Cold Symptoms in Babies and Young children

It is very common for young children to have upper respiratory infections, also known as common cold, more than any other illness. In fact, a baby can have as many as 6 to 10 colds before they reach 2 years of age.

If your child is placed in childcare, or if there are older children at home, it is not uncommon for her to have 6 to 12 cold and cough a year.

When children are in close proximity, cold spread very easily among the children, and this frequency is creating a lot of worries and stress to the parents.

The baby and child may catch the cold from infected individual from their sneeze and cough, or when the baby and child touches contaminated surfaces infected with the cold virus, and subsequently transfer the virus through rubbing their eyes or touching their nose and mouth.

For baby, they need some time before their immune system will be fully developed. While it takes only about 4 to 5 days for adolescent to recover from common cold, it is not unusual that it may take as long as 2 weeks before your baby recovers from the cold.

The common cold is caused by viruses. An infected individual is more contagious during the first 2 to 3 days of displaying the cold symptoms. Some of the signs and symptoms of common cold in infants and young children are as follows:

Clear, runny discharge
Congested nose
Sneezing
Cough
Watery eyes
Mild fever of less than 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit or less than 38 degrees Celsius
Low appetite
Lower energy, mild fatigue
Itchy or Sore throat, difficulty in swallowing

A common cold can develop into more complicated illnesses such as ear infection, pneumonia and croup. Please do take note to seek immediate medical attention if your baby or child display below signs or symptoms:

Baby below 3 months old, newborns tend to develop complications quickly
Fever of higher than 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit or 38 degrees Celsius
Fever that prolong for more than 1 day for toddlers younger than 2 years of age or 3 days for kids more than 3 years old
Greenish or yellowish nasal discharge for a few days
Not drinking enough fluids, or difficulty in drinking or nursing
Fewer urination than normal, sign of dehydration
Trouble breathing
Seizure
Persistent cough for a week with medication or cough that worsen
Pain in the ear, keep on tugging her ear
Bloody stool
Lethargic
Stiff neck
Constant crying, is irritable