During active tooth growth, children often experience nasal congestion and coughing. Parents don’t know how to deal with this situation.

The mucous membranes are located next to the gums, so when they swell, neighboring tissues also suffer, they also become inflamed and cause discomfort.

Also, at the time when the baby begins to move the teeth, the mother’s milk contains fewer antibodies that resist pathogens. It can be difficult to immediately understand whether a tooth is preparing to appear, or whether it is a cold.

For any unpleasant symptoms, you must call a doctor to examine the child and determine the cause. The respiratory organs through coughing remove dirt, viruses and mucus. Only a pediatrician can hear how the lungs work and correctly determine the diagnosis.

The reasons

All children cut their teeth differently. This process practically does not interfere with some, while others suffer from the mass of unpleasant symptoms that accompany this process. The gums open up and become sensitive to touch and temperature.

Sometimes several teeth grow at once. Incisors and canines are especially painful. Replacing milk teeth with permanent ones no longer torments the child so much, because the immune system is already ready to face many pathogens.

During teething, a runny nose and cough occurs for several reasons.

1. In the mouth and nose, the blood supplies the tissues with oxygen more actively, and this leads to an increase in the appearance of mucus, which leads to a runny nose. Snot goes from the nose to the throat and irritates it. All this lasts until a tooth appears from under the gum.
2. Also at this time, saliva is actively produced, it irritates the throat, and can enter the respiratory tract and nose. It contains antibacterial fragments that speed up the healing process and prevent microbes from multiplying. Profuse drooling can cause irritation in and around the lips and redness of the cheeks and chin.
3. Often children at this time become moody and cry a lot, hence the nasal congestion and red throat from screaming.
4. As teeth grow, the immune system is more vulnerable, so that the child can catch a cold. Then, in addition to a cough and a runny nose, a temperature will appear, as well as irritation of the gastrointestinal tract.

Usually these unpleasant symptoms appear due to the abundant secretion of mucus, so the child coughs and wipes his nose, this is a normal process for the body.

Do I need to treat

A wet cough speaks of the correct functioning of the body, because pathogens and unnecessary fragments come out with sputum. The snot also flushes bacteria and debris out of the nose.

If there is no temperature, the child is helped by washing the nose, there is no plaque in the throat, then there is no need to treat a cough and runny nose at the time of teething. It is important to help the child get through this period easier so that sleep patterns are not disturbed.

But this does not mean that you can weaken control over the child’s environment and not monitor the temperature around. Immunity is overwhelmed, so an infected person nearby can cause the development of a cold.

It is not necessary to treat cough and snot during teething if parents see the following signs:

• the gums are swollen, become red, a white trace from the tooth is visible;
• more saliva than usual;
• snot liquid and transparent;
• a slight fever that does not torment the child;
• tearfulness and irritability;
• poor sleep;
• refusal to eat;
• slight diarrhea;
• the child pulls everything into his mouth to scratch his gums, chew on the nipple;
• scratching the cheeks and ears.

If at the same time the child is playing, running or crawling briskly, there is no shortness of breath – you can not worry. The throat may be red but not swollen, and the cough is small, usually when lying down and upon waking.

But there are signs that should prompt you to call a doctor:

• a temperature jump above 38 degrees, especially if it does not pass for more than three days;
• lethargy, restless behavior;
• red throat with soreness;
• hoarse breathing;
• the color of the snot turned green;
• refusal to drink and eat;
• persistent cough with short interruptions;
• after the appearance of the tooth, even mild symptoms remained.

Knowing how to distinguish between the signs of a teething and a cold can help you make the decision to call a doctor faster.

How to help a child

To make this period more comfortable for the child, it is necessary to create a special regime that will make it easier to provide assistance. The rules for this are simple:

• humidity should be at least 60%, and the temperature should be about 20 degrees;
• constantly ventilate the room;
• instill a solution of salt, you can remove mucus with an aspirator;
• offer a lot to drink, you can drink compotes and teas, warm milk;
• use gum massage and teethers;
• raise one end of the mattress, where the baby’s head is located, so that it is easier for mucus to drain down and not accumulate in the nose;
• at night, turn the child on different sides so that the nose cleans itself;
• do not let saliva and snot be on the skin;
• smear irritated areas with an emollient cream for children;
• gums can be smeared with gels and ointments to facilitate tooth exit, the doctor may recommend taking ibuprofen or paracetamol;
• saturate the diet with fruits and vegetables as much as possible for a large amount of vitamins.

Sometimes parents offer their child a cloth that is soaked in a solution of chamomile as help. Now there are a lot of devices that can be frozen and given to a child to put in his mouth and chew.

There are also soft brushes that the parent puts on his finger and so massages the gums of the child. The pain relief gel must be used as directed to avoid causing side effects.

All these measures will help to more comfortably cope with the difficult moment of the appearance of teeth and even get rid of unpleasant symptoms at the initial stage.

A child’s teeth grow up to three years old. This is often unpleasant, especially in the first year. Cough and runny nose in this state is the norm, but parents must ensure that there are no complications and dangerous signs of a serious illness.