Breast milk or breast milk is the best intake, which must be sought to be given especially in the first 6 months of life of the Little One. Unfortunately, this process does not always go according to plan. There are times when a baby is exposed to a cold due to one thing or another, so the breastfeeding process has obstacles.
However, even if the baby is having a cold, the breastfeeding process should be endeavored to continue. This is because breast milk can function as an antibody for the baby, which later served to build the immune system so that your child is not easily attacked by diseases later in life.
Tips on breastfeeding a cold baby
So that the breastfeeding process continues to run optimally even though the baby is exposed to colds, here are some tips that you can apply:
Adjust the position of the baby
Position the baby slightly upward when breastfeeding, or use the down under position. This is the position of the mother lying on top of the baby, where the baby’s stomach and the mother’s stomach meet each other. When sleeping, try to position the baby a little bit high. For this, you can provide additional pillows on the baby’s head.
Feed as often as possible
Give milk to babies as often as possible. The goal is that he can get adequate antibodies to fight the disease, in this case a cold.
So, even if the baby sucks only a little milk, you can still work around this by increasing the frequency of breastfeeding. With this, the supply of breast milk that your child gets will not be much different from the days when he was healthy.
Clean the baby’s nose before suckling
Before breastfeeding, clean the mucus from the baby’s nose by gently sucking it. If that is not possible, you can use saline water or breast milk to clean your little nose. This is done so that the baby feels comfortable so that the breastfeeding process becomes smoother.
Use a humidifier
Humidifier works to regulate the humidity level of the room. Put this tool in the room where the baby sleeps to thin mucus (snot) from the nose of the little guy.
If you don’t have a humidifier, you can work around this by using a bowl of hot water mixed with warm oil, such as eucalyptus oil. The aroma will spread to the air and can relieve nasal congestion, both in adults and infants.
Do not give up to continue to give breast milk even though the baby is having a cold. Also, do not forget to pump breast milk regularly so that your breasts are not full and experience symptoms that interfere with the process of breastfeeding.
If the above methods still make it difficult for a cold baby to breastfeed, do not hesitate to consult further with your doctor or lactation consultant. This is done so that your child can still get an adequate supply of breast milk, so that the nutritional needs continue to be met every day.