When Your Baby Is Sick - Tips for How to Care for Your Baby's Cold

When your baby has a cold, it can often mean long hours of comforting and holding a fussy baby. Caring for a baby with a cold can be anywhere from a few days to a week or more of dealing with a runny nose, coughing, sneezing and sleepless nights. Every parent wants to be able to speed up the process of getting better and see their baby back to their happy, cheerful self. In this article, we will cover some of the basics for caring for your baby's cold to help getting her feeling better.

1. Fever- Be sure to keep a close eye on your baby's temperature for signs of a fever. Keep a good baby thermometer on hand that helps make it simple and easy for monitoring your child's temperature. Check with your pediatrician about the appropriate dosage to bring down a fever with Infant Tylenol or Motrin. Also, depending on the age of your baby, you may want to call your doctor if your baby's temperature reaches between 101 and 103, to determine the best course of action for ruling out other illnesses or infection. Keep track of medication dosages and how often you are giving your baby medication. This is important to avoid overdosing as well as it may be something you'll need to know if you need to talk to your doctor.

2. Doctor's Office Phone Number- Keep your pediatrician's or the on-call nurse's phone number handy so you can easily find it when your baby is sick. Having a sick baby can be stressful, so the last thing you want to do is spend time searching for a phone number.

3. Keep Baby Hydrated- If your baby is vomiting, has diarrhea or a fever, it will be very important to make sure your baby is drinking plenty of breast milk, formula or water. Diarrhea in babies can dehydrate a baby, so be sure to keep an eye on how many wet diapers your baby has when she is sick. If your baby seems to have an upset stomach and is eating solids, you will want to keep her diet limited to the BRAT diet (bananas, rice, applesauce and toast).

4. Dealing with congestion- If your baby has a cough or runny nose, you can use a humidifier in her room at night to help calm her cough and to sleep better at night. You might also want to suction her nose several times a day or check with your pediatrician about using a decongestant.

5. Your Patience and Love- Often what a sick baby wants most is to snuggle up with mom and dad. Most babies will want to be held more than when they are sick. Part of caring for your baby when she has a cold is just helping make baby comfortable until she starts to feel better.