Newborn with perpetually stuffy nose - causes?

[Ophelia]

DD was born on 2/12 and has had snotty nose since the beginning.  At first we thought it was just mucous from tearducts draining (her right eye gets goopy) but the last 24-48 hours the stuffiness has gotten worse.  At the MW checkup last night, she said possibly DD might have narrower sinus and to see if craniosacral therapy will help (DD had cranio work done at 3-4 days old).  I have not heard back from the therapist yet, was hoping for appt today or tomorrow.

In the meantime I'm wondering if that doesn't work what else can it be causing the stuffiness?  I finally broke down last night and started using the snot sucker, and of course she hates it I don't blame her.  But it does help, she wasn't really sleeping for very long at all so far today and it sounded pretty stuffy, so I got some mucous out again and now SHE is out and no noisy breathing.  I've also noticed her snorting a lot more today due to the stuffy nose and having to breathe through her mouth (normally she only snorts when she wants to BF).

The only thing I can think of if the cranio doesn't work is I may have to cut out dairy.  I am already gluten free.  I'm 99% sure it's not a cold or virus, no one else in the house is sick (and I catch everything my older DS gets).  She is exclusively BF, and it was a home waterbirth so she didn't get any drugs/antibiotics/etc.  Anyone else deal with this?

Also, is the Nose Frida less 'invasive' than a regular snot sucker?

[Knitting Mama]

Dairy was my first thought too. Are her poops mucousy too?

I don't know if I'd call the Nose Frida less intrusive, but more effective, yes. We have a Comfy Nose (similar idea but uses tissues for a filter instead of having to buy the little filters) and my daughter hates it so much. She used to be fine with the bulb sucker, but now, after we tried the Comfy Nose, she hates both.

[Ophelia]

No, and believe me I watch closely for any food sensitivity symptoms.  DS had mucousy poohs and red ring of doom rash and eczema  from gluten.  She does not have any of that, her poohs are normal and no skin issues.  Just the stuffy nose.

And when I sucker her nose, I don't get a huge amount of snot, but I do get some and I'm sure it doesn't take much to stuff up tiny newborn noses.

I'll just have to sucker her 2-3 times a day until I can get it figured out :(

[Emelee]

My DD, 3 months old, always seems to have a stuffy nose as well! She's so far not been sick but I can get huge clumps of dried mucus out and then by the end of the day she's stuffed up again! I'm thinking it must be from a narrower sinus because she doesn't seem to be affected when I eat different foods! I've tried shooting saline, water, or breastmilk up there before suctioning to soften things up but nothing seems to help long term! I hope you find answers because I sure can't figure it out

[Halfasianmomma]

Well, my DD never had mucousy poop, just CONSTANT congestion, from the day she was born. After 3 months of trying all sorts of methods to clear her nose of congestion, I cut dairy out from my diet and her congestion eased a great deal. Seeing as I have constant allergies to dust, pollen, and mold, I figured she also inherited something from me, even though everyone swore up and down that babies didn't get environmental allergies. Once she grew a bit, her nose got bigger and the cleaning process got easier. Nowadays (she's 2), she's a pro at getting Hydrasense shot up her nose and then blowing.

Get the Nose Frieda thingy and inject her with saline or BM beforehand. It softens up the hardened stuff and makes it easier to suck out.

[Ophelia]

Thanks, I have allergies myself (peanut, nut, flax, sesame, soy, environmental) and DS has the gluten intolerance, I figured my worst food nightmare would be the next kid would have dairy issues :(  I have a few things I can sub for dairy, but already being soy free it is tough as it is one of my main sources of protein.  I'll continue the snot sucking and start getting some dairy replacements in the meantime.

[Knitting Mama]

If you're a yogurt person, coconut milk yogurt is divine. And almond milk is a great replacement for regular milk. There are a couple of almond cheese out there that are great melted, though I wouldn't eat them plain.

[Ophelia]

Unfortunately, I think I may react to coconut also (one time I didn't but other times I think I have, so not sure).  I am not sure if I can have almonds although recently I read they are a fruit and not a nut??  I just did rice milk before, it was OK but not the best and not protein like milk.  My co op carries Daiya cheese now so I can try that as a cheese sub, but not much I can do about butter.  It will take me a few days to half week to get eat through what I have now and go out and get the subs. 

I should also mention she projectile vomited just now for the 3rd time since birth (first time we think was from birth mucous stuck in her throat).  Although the 2 times after that, she had been nursing a while so I wonder if she just got too full.  She doesn't usually spit up only occassionally.

Edited by Ophelia - 3/4/11 at 12:47pm

[PatioGardener]

Reflux made my little guy snotty (white snot - just from irritated membranes).

[skyewriter]

Hi, its funny, I always figured they were all stuffy after the transition from that nice watery womb to the mean old world of dry air, dry heat (we've tried humidifiers and no dice) and general stuff that comes with air! This baby I have used a homeopathic nose spray from Uriel called Lemon Quince ... its a miracle!!! My little guy likes it (but he's really easy going)  the best part is when I hear the snorty sound that means hes getting cloggy 1-3 spritzes in a delayed row and voila! big hunks just sort of come out.. some help required but fingers now not bulb.. !!!!! And yes this was a big happy discovery, esp since my mother  brought home the plague for christmas... AND an eye infection we are still trying to kick!!! I feel like the worst mother on earth for not keeping him safe. Now I need to teach myself to see mom as a child.. does she look well?, are her eyes clear? whats that cough..? arrrgh. She used to be careful and is now completely unconscious! anyway sorry for the mini vent... the spray has been a lifesaver to us!

[FnkyGreenMama]

Originally Posted by Ophelia 

 not much I can do about butter.

Earth Balance has a soy-free, dairy-free, gluten-free buttery spread, and it tastes pretty close.  I use it for grilled Daiya cheese on GF bread and it makes my restricted diet much more bearable!  I think they have sticks, too, which could be used for baking but I have not used them.

My guy is perpetually stuffy/snotty at 3 months.  I think it is diet related and have already taken out the major allergens (and more).  I think I might have to start looking at the less obvious culprits if we don't see an improvement soon :(

[Ophelia]

Thanks for the tips about the spray and Earth Balance.  She is a bit stuffy today, but not like before.  I will be keeping a close eye on it the rest of the weekend and see how it goes, but seeing as it's been 3 weeks and she's been stuffy/mucousy the whole time, I still may have to cut the dairy.

[Erin77]

It wasn't his nose, but my son had a terrible phlegmy wheeze from several days after birth until he was about 10-12 weeks old. My pediatrician wasn't worried and said he would grow out of it, and sure enough, he did. He sounded asthmatic and it was so sad to hear, but he's 22 weeks now and it's no problem. Maybe it is just air adjustment?

[skyewriter]

Do you do raw dairy? I have heard of and know many people who were allergic to the processed stuff and great on raw (organic grassfed of course) so I was thinking that maybe your babe would be as well? -Meaning of course ok with the raw dairy going into you! ! 

[Ophelia]

Thanks!  Well, if it gets better/goes away with me being off dairy, then I'll know that was the problem.  I have not yet tried raw dairy except perhaps some cheese.  If her nose does improve after 2-3 weeks, I will try adding one dairy product back in at a time (milk, butter, cheese separate and if that doesn't work, I'll go back off of it and then try raw).

[jksmith]

For my boy it is definitely environmental. And night time is the worst, in a closed room with electric heat, it gets pretty stuffy. But I started keeping the dirty laundry in the hall, washing the bedding in hot water weekly, and keeping the temperature a bit lower and it helps a lot.

I've been unclogging him with saline and q-tips, which he's surprisingly tolerant of, but I also found that squirting a bit of breast milk up his nose works very well!

[Ophelia]

UPDATE:  I've been off dairy for 2 weeks now.  After just over a week of being off it, I have not had to snot-sucker her nose.  It has still gotten a little stuffy-sounding a few times, but nothing like before.  She had also been snorting a LOT before (probably because she had to try and breathe through her mouth) and she only got a little snorty last night otherwise she doesn't usually get that anymore.  She does get boogers regularly still though, one one side maybe once a day.  She also had a cranio sacral treatment last week. 

Maybe in a few days or so, I will trial one dairy product at a time (butter, cheese, milk separate).  If she starts getting stuffy again, then I'll know it was the dairy.  Which in a way is good (no more constant congestion) and bad (I'm already gluten and soy free, it's really going to suck also being dairy free long term )

I did buy a Nose Frida but haven't used it yet.  I figured I will at some point anyways, with illnesses.

[Knitting Mama]

The good new is that even if you have to be long-term dairy free, most babies are able to accept it via breastmilk by a year old. Good luck, mama!