It comes as no surprise, for me, a Canadian, to realize that many North American’s do not know about the widespread practice of nasal irrigation for children.
It was routine and common practice in Paris, France, for instance, to take our children to the pediatrician for a flu, cold, or runny nose, and almost in every circumstance, whether the diagnosis was viral or bacterial, the pediatrician would prescribe a saline solution nasal irrigation product. In France, it was Hydrasense that was often recommended, but often, there would be other brands, and usually they were just a can of compressed saline solution (some even claiming it was filtered ocean spray…not sure how pure that would be!) with a long spout, and you’d just spray some into each nostril of each child, and they would gently blow their nose to help clear it out.
Here’s a video showing the two ways you can use Hydrasense with babies and toddlers:
Having lived in Italy (in Rome) for a few years, it is the exact same nasal irrigation recommendation response. When we take the kids to the pediatrician for the winter sniffles, sometimes it’s amoxicillin or another antibiotic to counter any bacterial infection (usually a sinusitis), and practically every time, they would include a nasal irrigation product in the prescription.
Take a look here at one of my son’s prescriptions from this winter’s pediatrician visit. You’ll note it says “lavare il naso con iperfisiomer spray”, which is the typical “nasal sea spray” that everyone here in Europe uses to clear up the nasal passages.
a prescription including nasal irrigation for children
Iperfisiomer is just a nasal spray – check out the product here, and see how it looks so very similar to a neti pot:
Iperfisiomer Nasal Irrigation For Children
The fact that North America is relatively unconscious of this common nasal irrigation practice just goes to show how cultural differences impact our perception of the world.
That timeless Aruvedic jalaneti practice of running saline solution through the nasal passages is just a very good idea, regardless if you are young or old.
Who knows – maybe you’ll be ones of the individuals to introduce nasal irrigation for children to your country!
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Absolutely nasal infection is common infection among babies. It can be prevented by means of preventive measures such as natural products and chemical base product.