Warm Mist Humidifier

He may be stuffy because he has allergies, it is allergy season. My son is now 20 mos and I found out last summer that he is allergic to many things and dust mites is among them. They get worse in the spring b/c it gets warmer and damper. I used the humidifier for a long time b/c he was always stuffy then the allergist told me that was the worst thing I could do b/c it creates the ideal environment for dust mites to breed making his allergies worse! I stopped using it immediately as well as getting an air cleaner for his room and keeping it very clean. That has helped A LOT and he is no longer stuffy at night. Saline drops are good to use if he will tolerate them. I also put vicks vapo rub on his pj's (as it isn't good to use it on the skin under 2 years) which helps a lot too. Just my two cents!

Vicks makes a great one that doesn't have a filter. We actually use it every night instead of a cold mist one because it has done a better job than our cool mist one. The great thing about the warm mist one from Vicks is that they make something called Vaposteam that you can put into the water. It has menthol and some other things in it that help your baby breath better. We have used it the few times we saw a cold coming on with our son, and he has been healthy this entire winter!

Hi J.,
I have a cool mist humidifier which in my experience has always proven to help tremendously and I bought it at Target and you never replace the filter ( I guess you could call it filterless). One great natural remedy that I have found quite helpful is to use a few drops of Tea Tree oil in the humidifier. It prevents mold and mildew and I find that it improves the overall breathing of children at night. I am certainly not an expert, but just wanted to share with you what has worked for me for my children who are now grown and my granddaughter who is 6 and lives with me. You should also consider the products that you use for doing laundry, cleaning and personal care products and whether or not the chemicals in those products could be contributing to his stuffiness.

Hope this helps,
L.

Hi J.,

My pediatrician recommended the vicks warm mist humidifier to me when my daughter was ill. You can purchase it at either walmart or target for less than $20. That should work well for you and it does not have a filter. Good luck

Just a few thoughts. A warm mist humidifier can be a breding ground for mold and other allergy causing products. try one attached to your heating supply for the house; or look for a good cool mist humidifier. The cool mist also is safer for when he starts moving around later.
Another thing to think about is, what do you clean your house with? It's something that I never thought about, cuz I was brought up on many chemicals clean better. I now have a non toxic house courtesy of Melaleuca. Every one in the house now breathes better because I am not using the checmicals anymore.
If you would like more information just e-mail me ____@____.com

enjoy your baby and all of the wonderful adventures that you will go on with him.

I just have a basic vaporizer. I am not aware if it has a filter or if it needs replaced. Its pretty basic.
As for the saline...try just putting a drop near his nostrils and then smooshing it up into his nose. Thats how I do my kids, they are now 2 and 3 and I still do it cuz they hate it when I squirt it. You can skip the aspirator unless he really has alot of stuff up there that needs to come out. Otherwise just gently pinch his little nostrils and squeeze out what you can thats been loosened by the saline. They make baby vicks now too that you could rub a spot on his nose that might help him breathe. GL>

I noticed that you got one specific product for warm mist but that a lot of the mama responders prefer cool. Thought I'd give you a link to ours--it's cool mist, no filter, easy to deal with and BONUS, shaped like a frog. I know it's a gimmick but the reviews were really great on Amazon and--for me at least--the price was right: http://www.amazon.com/Crane-Adorable-Gallon-Humidifier-Sh...

Good luck!!

I bought one for my one year old couple years ago at Buy Buy Baby. The brand was holmes. But now that it's spring stores may not have it, humidifiers are a "winter" item. So check on-line at Wal-mart, Target or Buy Buy Baby. My daughter has always had respitory problems and seasonal allergies so it helped a LOT. But do you have a newer home that is well insulated? because we got rid of our warm mis humidifier this past season and bought a regular/cold mist one from Babies R Us b/c warm mist ones promote mold growth inside the walls if a room if used often(like as in every night/day) but if you have great insulation it shouldn't be a problem. Also Vick's makes a plug in vaporizer that needs no water, just replacement pads that help kids breathe. Also Target has these great little plug in air purifiers for $20. Saline drops are great too adn although kids don't like aspirators, they help them!
pammy

J., it could be a reaction to the cleaning products that you are using in the home. It happened to us. When my oldest was 1 month old, he woke us choking on blood! It turned out to be a tiny blood vessel had burst in his nose due to the driness. We got a little tube of AYR at the drug store and rubbed it all around his nose holes several times a day. This really helps. We even tried it too.
Check out this website and then let me know what you think....www.saferforyourhome.com
Just by changing our shopping place, we were able to "fix" our family's allergy problems. It's worth a look anyway. Email me anytime @ ____@____.com
God Bless....N. =)

I'm a SAHM with 3 boys 12, 7 & 2 and a loving husband of almost 15yrs. We choose to homeschool and love it!

I found a humidifier at Target that you can wash the filters and there is no need to replace filters monthly. It is not a warm mist humidifier though. It is called: Carefree Humidifier Plus by Hunter. Hope this helps. ---H. :)

Hi J.
My son also had a very stuffy nose when he was a baby. It turns out he had multiple allergies (nuts, eggs and pork). If you have a history of allergies in your family, I would consider the possiblility that this is the cause. Then speak to your pediatrician because depending on whether you are breast or bottle feeding will change what you do next. You could go on an elimination diet to figure out the trigger foods you are eating, or switch to a lactose and soy free formula. Or like some of the other readers have said, it could be an environmental allergy. Something to check into. I tried to eliminate multiple things from my diet but never thought to do it all at once like a true elimination diet. Who would have thought he'd be allergic to more than one thing. He also spit up all the time (and I do mean all the time) and had very faint bumps on his torso which you couldn't see but could feel. (The allergist said that was mild eczema). Good luck to you!

Mrs. J.,

I am a mother of a 9 year old and the both of us suffered with asthma, sinus, and allergy. I use to suffer with migraines a lot. I have been through all types of vaporizers/humidifiers (warm and cool mist). The part i don't like is that you have to keep filling the vaporizer/humidifier up with water and clean it daily, and it's noisy. I also didn't like the idea the cool mist items seems to kept the room chilled due to the cool mist coming out. It also left a lot of dust particles on the mirrors and tv screen. More particles/bacteria to breath in. I've also tried the nasal saline and the nasal aspirator. Nothing worked. I found out the air purifier works best for us. We both have the table top size for our rooms and have no problems at all. We keep it on low all day/night, it's not noisy, it doesn't needs water, just a filter. East maintenance. If you worry about a high electric bill, it won't cause one. What you find out your are breathing more easier than before.

I would suggest trying it out for at least 2 weeks and see if you notice a difference and if you don't like it take it back to the store for a refund (make sure you keep the receipt).

My house also have a humidifier on the electric system. It wasn't expensive and it does help.

Also I am a Melaleuca representative and i agree with the other parents that gave you tips on Melaleuca.

Hope it works for for the little man.

Vicks makes one and it is very inexpensive but I'm not sure warm mist humidifiers are recommended/my peds always said use cool mist humidifiers.

HI,

I am not really up with major humidifiers etc. But I am presuming your child has asthma or allergies.

I received an email about Air Purifiers - The site had a video with explanations and that seemed pretty impressive.

These things are pretty expensive - specifically designed for Asthma & allergy sufferers. Allergy Store (I think it was called)

Because I am involved in writing etc about children. The email had US$50 Discount & free shipping in US.

Most of my associates are in Aust. So of NO benefit. It may be worth checking out. If you like what you see - go to my profile & shoot me an email & I will forward the discount if it is any use to you. Normal price ranged from $399 - $599. So $50 off makes a difference.

I am only new here so not sure whether it is permitted to add links or email addresses etc.

Yours truly

Hope it all works out for you.

Hi,J. -- Did the doctor particularly recommend warm mist rather than cool mist for some reason? I've had doctors recommend only cool mist, as warm mist can really heat up a room and make it like a steam bath, while cool mist gives good humidity (which is what's really needed) without the sweaty, steamy feeling for you and the baby (and you don't want to overheat little kids). Of course if the doc said warm, go for warm. I'm a big fan of humidifiers and have used cool ones for years. One very good brand whatever the type of mist is Holmes, which makes very sturdy and effective humidifiers, but I've never seen one with a washable filter -- it would probably be more sanitary, especially with warm moisture which might breed stuff faster, to use disposable filters. Most of the filters can last quite a while if you care for them well and keep the whole unit clean as directed. Good luck!

Hi J.!

Our doctor recommended that we only use the cold mist, not warm b/c of bacteria growth. We own a humidifier made by Bionaire that has a washable filter, so they do exist for cold mist...

Good Luck!
D.

You should get a cool mist humidifier instead. The warm air attracts bacteria>a common breeding ground. Talk to your pharmacist about it~there are plenty out there.

I have one that has no filter; you just fill it with water and put the cylinder in. There is a pan in the cylinder for vicks vapor steam. Try it. I think it will help.

Cool mist humidifiers are much safer because they support less bacterial growth. The humidy is what improves nasal congestion/ dryness.

We've been using this one for the past 15months and love it
http://www.amazon.com/Vicks-Warm-Mist-Humidifier-V%252d74...

I don't know why it only has 3 stars, but I'm about to give it 5. It's filterless, so we have to clean it well every 7-10 days. It does a great job.

~L.
www.accesspilates.com
www.notaboutfood.com

I hear the cool mist is healthier.
Saline drop is great!!
He can also sleep on a pillow to elevate his upper body to help his nose drain.
Spray-n-suck is what I would do!!
Better than meds.
You could buy an air filter and change your house filter often and put the fan on, ON. Keep the windows shut if you think it's allgeries, I know he will be fine.
Praying for him!

I would suggest the cool mist humidifier. When the heater or ac kicks in at my house, the air gets dry. I have both the warm and cool mist humidifier. The warm one serves it's purpose, but it can cause too much moisture. The cool mist is good year round.

Hi J.,

Have you talked with your pediatrician or his nurse about your concerns?

I thought you put saline drops in a toddler's nose to loosen the secretions to suck out the mucous. I never heard of putting saline in a 6 week old baby's nose.

Please call your baby's doctor and let them know what you are doing.

Good luck. D.

i just bought one a few weeks ago at Target for my 2 month old with the same issues. its made by vicks and works great!

Our Pediatrician said at that age to use a cool mist humidifier.
The aspirator will really help, even if he doesn't like it.

You might want to try a cool mist humidifer. I also bought a humidity detector. You have to keep an eye on the humidity levels in your house our you could end up with mold. Also, you can tilt your sons crib. (I put a pillow under my kids matress.