When Your Child Gets the Common Cold

Although it may seem that your child gets a cold each year just as the temperatures are dropping, cold weather actually doesn't cause the common cold. Rather, the common cold is caused any one of approximately 200 viruses.

Luckily, though the common cold can hamper your child's normal activities for a while, it is rarely a serious condition. In fact, most colds don't even require a trip to the doctor's office.

The Cold Season
The cold season usually starts in early September and lasts until March or April. Some attribute this to the fact that September is the month when many children return to school. Also, as temperatures drop, children spend more time inside and in close proximity to one another, which helps spread the common cold.

Common Cold Symptoms

Two or three days after contact with a virus, your child will begin to exhibit symptoms of the common cold. These might include:
  • a loss of appetite
  • a runny nose
  • a slight fever
  • a sore throat
  • coughing
  • fatigue
  • headaches
  • muscle aches
  • sneezing
  • swelling of the sinus membranes.

Cold symptoms last anywhere between two and 14 days, but most people feel better within a week. If your child develops any of the following symptoms, consult your doctor:

  • blue lips, skin or fingernails
  • chest pain
  • coughing for more than 10 days
  • coughing that produces green or gray sputum
  • difficulty swallowing
  • ear pain
  • fever over 101° F
  • severe lethargy
  • severe sinus pain
  • severe throat pain
  • shaking chills
  • shortness of breath
  • tender, swollen glands.
These symptoms may indicate that the cold has led to a secondary infection that may require treatment with antibiotics.

Treatment for the Common Cold

The following home remedies can be helpful in alleviating cold symptoms:
  • acetaminophen
  • bed rest
  • cool-mist humidifier
  • cough drops or hard candy for older children
  • gargling with warm salt water
  • petroleum jelly for a raw nose
  • plenty of fluids, particularly hot liquids
  • saltwater drops in the nostrils.
Some people find relief from over-the-counter cold medications, including decongestants and antihistamines.

Common Cold Prevention

The cold is most commonly spread through contact with droplets that are expelled when an infected person coughs or sneezes. A person can contract the common cold by inhaling contaminated droplets or by touching items that have come into contact with the saliva or mucous of an infected person. Touching the eyes or nose after touching an infected surface is a common way to get a cold.

Here are some tips for preventing the common cold:

  • If you suspect someone has a cold, try to restrict your child's exposure to that person.
  • Teach your children to avoid touching their eyes and noses.
  • The most effective way to prevent your children from getting the common cold is to encourage them to wash their hands frequently.
  • When your own child has a cold, teach him to cough or sneeze into a tissue and then throw it away to prevent spreading the cold to other children.

Resources

Dowshen, Steve (reviewed 2004). Common Cold. Retrieved Sept. 6, 2007, from the Kids Health Web site: http://www.kidshealth.org/parent/infections/common/cold.html.

Mayo Clinic Staff (2007). Common Cold. Retrieved Sept. 6, 2007, from the Mayo Clinic Web site: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/common-cold/DS00056.