Babies can't blow their noses, and their tiny nasal passages make even the smallest amount of congestion an uncomfortable situation. It's more difficult for stuffy babies to bottle feed because they're less able to breathe through their noses as they drink. If your baby is congested, you can use a nasal aspirator, also called a bulb syringe, to flush your baby's nasal passages and suck out congestion-causing mucous. So long as your baby can still breathe and isn't showing other signs of sickness, like fever or lethargy, he should be perfectly fine, according to Family Education.
Step 1
Plan to aspirate your baby's nose 20 to 30 minutes before feeding time, according to Family Education. This will help your baby drink more efficiently and with less breathing difficulty.
Step 2
Lay down a towel and place your baby on it. Squeeze the ball end of the aspirator and place the tip into a container of saline solution. Release the bulb to suck up the saline.
Step 3
Use the aspirator to add a few drops of saline to each nostril. Take care not to squirt the saline up your baby's nose, but to gently drip it in. Allow the saline to loosen the mucous for a few seconds to a minute.
Step 4
Squeeze the excess saline out of the ball syringe.
Step 5
Squeeze the ball end of the aspirator again. Place the narrow tip about 1/4 inch into your baby's nostril and let go of the ball to create suction. The suction will draw the mucous out of your baby's nose. Repeat as many times as necessary until you've removed as much mucous as you can.
Step 6
Suck up and spray out 100 degree water to clean the mucous out of the aspirator, according to Mom's Medicine Chest. Wipe off the outside of the aspirator with rubbing alcohol and allow it to air dry.
Things You'll Need
- Nasal aspirator
- Saline solution
- Towel
- Rubbing alcohol
