Increasing Your Baby's Fluid Intake will Help Fight Infection
Obie Editorial Team
When your baby comes down with a common cold, you might feel at a loss for home remedies. Many of the common remedies we use as adults are unsafe to try on infants. While you should always check with your doctor before trying anything new with your baby, one home remedy translates well from adults to babies. When your baby is sick, try increasing his or her fluid intake.
By increasing the amount of fluids your baby drinks during a cold, you'll move the virus through more quickly. With the pediatrician's approval, double the amount of fluids in your baby's diet during the sickness. One common misconception is that cow's milk increases congestion during a cold and should be avoided. This may be true, but don't change your baby's diet if he or she is used to drinking cow's milk. Instead, continue your baby's normal diet and treat the congestion separately.
Though giving your infant water is not recommended in general, you could talk to your doctor about the option when your baby gets sick. Expert opinions vary, but some research shows that water might be a good way to treat the common cold in babies. However, confirm the possible benefits and risks based on your baby's age and eating habits before trying it. Many studies show that water actually makes it harder for a baby's body to extract the needed nutrients from breast milk or formula.
If your baby is very young, there's a good chance he or she is only drinking formula anyway, so increasing fluid intake is as easy is increasing the amount of for you're giving him or her. Obviously, for children who have moved on to solid foods, there is a delicate balance you must maintain. Increasing fluid intake will help cute the illness, but you need to ,are sure the amount doesn't interfere with your child's levels of hunger and desire to eat. Fluids are important, but food and proper nutrition are equally so.
Increasing fluid intake is one of the easiest home remedies for any minor illness, so as long as you have your baby's pediatrician's approval, try washing out the virus that way. Babies are especially susceptible to illnesses and viruses because their immune system is not fully developed, so having easy and safe treatment ideas on hand for the inevitable onset will help him or her recover more smoothly and quickly.
Source: Sara Taylor et al: Fluid, Electrolytes, and Nutrition: Minutes Matter. Advances in Neonatal Care Volume 10 Issue 5 pp 248–255 October 2010
By increasing the amount of fluids your baby drinks during a cold, you'll move the virus through more quickly. With the pediatrician's approval, double the amount of fluids in your baby's diet during the sickness. One common misconception is that cow's milk increases congestion during a cold and should be avoided. This may be true, but don't change your baby's diet if he or she is used to drinking cow's milk. Instead, continue your baby's normal diet and treat the congestion separately.
Though giving your infant water is not recommended in general, you could talk to your doctor about the option when your baby gets sick. Expert opinions vary, but some research shows that water might be a good way to treat the common cold in babies. However, confirm the possible benefits and risks based on your baby's age and eating habits before trying it. Many studies show that water actually makes it harder for a baby's body to extract the needed nutrients from breast milk or formula.
If your baby is very young, there's a good chance he or she is only drinking formula anyway, so increasing fluid intake is as easy is increasing the amount of for you're giving him or her. Obviously, for children who have moved on to solid foods, there is a delicate balance you must maintain. Increasing fluid intake will help cute the illness, but you need to ,are sure the amount doesn't interfere with your child's levels of hunger and desire to eat. Fluids are important, but food and proper nutrition are equally so.
Increasing fluid intake is one of the easiest home remedies for any minor illness, so as long as you have your baby's pediatrician's approval, try washing out the virus that way. Babies are especially susceptible to illnesses and viruses because their immune system is not fully developed, so having easy and safe treatment ideas on hand for the inevitable onset will help him or her recover more smoothly and quickly.
Source: Sara Taylor et al: Fluid, Electrolytes, and Nutrition: Minutes Matter. Advances in Neonatal Care Volume 10 Issue 5 pp 248–255 October 2010
