My baby has a cough and catarrh, how do I manage it?

In the first year of life, most babies will have six to eight viral upper respiratory tract infections- aka “colds”

The critical management goals things include feeding, hydration and supportive care. To ensure the baby can continue to breastfeed, we encourage taking the baby into a steamed bathroom or even - if you can assure safety- the kitchen for a few minutes to help clear their airways.

Saline drops when they are very young are useful to help clear the airways, and you can follow this with gentle suction using the suction bulb.

Vitamin C drops given at 40 mg for under five months and 50 mg in older infants will help aid recovery

A humidifier is encouraged when the cough is dominant especially when the air is dry- harmattan is notorious for coming with dry dust. We also encourage environmental manipulation- wet wiping the rooms where the baby sleeps or stays during the day and removing dusty rugs, carpets and curtains to clean or wash. The humidifier is especially useful at night.

Do not use chlorpheniramine, oxymetazoline or xylometazoline or any cough syrup. We discourage these medications especially because some can cause unusual reactions in some babies, or cause them to have rebound symptoms and worsen their course during treatment. Eucalyptus oil is unsafe under the age of two years and should not be used.

Continue breastfeeding and keep the baby hydrated because they tend to breathe through their mouths and will lose more fluids that way. One useful tip- breastfeed the baby in the steamed bathroom to reduce the struggle while feeding.