So i have a 14 month old son. He woke up a few days ago sort of congested a bit of a runny nose (clear). No one has been around him sick (he is home with my Mom during the day- so I just thought it was teething related. Two days ago he started with a cough, and really runny nose (yellow-y). I figured he must of caught a cold from his older brother that attends school. Well I didn't want to automatically give him cough meds (first of all idk if he is even old enough if he isn't then what?! ) and secondly because I thought maybe I should let it run its course and not give him meds right off the bat! He has a wellness check next Wednesday. He is happy, acting normal, eating, playing.. just wakes up with a cough and has it through out the day!
thanks Momma's (& Daddies too :)
Cough medicines aren't generally recommended for young kids. The cough is there for a reason, suppressing it may prolong his sickness.
If he is coughing a bunch at night, rub some Vicks Vapor Rub on his feet and put socks on him. We usually do this and run a cool mist humidifier. Works like a charm!
My opinion is I could not have got thru the 1st 6 years of my kids lives without using cough medicine. I am so glad the whole "no meds before 6" came out after mine were past 6 yrs old. I have never been one to just give meds & I was always careful about giving the right dose. These new rules were put out because so many kids were given the wrong meds dose they decided to tell all parents not to medicate. Crazy!
I would try to keep my kids off meds all day - coughing is needed, they need to cough it up. So unless they were exhausted from coughing & feeling terrible, no meds during the day. Then would give robitussin DM at night to help thin the mucus & suppress that awful urge to cough all night. This helped them get much needed sleep.
I would also do vicks vaporub on their chests. Raise their mattress at their head by putting a phone book under the mattress where their pillow is. This helps them breathe easier.
Good luck!
If he is happy, acting normal, eating and playing without running a fever....let the cold run its course. If anything changes...call the Dr.
my son responded well to Hylands Cold and Cough. It's homeopathic. i'm not a big homeopathic person but i figured it was worth a shot and it worked well. the teeth tablets always seemed to work so i thought why not try the cold medicine as well. also used the Johnson & Johnson Vapor Bath bubble bath before bed. Baby vicks vapor rub smells better than the regular vicks vapor rub and works good too. it the cough persists i would see the dr. good thing you already have an appt.
I agree that meds were taken away wrongly due to some parents that can't follow directions. Now all kids get to suffer. Our kids were just sick. I found a little colds honey elixer that is new and for ages 1-4. It coats the throat and helped our 2 & 4 yr olds. Our ped allowed our son at almost 3 to have small doses of Delsym because of his weight. I also found a pediasure that's for 4 and up. Our ped also recomended honey before bed to coat the throat. I'd try the honey elixer and then ask the doc when you go. Some are more liberal than others. Sleeping with a humidifier helps too.
My 15 month old just went through a coughing period. He would cough at night for a few days, it kept getting worse and his sleep was being disrupted. I took him to the pedi to check for bronchitis/infection and/or ear infection as these are common with colds and coughs. All was clear, but she did recommend to give him Mucinex 2x per day, once at night and once in the morning. He responded to it with the first dose and his cough went away within about 5 days. We also gave him a breathing treatment (albuteral) 2 per day, which has been helpful in the past to prevent bronchitis and help wtih cough. All the cough medicines will say not to use it in kids under 4, but the pedi ok'ed it at a lower dose (1/2 tspn - 2/5ml).
Hope your little one feels better soon!
I would wait until his check up and ask the dr about it. When my daughter was younger and got sick I would just use Vicks Vapor Rub and a humidifier and let the illness run its course. I believe most cough medicines are made for children ages 6 and up.
You can take him to urgent care, and the doc will prescribe something based on his weight. Or you can try to the homeopathic stuff. I found a homeopathiic cough syrup at Safeway, Chestal's or something like that, and it worked great! It is OK for any age. If he is fine other than the cough, start with that. If the cough gets much worse, and starts to interfere with his daily routine, or if other symptoms crop up or get worse, then take him to urgent care.
To be honest, I would stay clear of any cough medicines! Especially for infants!! I would try to go the natural route and give him lots of fluids, get some saline solution for his nose(it does wonders!), also a humidifier helps also and just keep an eye on it. Obviously if he's hacking then i would call your DR. but if he's acting normal, then i wouldn't give him cough meds!
I hope he gets better soon!
I have used a homeopathic cough medicine. I also use (local) honey, which is the base for said medicine. Studies have shown honey to be more effective than some meds. My son is fine, buy has a very croupy cough (just went to doc) and I give him the homeopathic stuff and a spoonful of honey.
No OTC meds till child is 6 years old or older & used as directed...
please don't self-medicate your child....& don't wait for that appt next week! Call the dr & ask what you should do! It's the easiest & safest course.
