A toddler with a cold is a tough situation for both parent and child, especially if your toddler is not verbal enough to let you know how she feels. Toddler cold remedies involves mostly home-care measures with minimal exposure to medications. If your toddler's cold symptoms linger for more than 3 days or take a turn for the worse, bring her to her pediatrician for an examination. Otherwise, making your toddler comfortable is often the primary goal during cold season.
Step 1
Give your toddler ibuprofen to bring down a fever that is associated with his cold. Follow the directions on the packaging, usually mandated by the child's weight, or heed the dosing advice of your pediatrician.
Step 2
Remove excess mucous from your child's nose with a nasal bulb aspirator. Toddlers often do not yet know how to blow their noses properly. An aspirator can help clear small noses to make sleeping and breathing easier.
Step 3
Moisten dry nasal passages and loosen mucous by giving your toddler non-medicated saline drops in her nose. Saline nasal drops and sprays are available at pharmacies and supermarkets. Use 2 to 3 drops at bedtime to relieve nasal congestion.
Step 4
Run a warm bath to soothe your toddler when he's got a cold. The steam from the bath will open up nasal passages, and the warmth may relieve body aches associated with a cold. If your toddler feels well enough to play, let him have some fun with bath toys.
Step 5
Turn on a humidifier in your toddler's bedroom while she sleeps. The added humidity can help relieve a sore throat and contribute to freer breathing.
Step 6
Offer your toddler sugar-free drinks throughout the day to keep him hydrated. If your youngster is still nursing, allow him to nurse as much as he wants while the cold runs its course. The comfort, as well as the added immunity from breast milk, will be beneficial to him.
Step 7
Feed your small child chicken noodle soup for lunch or dinner if she will eat it. The idea of chicken soup being a cure for illness is mainly an old wives' tale, but as the medical team from Kidshealth explains, there is some truth to it. One of the components of chicken soup is cysteine. This amino acid makes mucous thinner, helping kids and adults breathe more easily.
Things You'll Need
- Ibuprofen
- Nasal aspirator
- Saline nasal drops
- Humidifier
- Chicken soup
