Snotty Kids

To me, mom of 3, not normal. I agree with Angela S. My kids occasionally get sick...one is sick with a cold right now. But are otherwise very healthy and not snotty when they're well.

In my humble non-professional opinion, it is NOT normal for most kids (ETA: barring some sort of structural defect) to have constant runny noses. That is a fallacy of modern living and pediatric practice.

These kids are bombarded from every angle with toxins and modified, nutrient-stripped food. Their bodies react by trying to "repel the invader" - i.e., running noses, clogged sinuses, extremely waxy ears, autoimmune illness, etc.

JMO.

My daughter was the same way, constantly congested or cough and getting ear and sinus infections. We figured out she was allergic to dairy.

I think it depends on the kid. My daughter has a minor malformation in the back of her nose and the mucus doesn't drain to her throat as well as most people so she almost always had a runny nose even if not sick. We are not sure if we want her to have surgery for this. I give her decongestant only if she is sick. My cousin as a baby and toddler always had a slightly congested sounding cough and eventually got diagnosed as mild asthma which she outgrew as an adult. I also noticed that the first year of preschool my my son was sick over and over all winter and it seemed like both my kids were always snotty. The next winter was a lot better. My friend who has a child in daycare and with asthma and that girl is always congested too (both this girl and my daughter are almost 3). It could be a lot of things, some but not all contagious. If the child seems uncomfortable you can talk to the mom nicely and ask if she has taken the child to the doctor recently and talked to the doctor about allergies. I don't always take my kids to the doctor if it is just a cold, only if there is something more going on (fever, ear pain, cough that hangs on for weeks, etc.). I have sinus issues and for me a regular cold can take an extra few weeks to fully go away so being mildly congested most of the winter is not unusual for me either.

Trying this again....25 years experience with many kids, mostly toddlers... NO this is not normal and I would tell mom either they do Benadryl or take her elsewhere. I'm sure you can word it nicely and talk about the germs involved. If need by, tell her other parents have asked about it and are nervous.

I spend a lot of time speaking with pediatricians regarding allergies and asthma (this sounds like what they convey to me). I would address the subject again with the mom.

The only time I had this with my kids was when my son had an ear infection that wouldn't go away. The doctor was on top of it and he also told me it was okay for him to live normally and be around other kids. He was on antibiotics and OTC meds to help. My daughter had allergies (I thought it was asthma but was confirmed allergies from doc) and she didn't have a runny nose but a cough that wouldn't go away or kept coming back every month. It was post nasal drip and the meds the doc gave took it away permanately, thankfully. Otherwise, my kids only have snotty noses when they're sick. I'd ask the mom again. In either case, it's probably not contagious.

My daughter has had a runny nose for all but 3 months of her life. She has ear infection issues and we are constantly dealing with those. The only time she has ever been completely runny nose free was the 3 months after she got tubes, then it came right back. The Dr's say she will eventually grow out of it.

My 2 year olds daughter has a constantly runny nose as well. Hers started when she was just over 6 months and was hospitalized for rsv. Seems to have not stopped at all since then but could just be a coincidence. Of course it is getting worse right now with the cold weather showing up. Even though she is on daily allergy meds it is still constantly running (although much better than without meds)

I just went to our pediatrician over this yesterday. He said whenever a child has a runny nose for more than 1 week, always make an appt. I asked for clarification to make sure I understood him correctly. And he was adamant that anyone who has a child with a runny nose for a week or more needs to come in and be seen. My son had a runny nose for weeks with no other symptoms. He was diagnosed with a double ear infection (and was on antibiotic earlier this month due to an ear infection). So, I don't know if persistent runny noses = ear infections, but my pediatrician is known as the best in the area, so I trust that we should take our kids in to be seen if their noses are runny for more than a week.

I know a few of those kids and I want to tell the parents that there is a medicine for that. It also aggravates me when the kids do not have good hygiene in the fact that they have 'stuff' running down their face but refuse my offer of a tissue. Those are the kids I want to serve Benadryl spiked jello to ;-) LOL

I would mention it gently to the mom again. I think the kid has allergies myself. My son has a constant runny nose about 4 times a year. We have taken him to the Dr. several times over it - just to make sure it wasn't something else. Dr. asked if we have allergies - oh my yes! Dr. said will there you go - said he has yet to see a kid who has 2 parents with allergies NOT have them himself. Claritin grape flavored chewables work like a charm!

Yes, this child has allergies and yes, it is normal for kids to have constant runny noses.

My 6 yo has another 6 yo friend he's known since they were both 2 and the friend never fails to show up to school, my house, playdates, the park w/a runny or snotty or dried up nose. Sometimes I see the snot line from his nose across his face where he's dragged his hand to wipe off his nose.

Its gross and I can't stand it. It isn't hard to take care of a snotty kid's nose. My kid never had this problem, even when he did have a cold and he has allergies too. I always made sure he was well wiped, decongested and allergy medicated. Even when he got a red dry nose from wiping so much, he knows to use chapstick under his nose after blowing, use a wipe to blow and a tissue to dry to avoid more redness/dryness.

I'm currently dealing with this with my almost 4 yr old. Its just the same as last year, starts off with some type of viral infection and just never clears up. I swear its some type of sinus infection, but nowadays pediatricians are not treating sinus infections unless a. there is a fever, b. child is in discomfort or its confirmed through a myriad of tests I'm not prepared to put a 4 yr old through.

I've had my son tested for environmental allergies everything came back fine. Tried the OTC allergy meds and haven't been able to try them long enough to see an effect. They make him horribly aggressive and moody--I'd rather deal with a snotty kid any day over those side affects. I'm just now trying to get referred to an ENT/allergy specialist, but the ped. just keeps saying its probably colds back to back.

My youngest had the exact same cold and it resolved in 5 days by the 3rd day it was a clear runny nose and now there's nothing, but he's not in preschool/daycare My oldest is going on 3 months of the same thick discolored nasal discharge. Last year it took 6 months before I finally was able to get a script for antibiotics it cleared up in 5 days--but preschool had also ended during that time.

I would suggest your concerns with this child's mom (as my son's preschool as done with me) and you might discover she has already addressed it with the pediatrician and are in the process of figuring things out! But yes my kid is one of those kids who's always snotty--and it is so embarrassing and annoying to me too!

When my son gets a cold the stuffiness and runny nose and drippy eyes and cough can last for a month or longer. I had a cold last October and I was still coughing 6 months later. I think it just sticks to some people longer