Ear is a very delicate part of your child’s body. However, it is also the most neglected part. Unlike teeth, eyes or nose, we tend to ignore regular cleaning of our children’s ears. This creates various problems. The accumulated wax inside your child’s ears hardens creating problems for hearing. Then there is the threat of ear infections. According to National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders 5 out of 6 children, under the age of 3 years, suffer from ear infection.

That is why taking care of your child’s ears is very vital. This particular article provides you tip for taking care of your child’s ear on a regular basis, and also on occasions when he/she is suffering from an infection.

Tips For Taking Care Of Your Kid’s Ears

Tips for Taking Regular Care

If regular care is taken appropriately, then no further complications will be faced. Here are some ways in which you can take regular care of your child’s ears.

• The outer ear of your child should be cleaned on a regular basis. The best way to do this is to use a soft washcloth or any form of cotton swab.
• Remember, that nothing smaller than your elbow should be inserted in your child’s ears. This might get stuck and pile the dirt inside, even further.
• Doctors do not prescribe ear candling. Ear candling or peroxide cleaners can be risky for your child. For that reason it is better to avoid such stuff.

Tips for Hardened Ear Wax

Lack of regular cleaning often leads to the hardening of the ear wax. This increases further complications. However, there are few basic home remedies which you can follow to relive your child from the hardened ear wax.

• Gently pour few drops of warm olive oil or mineral oil in your child’s ears, in order to soften the wax.
• Do not pour the oil all at once, as otherwise you won’t be able to measure the amount. So, use a dropper to pour equal amount of warm oil in both ears. Do not use any other oil apart from olive and mineral.
• Make your child lie down with the affected ear facing you. If both ears are affected then repeat the process one by one and not both at once.
• Tell your child to remain in a sleeping position for few minutes. Then he/she can sit up and the wax will melt.
• Repeat the process for the other affected ear.

Remedies for Infected Ears

If your child is an infant, then it is important that you understand the signs and symptoms of ear infection. Detecting ear infection is the first step of the cure. The following are the typical signs your child will show if he/she has an ear infection:

• Your child will remain irritable
• He/she will pull the ear or flap it
• Your child will lose appetite
• He/she will have less sleep
• There can be fever
• Some fluid will be oozing out from his/her ears.

Now apart from antibiotic medications, there are certain things that you can do to make sure that the pain is lessened. You can adopt any of the following home remedies:

• You can provide your child with warm compress in his/her ears. Warm compress for 10 to 15 minutes. This will reduce the pain by a great extent.
• In case your child is more than 6 months old, then you can use acetaminophen (Tylenol) as a pain reliever. This will also reduce the fever. Use the amount of medication as prescribed by your doctor.
• You can certain pour few drop of slightly warm or room temperature olive or sesame oil. However, do not pour oil in your baby’s ear if some fluid is oozing or you suspect that the ear drum is being ruptured. In those cases, pouring oil can provide adverse effect.
• Keep your child well hydrated. More amount of fluid intake will help the infection to drain away from the system. Make him/her water and juice, as many time as possible.
• In order to improve the sinus drainage you can slightly lift the head of your baby’s crib. Do not place a pillow under your baby’s head. He/she might roll down from it. Instead you can place two pillows under the mattress, so that the elevation stays intact.
• There are some homeopathic ear drops which can help in relieving the pain and the inflammation. This kind of ear drops contains natural ingredients like garlic, lavender, olive oil, mullein and calendula. These are safe for use with almost no side effects.

Prevention Measures

It is always true that prevention is better than cure. That is why it is important that you the ways in which you can prevent ear infection in your child.

• If possible, breastfeed your child from six to twelve months. The antibodies present in your milk will protect your child from any sort of ear infection.
• Make sure that your baby is not exposed to any sort of second hand smoke. Exposure to second hand smoke, at a tender age, doubles the chances of ear infection.
• If you are bottle feeding your baby, make sure that the bottle position is proper. It should be in a semi-upright position so that the fluid does not run back to the Eustachian tube, of your child. Any kind of fluid reaching the tube might increase the chances of ear infection.
• Keep your baby safe from infected family members. Wash your hands properly and maintain proper hygiene while handling your baby. Also make sure that your baby is vaccinated.

When to Call the Doctor?

Sometimes home remedies are just not enough. In such cases you need to call the doctor. If you see any of the following indications in your baby, then definitely call the doctor.

• Fever more than 100.4 degree Fahrenheit
• Blood or pus oozing out constantly from your child’s ears.
• You baby is in constant pain and can’t sleep.