Rainbow Health Education

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 Common Cold:

What is the common cold?

The common cold is a respiratory illness that is caused by a virus. There is no medicine that will make the cold go away, but there are ways to make your child feel better.

What are the symptoms of the common cold?

  • Runny or stuffy nose
  • Cough
  • Feeling tired
  • Fever

    • Home care

    Gently clean your child's nose with tissues or a bulb syringe. Use saline drops (Ayr®) to thin mucus before suctioning, especially before feeding or sleeping.

    Try a cool-mist humidifier. This may decrease congestion. Do not use a warm water humidifier because your child may be burned if the water is spilled.

    If your child seems to have a mild illness and is not taking in as much by mouth, try increasing fluid intake by offering small amounts more often.

  • For children under one year of age, give 1-2 ounces of formula, breast milk, or rehydration therapy (e.g. Pedialyte® or Kaolectrolyte®) every 30 minutes to an hour.
  • Do not give children under 2 large amounts of water.
  • Older children who are more severely dehydrated (see warning signs) should be given only rehydration therapy.

    • Use acetaminophen (Tylenol®, Tempra®, or Panadol®) or ibuprofen (Advil®, Motrin®) for fever, pain, and discomfort. Avoid ibuprofen if your child is dehydrated or unable to take anything by mouth.

    Do not use aspirin because of the increased risk of Reye's Syndrome with certain infections.

    Follow the package instructions to determine the appropriate dose by your child's WEIGHT or age for acetaminophen or ibuprofen.

    Prevention

    Frequent handwashing, especially upon returning home and before eating will decrease the frequency of illnesses.

    Warning signs - Call our office for advice if:

    Your child is not able to keep down fluids, call our office now.

    Your child has any signs of dehydration such as no tears while crying, dry lips and mouth, fewer wet diapers (around 6 per day is normal), or sunken eyes, call our office now.

    Your child is less than 2 months old and has a temperature greater than 100.4 degrees F, call our office now.

    Your child is older than 6 months and has a temperature greater than 102.5 degrees F, call our office now.

    Your child is very fussy or sleepy and hard to wake up, call our office now.

    Your child has a red or purple rash that does not turn pale briefly after pressing on it, call our office now.

    You have any questions or concerns, or if you have any doubts about the severity of your child's symptoms, call our office now.