Nature has created man so that he must breathe with his nose, not his mouth. Kids can breathe through their mouths quite hard. They can sniffle, cough, worry.
Children’s doctors are sure that if the toddler has normal breathing, then mom should not worry and should not “delve” into the delicate mucous membrane of his nose. If a baby in a dream breathes calmly, no sniffing is heard, and his mouth is closed, therefore, everything is in order with him. But if you hear how the child sniffs, confused breathing, if he is restless, then his nose must be released.
We learn from this article how to clean the nose of a newborn to do everything right and not harm the baby.
Natural processes
Due to the physiological characteristics of the body, one can often notice nasal congestion in babies. If you do not know how to properly carry out the procedure for cleaning the nose, or neglect such actions, unpleasant and serious complications may occur.
It should be borne in mind that there are some factors that contribute to the strengthening of signs of congestion. Due to their effects in the baby’s nose, in addition to mucus, signs of severe swelling of the tissues appear, and crusts can form.
In the first week of life, a physiological feature is considered normal. During this period, the baby gets used to new living conditions: he learns to breathe air. The baby can often sneeze, but it's not scary, because in this way it gets rid of excess mucus.
When is it necessary to clean the nose of a newborn?
But if time passes and the baby breathes with obvious problems, this may be evidence that either the child’s room has very dry air or there are irritants in it (perfumes, plant pollen, dust, cigarette smoke).
Sometimes the appearance of a runny nose in a newborn is a consequence of the development of a viral disease. In addition, this factor has a direct relationship with low humidity. The mucous membrane dries up, becomes covered with small crusts, because of which it does not have the ability to withstand pathogens.
And yet, regardless of which of the mentioned factors leads to the formation of gnats or to the symptoms of a cold, regular cleaning of the nasal passages should be added to the general crumb regime. If this is neglected, then after a short time the baby’s delicate tissue will bleed due to drying out, or a significant amount of mucus will create discomfort for the baby during meals or sleep.
We will figure out how to properly clean the nose of a newborn.
How to clean the nose of the baby: sticks and pears
Any exposure technique will depend on which tool is selected. To understand which of the variety of approaches will be the most optimal, the degree of nasal congestion should be assessed in advance. How and how to clean the nose of a newborn so as not to harm the baby? As a rule, such products are used at home:
- Cotton buds: it is better to choose them on a plastic basis, without taking into account the wooden. They have an average degree of purification, and there is a rather high risk of damaging the mucosa of the peanut. If mom acts carelessly, instead of brushing her nose, she will push the mucus much deeper.
- Syringes or pears: these tools should have soft tips made of silicone or rubber, so as not to damage the delicate mucous membranes. The degree of purification is quite good, and they do not injure tissue.
How to clean the nose of the baby: aspirators and turunduchki
What else and how to clean the nose of a newborn? There are also such assistants:
- Wadded turunduchki: you do not need to make them yourself, it is better to buy a finished product and, layered to the required size, roll like a cone. The degree of purification is average - mom can easily remove the boogers and crusts with them.
- Aspirators. There are several types: electronic, mechanical and vacuum, characterized by an increased degree of purification (and the strength of the suction of mucus can be adjusted). Such products are safe for the mucosa, but their cost is quite high.
Thus, it becomes clear that there are effective devices that are an answer to the question of how to clean the nose of a newborn baby. They are the ones who do the job perfectly. Moms no longer need to clean their noses, as before, with their mouths. After all, there are bacteria in the mucus that can trigger a certain pathological process in the mother’s mouth.
Preliminary Actions
To understand how to clean the nose of a newborn from snot, and to do everything efficiently, it will be enough to perform the following manipulations. First you need to soften the seals that look like crusts. This is done as follows: drip two drops of saline into each nostril. In this case, the baby must be laid back and a little to lay back his head.
If the baby starts sneezing, you don’t need to worry: the nose is so clean. Sprays do not need to be applied, because the force of the jet can violate the integrity of the tissue. Another fairly good way to soften mucus is a warm bath. And bathing the baby is just before the procedure. And then you need to fix the baby’s head with towels or ask someone to hold the baby. It will only be enough to wait a couple of minutes for the softening method to begin to work, and begin to use one of the approaches.
We carry out manipulation with the help of turundochki and sticks
Turundochki, in fact, are ordinary flagella. How to clean the nose of a newborn with a cotton flagellum? Carefully insert it into the baby's nasal passage, crank it and pull it out. Do this until the flagellum remains clean. Now you can go to the second nostril. To facilitate the process, you can drip on the flagella with warm oil.
Now we know how to use a flagellum to clean the nose of a newborn. Chopsticks act in the same way, changing them regularly.
If you want to use a pear, then it should be sterilized by scalding with boiling water. When it has already dried and cooled, release air from it, insert it into the nasal passage and let it go so that it can absorb mucus. Now the product must be washed, if necessary, repeat or begin to perform the same actions from the second nostril. This entire procedure must be carried out with extreme caution so as not to blow air into the baby’s nose.
If you want to use an aspirator, you should sterilize the device, fine-tune the suction force by applying a tip to your own palm. Insert a tube into the baby's nasal passage, direct it to the back of the larynx and start the device. Most often, the tubes of the aspirators are transparent, so that it is possible to assess how clean the nose is. The same actions are performed from the second nostril. At the end of the procedure, the baby's nasal passages are lubricated with warmed baby oil. This relieves irritation and retains the result longer.
How often should the procedure be performed?
If the question of how to clean the nose of a newborn baby is already more or less clear, then you need to get an answer to another one: "How often should this be done?" There are no permanent rules in this matter.
Parents need to independently monitor how the little one feels, what his breathing is and how clogged his nose. As soon as they see that the baby is sniffing, snot is flowing, cleaning should begin. If the crumbs do not have a cold, then it will be quite enough to clean the nose in the morning and evening.
What is strictly forbidden to do when cleaning the nose of a peanut
If there is a risk of mucosal damage, doctors prohibit the use of cotton buds. Especially if they are made at home. And fleece, wound on a match, can remain with the baby in the nose.
If the nose is dry crust, they do not need to be cleaned with an aspirator.
During this procedure, you should keep everything at hand and do not leave the child for a minute. After all, it may happen that mom turns away literally for a moment, and the baby has already fallen. If the mother needs to move away, it is better to put the child in a crib or pick him up.
Now we know how to clean the nose of a newborn. Every mother should be very attentive to the health of her baby. You can not ignore the sniffling and nasal congestion, because such a condition can be a harbinger of a chronic disease.
On the other hand, it is not necessary due to the usual curiosity and with the aim of prevention to climb into the nose to the tart. While nothing bothers him, one should not once again injure the mucous membrane. Especially if you understand that this baby is unnerving.