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Colds, Coughs and Blocked Noses in Babies: Comfort and Warning Signs

How to ease a baby's cold safely, what to avoid, and the signs that need urgent medical attention.

Before you use this guide: This is general educational information, not an individual medical assessment. We do not identify a clinician reviewer on this page, so please confirm personal health decisions with your doctor, midwife or paediatrician.

Babies catch a lot of colds, often eight or more in a year, especially once they meet other children. Most colds are mild and clear up within one to two weeks, although a cough can linger for up to three weeks. However, because babies breathe mainly through their noses, a blocked nose can make feeding and sleeping hard.

Ways to ease a cold

• Offer feeds more often, in smaller amounts. Babies with blocked noses tire quickly when feeding.
• Use saline (salt water) nose drops or spray before feeds to loosen mucus, as advised on the label, and gently clear the nose if needed.
• Keep your baby upright in your arms for a while after feeds.
• Keep the room comfortably warm and not too dry. A steamy bathroom can help briefly. If you use a humidifier, use a cool-mist one and clean it often.
• Keep your home smoke-free.
• Wash your hands often and wipe away nasal secretions to prevent spreading.

What to avoid

• Over-the-counter cough and cold medicines should not be given to babies or young children unless a doctor advises it.
• Do not give honey to babies under one year.
• Do not use vapour rubs, essential oils or menthol products on young babies unless the label says they are suitable.
• Do not raise the head of your baby's cot or use pillows to ease congestion, because this is not safe sleep. Keep your baby flat on their back.

Seek urgent medical help if your baby has

• Fast or laboured breathing, grunting, flaring nostrils, or the skin sucking in under or between the ribs
• Blue or grey colour around the lips or face, or pauses in breathing
• A temperature of 38°C or higher if your baby is under three months old
• Severe difficulty feeding, or fewer wet nappies than usual
• Unusual drowsiness, floppiness or irritability, or being hard to wake
• A barking cough or noisy breathing (stridor) when calm

See a doctor soon if

• A cold lasts longer than about 10 days or gets worse after seeming to improve
• There is ear pulling, or discharge from the ear
• A fever lasts more than two or three days
• You are worried. You know your baby best.

Colds in very young babies, especially those under six months, can sometimes lead to bronchiolitis, a chest infection with fast breathing, wheeze and difficulty feeding. If you suspect this, get medical advice the same day.

This content is for general information only and is not medical advice. Every pregnancy and every baby is different. Always talk to your doctor, midwife or paediatrician about your own situation, and seek urgent care if you are worried.