Nose Cleaners - how to rid my baby of snot!

My 4 month old has just started to produce a lot of snot. She hasnt got a cold but every day or so I have to try to clean her nose as she has trouble breathing (and therefore sleeping and eating).


I have tried the pigeon nose cleaner but it doesnt seem able to suck the mucus out. Ive also tried cotton buds but to be honest Im afraid of hurting my little one (who puts up a big fight when I try to clean her nose!).


Greatful for any recommendations/.

Here are a couple of ideas.

1. You can buy a water solution from watsons called Sterimar, which is simply sea water. Dr Thondop recommended it for my bubs. Spray it into the nostril and the baby either sneezes out the extra mucous or it starts to run out. This sometimes doesnt work.....so......I know it will gross some people out

2. Gently suck it out with youre mouth......I had to resort to this once or twice....oh the things we do for love

aaah clueless thats soo funny..i love my bubs to death but i'm really not sure i could do that!!!!

My Mother in law did this when my daughter had bad colds and chest infections - I managed it once after watching her. It is very effective. I couldn't stand to think of all that mucus getting into her chest - she had pneumonia at 3 mths, so it was a concern.


But yours sounds normal, not really sick. I used to wait till my first was asleep and get the solid stuff with tweezers - so naughty but I was very careful, my mother in law would have slapped me!


Eventually you can teach them to blow - such a relief! It took my 2nd AGES to master it - she was 3 now (the first learned at 2 or less). I told her it was like blowing out candles but then to close her mouth - worked!

the sucking out with your mouth that clueless suggested - the Koreans do that too. I thought it gross and disgusting as well.


A while back another person had posted a suggestion - are you using the pigeon bulb syringe? Pigeon also makes another booger snatcher with which you use your mouth. I can only describe it as a canister with a bulb end that you can stick in your baby's nose and a long tube which you stick in your mouth and suck out. I have used it with both of my kids with great success.

Thanks hkchoichoi

Do you know where I can get that one from? I have the normal bulb syringe but it has to be runny mucus for it to get any out. Daughters nose is mostly harden snot followed by a lot of green mucus! Revolting I know!!!

"2. Gently suck it out with youre mouth......I had to resort to this once or twice....oh the things we do for love"

I also thought it gross and revolting, but then when BB has had a cold and nothing seem to work for long I've tried, and hasn't been able to do. Just don't know how to do it LOL... Just to say that when you see your BB suffering, you can do everything. ;-)


Anyway, yours isn't really sick so no need to go to this extreme.


The method that worked best for me is actually one they teach in France. I use physiological serum in small dose, "warm" it a little in my hand, hold your baby with her head turn to one side, then squeeze it in the upper nostril. She will sneeze or it will come out from the other side. Repeat in reverse for the other side. If I can still see something inside, I'll "finish" with the cotton I've roll up into a "tube" to clean the nostril. I don't use cotton buds as I've heard it can hurt the baby.


They often don't like it (when the nurse showed me at my pediatrician, BB has been crying like mad), but warming the liquid helps and also when she realized that I can do it to myself too! We realized it when my husband has used the remaining serum for him, and it just stopped bb crying as she was SO surprised ;-) So I've showed her each time for sometime, and then she "accepted" it better.

Ive just ordered a great gaget from the UK called Baby nose clear nasal aspirator. Check it out: www.4little1.com