You might want to give the pediatrician a call to see if there is anything more you can do. My kids are all older now, so I am from the era when it was ok to give them infant cold/cough formulas. Also, try putting the Vicks on her feet, then putting socks on. I'm not sure how/why it works, but I know alot of moms swear by it, and it has helped my kids too.

There is absolutely nothing at all whatsoever that you can give babies that age anymore. They've completely removed all baby cold and cough meds due to too many over dosings. As far as a humidifier goes, they're actually really bad. They can cause really bad mold problems, and they can cause allergy and coughing problems to worsen. All you can do is let the cough/cold take it's course. I know it's pure misery for the both of you. If you're really concerned, you can take her to the Dr to make sure she doesn't have bronchitis (or seasonal asthma for that age), but there's still not much they'd do. If that's the case, a nebulizer would help some, though.
RSV has really been going around my area like crazy lately. It's nothing to worry about for a baby your daughter's size (my daughter's 7 1/2 mths & 13lbs, and she didn't have any problems with it when she had it a couple of weeks ago), but it is absolutely miserable. Just a really terrible cold and cough. She'll be totally fine after 1-3weeks if that IS what's going on, though.

Good Luck!

L.,

I have a 3 yr old and a 16 month old and I ran into the same problem in December not being able to give my daughter medicine. My pediatrician told me the same and thats to keep a humidifer going all winter and use Little Noses Saline drops and suction but don't suction too often because it will cause her nose to "sound like it's stopped up even though it's not it swells the inside or something. My pediatrician also said if she wasn't better in two weeks to call back and they might put her on antibiotics but she did finally get better...

All the talk about the cough meds is becasue parents are overdosing there kids. They are not writing the times down when they give it to them and what time they can have it next. They do help!!! I have gave them to mine son sense he was younger then your child. Always does by weight not age!!! I always have use Pedartic Robtussion {not sure on the spell} Also if she is coughing put vicks baby rub on her feet and put some sock on her and it will help the cough.

As far as the bulb suction, you can get some plain saline nasal drops/spray & put a few drops in her nose about 10-15 mins before you suction it, the drops will help loosen up the snot to get it out easier. Also, I've been told to use something under the mattress on one end to elevate the bed so she can breathe better at night.

Ask her pediatrician for advice. Believe it or not, coughing is a good thing...she is trying to get all of the mucous out of her lungs...if it stayed in there it could lead to an infection.

use the syringe whether she likes it or not. when mine would get really bad, even with croup, I would have them sleep sitting up. They say elevate the crib mattress... but if your kids are like mie, they move all around and would end up sleeping downhill. The only way I could have them sleep upright all night was in the swing. I would have them sleep in the swing and let it rock all night. Did wonders for helping them sleep. Also, if you live where it's cold, bundle her and sit outside for 10 min at bedtime. A shot of cold air in her lungs will break up the congestion a little.

Absolutely don't use anything over-the-counter unless your pediatrician tells you to. Even giving the proper dosage can be fatal in some kids. I would be very scared to follow any medication advice from a blog, especially since you don't know who the people are who respond! Call the pediatrician and ask what she can take. They may want to write a prescription.

I would suggest calling your pharmacist. That is what I have always done when I've had problems deciding what to give my now 25 month old.

You really need to take her to her Dr. There are alot of things going around right now...RSV, croup, viruses. You don't want it to be pneumonia and not know. You can't tell how her lungs sound and being that young, you need to stay ontop of things. One thing that will help with the bulb syringe is to squirt a few drops of normal saline it there firt, this helps to loosen up the secretions.
Angie

My grandson was sick recently and had a terrible cough. When I took him to a doctor, he was diagnosed with the Croup. When I asked the doctor what to do to help suppress his cough, he said not to. He also said not to use a vaporizor only a cool humidifier. He suggested that we leave his window open an inch or two in his room to keep it cool and not let him get overheated. The heat tends to make the cough worse. I don't know if this will help you or not, but if the doctor suggests it, it can't be all wrong.

Hi L. M,
I would NOT give your 7 month old ANY over the counter cough or cold medicine!!!! Take her to the Doctor and have him/her put her on prescription meds that is the right dose for her age and weight! You do not want to accidentally overdose her on the overcounter meds, which can happen if you are not careful.Better to be safe than sorry. You can try Eucalyptus essential oil in a diffuser to clean the air and purify the entire room that she is in also. It will also help her with the stuffed up nose. Wish u the best!
J.

I would check with a doctor about the cough suppresent to be used, sounds like she may need something stronger than over the counter, but you can also rub vicks on the bottom of the feet and cover with socks just before bed.

L.

My 18 month just got over that. I kept the humidifier going but like you, I didn't feel it did any good. I used the baby vicks and put a warm cloth under her pajammy shirth. Also rub vicks on the bottom of her feet and then put socks on her.(don't know how that works but I got an email about that and tried it and it worked pretty good.) That just helped me tremendously. Also, mine hated the suction bulb. When they are so stopped up, they sneeze alot, try and catch the sneeze and then put your hand over her mouth so she has to sneeze out her nose. You wouldn't believe how much stuff that will blow out of her nose. It is better than her being able to blow it herself.
Also I used Tylenol Cold medicine as perscribed by the pediatrician. It took a while but she got over it.
Good luck,... it isn't easy but it will get better.

We always used the Little Noses nose spray & bulb syringe to suction when our daughter was really stuffy. The Little Noses spray works really well. I actually used some for myself the other day because it was all we had! It works FAST!

Also, if you aren't already, try putting a pillow under her crib sheet so that she is not laying flat to sleep. Elevating her head a little might help her breathe better.

If it lasts for more than a week or so, you could call the pediatrician and find out if/when you should bring her in to be checked.

Well, they make this product called Little Noses. Have you tried it? If you do give her medicine, only give her the infants formula.

HI L.--also try putting the Vicks for infants on her feet. I would call your pediatrician's nurse and inquire about what cough medicine they suggest. For cough our dr. always says Delsym--but you might inquire with the nurse for dosage etc...
The deal with small children and cold meds was mostly triggered with antihistamine's--they are in a lot of OTC cold meds and parents were overmedicating their children b/c they were in multiple meds. and parents didn't always realize. I have a 14 month old that has been taking ALL cold meds as needed--of course--correct dose amt.
Thx~~J.

Had a similar problem. My pediatrician prescribed Dallergy Drops. Helped a lot.

put vicks on her feet at night. it really works.

Rubs the vicks on the bottom of her feet and put socks on her.

I have used the cough suppresent patches that Vicks has on my daughter (now 7) before with success, I don't know what the age restrictions are.. You could also try rubbing the infant vicks on her feet and put socks on them (I know it sounds weird but my great grandmother said they did it all the time for coughs), I've tried it on myself and my daughter and it works. Hope this helps. Ohh, also elevate her mattress (put a towel under the mattress) it will help with drainage (if she has any)

The nasal saline for little ones does wonders. Just suction out her nose and put a few drops in. I usually held mine on my lap laying on her back to accomplish this and it worked okay. Another thing that I have tried and it works (it just sounds weird) is to rub the baby rub on the bottom of their feet and then put socks on over it. It helps suppress the cough and you don't have to keep giving her medicine. Also, keep her head elevated when she's napping. I hope this helps. Good luck!!

there is a childrens cough suppressant that you can use but in small dosages -from dollar store for kids under 12. then also try to keep her from being to active and keep her near a humidifier with straight vicks in it and on her back not her chest.put some on bottom of her feet to. see if she will keep something on her head to like a stocking cap. I HOPE THIS HELPS.Another good homamade remedy to i always used on mine is, get some cumin seed, make a tea from it with sugar and let her drink it, as she may be conjested, this breaks it up allowing her to breathe way better and get rid of the phleam in her lungs.

hi. my daughter was 3 months old when she had a really bad cough. we went to the doctors, and they put her on nubulizer. you insurance will cover it. she got rid of her cough within 3 days. it really helped her. and its easy to use.

I was told by our pediatrician to run the humidifier in our baby's room all day, use saline spray. We also had to put our baby sleeping sitting up in his bouncy seat or carrier when he was sick since he couldn't breathe very well laying down. That's the only way we could get him to sleep for more than 30 minutes at a time. We were also giving him the infant cold meds but this was before they removed them from the markets. We had Robitussin Infant Cough and gave 1.25ml which would contain Dextromethorphan HBr 2.5mg & Guaifenesin, USP 50Mg. I have found that you can adjust the dosage from the children's version so that it contains the same or less amounts of the two active ingredients. But that's up to you. I still have some meds left over from my son that I will use for my baby now because it helped my son to have these meds. You just have to use common sense when giving your child cold meds. I think the reason so many of them were taken off the shelves is people didn't contact their doctor for dosage information and just gave the kids too much all the time. So we are basically being punished for the stupidity of other people. That's my 2 cents!

L.,
I would call her pediatrician if I were you especially since all the other remedies don't seem to be helping her at all. This is RSV season and babies under 1 year of age are more prone to getting it. Most docs don't recommend cough meds for infants. Also, until you can get her in to see her pedi, try letting her sleep in a bouncy seat or try to elevate the head of her bed, this may help her sinuses to drain a little better and maybe you all can get some better sleep.

my 13 month old just got over a really bad cough and runny nose which ended up being RSV and pneumonia in one lobe of his right lung, and he had a right ear infection. i gave him about 1/4 the dose of cough suppressant just at night to help him rest, because they need to cough to get stuff out of their lungs. if the cough sounds really bad, or she has a fever, i would take her to the dr. we all get RSV, but when they're young is when it can turn to pneumonia, so mine ended up on an inhaler and antibiotic for the ear infection/possible pnuemonia. you might also raise the head of her bed with a phonebook. good luck!

Rub the baby vicks or adult vicks on her feet and then put socks on her. I have a 3 year old little girl and this really works. Something about all of the nerve endings in our feet. Try it. It may help. It works for me and my husband too when we are coughing.

Good Luck.

Although you should always seek the advice of your pediatrician FIRST because of the numerous possibilities as to the etiology of the cough/cold, if you are a well seasoned mom and confident in your self-diagnosis, I recommend Tylenol Cold. We give 4mL to our 27 pound 18 month old. Only use the Vicks at night and make certain to wash it off first thing in the morning. However, you should ALWAYS consult your pediatrician FIRST.

I feel your stress. My daughter, now two, would get terribly congested as an infant. I think I tried just about everything, including cough suppressants, before they were pulled from the shelves. If you are wanting to use a medicine, I would reccomend the little remedies brand. They are specially designed for tiny babies, and the recalls did not affect this partyicular brand. If you would like to try a more homeopathic approach, the best thing I found was to turn on a hot shower and sit in the bathroom with the baby. The steam tends to clear up little noses really well. A good tip for night issues is to tuck a pillow or a folded blanket under the baby's mattress at the head of her bed. It will elevate her head enough to let her little nose drain a little better, and hopefully let her sleep longer. The only other thing I can say is relax, and know that you are doing everything you can and as long as your baby is happy, and you are still sane, you are doing a fantastic job. You don't even have to stay sane the whole time!

Have you tried rubbing adult strength vicks salve on the BOTTOM OF HER FEET?
Don't know how or why, but it works in some kids to supress coughs.. Good luck!

I also used my "fry Daddy" and put water and a little vicks salve in the water as a vaporizer in the room when my little one (now 8) had pneumonia. It helped to do it that way when the humidifier wasn't enough.

Believe it or not, try putting regular Vicks on the bottoms of her feet at night and covering them with cotton socks...it sounds ridiculous but it works!!

I just read in a magazine to try honey. It said that the honey was almost as good as over-the-counter medicines. They said approx. one tablespoon for a toddler. Hope this helps.

Try making a tent with a sheet and running a vaporizer under it (device used to vaporize medicine for inhalation) and use the liguid vicks in the vaporizer. This always worked for me. I would do this over his crib, especially when he slept. It would clear him up in a day or two.

try giving her some honey, it will help coat her throat and the urge to cough won't be as bad.

Hi L., Keep nursing her as the breast milk is alkaline, and alkalinity it what keeps bacteria and viruses from multiplying. She still will be able to nurse with a stuffy nose. It is important to be careful with anything with camphor in it, and also menthyl. Camphor especially can be toxic. The bulb syringe is the best thing to use like you are doing. Stay away from any dairy or solid food during this time, as dairy is very mucus forming and will make her worse. B. S. RNCCM.

Is she nursing or on formula? If nursing, think about what you are eating that could cause congestion (wheat, dairy, corn). If on formula or milk consider changing to something else that, like goats milk.