Babies and Colds

Babies tend to get more colds than adults for a few different reasons. One reason is that babies' immune systems are immature which makes them more vulnerable to illness. Also, your baby can develop immunity to only one of more than 200 different viruses that cause the common cold at a time. Just try to think of all the different colds you've had in your lifetime. As your baby grows, she's likely to be exploring a lot and touching everything in sight, so it's easy for her to pick up a cold virus on her hands. Then all she has to do is put her fingers in her mouth or nose or rub her eyes, and the virus will get a chance to set up shop! Your baby may get sick more often during the fall and winter months because cold air and indoor heating dry out her nasal membranes which makes it easier for a cold virus to get a foothold in there. She also spends more time stuck inside during cold weather, where viruses can spread more easily from one person to another. Most children get between six and ten colds per year. For families who have children in daycare or school, the number of colds can reach up to 12 per year! The average adult usually gets between two and four colds a year.

So if you think your little one is getting sick more often than she should be, you're probably worrying over nothing. Babies get sick more than adults. They will grow out of it like they do nearly everything else. Angelina has been sick four times since she was born. I'm learning to not let it bother me so much. She got really sick when she was only a month old. That's what scared me so much, because she ended up in the hospital. The doctor thought it was RSV at first, but we later found out it was bronchitis. She was in the hospital for four days. That was horrible. So every time she has even gotten a runny nose since then, I panic. I am learning to stop doing that.

There are different ways to know if you should call the doctor when your baby is sick.

If your child is younger than three months, you should call the doctor at the first sign of illness, especially if your baby has a fever higher than 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit (taken rectally) or a cough. If your baby is between three and six months, the doctor may want you to call if her temperature reaches 101 degrees Fahrenheit. If she's over six months, the doctor may tell you to wait until her temperature reaches 103 degrees Fahrenheit.

No matter what your baby's age, call he doctor if you notice any of the following:

1. Your baby takes a turn for the worse instead of starting to get better after five to seven days, or her cold symptoms last for more than 14 days.

2. Her cough worsens and she's wheezing or gasping. These symptoms could be a sign of pneumonia or RSV (respiratory syncytial virus), a fairly common but potentially serious respiratory illness for babies under one year of age.

3. She cries when sucking during a feeding or pulls and rubs her ear. This could be a sign of an ear infection, which can be very painful (especially for babies).

With winter coming, this information should come in handy for many parents out there.

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