My 10 1/2 month old son has asthma and he coughs quite a bit during the night. Sometimes it wakes him up and sometimes it does not. I've hear that rubbing Vicks VapoRub on a child's feet at night and then putting socks on makes them stop coughing. Does anyone have any experience with this remedy? I am wondering if he is too young for this or if he could have any adverse reactions to it. Thank you in advance for your feedback. Merry Christmas!
Every child is different, and if he does have any health issues definitely check with your doctor. That said, used it on both of mine when they were babies that way and it did work well. Good luck, happy holidays.
I agree you should check with your doctor about doing anything major. The vicks shouldn't hurt him, I used it on my daughters feet at a younger age than your son. You may also want to think about putting a vaporizer in his room and talk to his doctor about a nebulizer. *The countdown begins: 24 days to Christmas!!!
If you go to Snopes.com it will dispute the myth about the vaporub on the feet and give you recommendations about suggested age uses. I hope your son feels better soon.
Hi Alana,,
Yes i've heard that ,but i don't know about a baby i'd call his DR.1st to make sure
Merry Christmas to you
Lanette
My friends teasingly call me Mama Vicks. The vicks will not compromise his asthma. I have 4 boys, 1 that had severe asthma (and Restrictive Airway Disorder when he was little) and the Vicks was my saving grace! I would use both the vicks on his feet and cover with socks and a humidifier with Vicks liquid in the water to keep him opened up. Most pulmonary specialists will tell you to use it with the little ones to avoid the steroids when it's not necessary over night.
Hope all goes well with your little one. Brightest blessings to you and your family!
This works wonders for coughs and colds. I first used this treatment when my daughter was 3 months old for a cold and it cleared her up rather quickly. There are no side effects or age limits. It works for adults too!
Vicks definitely works! They have the Vicks for babies, which is not quite as overpowering as the other. It has a pink lid. I know for a fact that HEB carries it.
My husband laughed at me the first time he had a cold and I told him to rub Vicks on his feet and it would open up his head. Reluctantly he let me do it and now he does it every time he is suffering from allergies, cold, etc.
I did this with my daughter when she was about six months old because I didn't want to give her medications for a stuffy nose and stuffed up head. I never thought that much mucous could come out of such a small child. It definitely works to break up the congestion and stuffiness and did help with the cough as well.
I hope this helps you!
If you decide to try it, they make a Vicks baby rub. It is not quite so strong and might be a little safer to try.
Hi Alana
I've tried this recently with my 2 year old and the first night it seemed to make a big difference. The second night not so much. We used an off brand, so maybe we would have had better luck with Vicks.
I would put in a call to you son's pediatrician. My sister-in-law wanted to to this to help her daughter when she had a cold and the pedi advised her not to use Vicks at such a young age...something about the vapors settling in her chest and causing irritation. Since your son has asthma this may be a concern. Maybe the Vicks baby rub wouldn't be as strong...but I would still put in a call to the pedi.
Morning!
My youngest daughter (now 20) has asthma. When she was a small baby the specialists she went to told us that Vick's should never be used on Asthmatics, as it opens the bronchial and can cause pneumonia. They had us use cool air misters in next to her crib. But before doing anything else make sure you cheque with his Dr. :) Good luck and hope all goes well!!
Putting it on the feet didn't work for my family except it did make my 6 year old "feel" like it was working. I used the regular vicks on her. for my 2 year old and 9 month old I used the baby vicks as normal and it worked for them.
If his coughing is asthma related, no amount of Vicks is going to stop it. You need to control the reason for the cough, if it is asthma he needs his asthma medicine. If it is allergies, he needs allergy medicine. Also, try elevating his head a little by putting something under his mattress on one end. He'll probably roll to the low side, but it helps the cough if the head is elevated. Nothing is worse for a person who can't breathe than having to lay down flat.
A mom in my sons preschool class is a respitory therapist she told me this as well. Run it on their chest and feet. She says the feet are the portal to the lungs??? I think it works. It has for my three year old. You may also add a humidifier to the babys room.
i've read the same thing...tried it w/ my 2 and 4 year old...works like a charm!
We've been doing this for my almost 5 year old for at least two years. It does work, or at least it seems to for us. No adverse reactions that I've seen. Okay, I didn't read your post well enough, I don't think you are supposed to use Vick's on young ones that little becasue it CAN cause respiratory issues. I'd ask the doc.
If the cough is asthma or allergy then the cough is caused by sinus drainage in the throat. Vicks won't work on this. The Vicks on the feet works for regular colds/coughs though.
I have put vicks on the chests of my kids since infancy. You just want the shirt to be loose. Don't put on neck as they may touch it with their hands and then rub their eyes. But, if it's under the shirt, no problems. You can also add it to a vaporizer instead. You can do this with eucalyptus oil as well, at least in a diffuser for oils. It has the same effect naturally as Vicks.
I have a 21 month old who has asthma caused from RSV. (He got RSV when he was about 8 months old) The pediatrician told us that Vicks vapor rub (even the one that says it's for babies) can cause pneumonia in small children. We use a cool mist humidifier & that seems to help with the coughing a lot. Hope this helps. Merry Christmas