need ideas for nosebleed prevention

[samstress]

my 4-year-old gets nosebleeds pretty frequently (more frequently than i think is normal).  the dry weather and being at higher elevations seem to exacerbate them so i try to keep her hydrated and the inside of her nostril (she always gets them on the left side) moist.  i also run a humidifier in her room.  her pediatrician has said that cauterizing it is an option, but we'd like to avoid that.

any other ideas?

[Cupressa]

I have been susceptible to nosebleeds from childhood, and now my dd gets them, especially in the heat of the last week (she has been re-starting them by 'scratching' her nose ).

To prevent them we avoid all sweeteners, especially refined sugar, but also fruit juice, and balance out salty or low-water foods with vegetables, whole fruit and extra water.

As an adult, this works great. I very rarely get one, and when I do, it's usually not bad at all. It's trickier to get a child to comply, especially when grandparents are around to provide treats.

Besides 'drying you out', the oxidative stress caused by sugar will deplete protective nutrients that keep blood vessels healthy, such as vitamin C, other antioxidants, and minerals. Obviously, it's best to avoid sugar all the time, but if dd has some, we talk about how sugar dehydrates and makes the capillaries weaker, and I make sure she has extra water and vitamin C and bioflavonoids from food to make up for it.

I used to put coconut oil in my nostril with a q-tip to help it stay moist while it healed from a bleed, in order to avoid re-injuring the capillary. Not surprisingly, my dd has not wanted to do that. Growing up, all I used was petroleum jelly!

[samstress]

thanks.  interesting, i never even considered how diet might affect it. 

and you're the second person today to recommend coconut oil, so perhaps i'll give it a try.  so far i've only used vaseline.

[isabchi]

Great tips!

[mbravebird]

For us (bleeding disorder family, nosebleeds can be scary and difficult), castor oil in the nostrils works better than vaseline or coconut oil. It's thicker, it has tissue healing properties -- whatever it is, it works. We do a quick swipe in the nostrils to prevent bleeds. If we have an active bleed, we do a swipe of arnica oil and then a swipe of castor oil. HTH!

[samstress]

heck, i'll try it.

how often do you use the castor oil for prevention? 

also, during an active bleed, do the two swipes stop the bleed?

[mbravebird]

When we lived in a really dry house (wood heat in the winter), I used to give him a preventative swipe every day during the winter months. Well, I bet I didn't remember every day. But I did it frequently, and it cut down on the bleeds significantly.

During an active bleed, we'd get the bleeding stopped for a while before doing the swipes. The swipes would really prevent a re-bleed, at that point.

If I had it to do over, I'd probably also try a very high-quality comfrey ointment first (try red moon herbs), then some arnica and castor. The castor is best for prevention and overall healing, the arnica is good for stopping bleeding and healing on contact, and the comfrey begins knitting tissue together on contact.

We haven't had nose bleeds for a couple of years, so I guess the vessels in his nose just got stronger. Thank goodness! Repeated nose bleeds are very challenging. Hope something helps you!

[samstress]

thanks so much.  bought some castor oil today and will apply it before bed.  hopefully that will help to prevent them.  she had one in the middle of the night last night and then one this morning (which then started bleeding again about 10 minutes after it had stopped). 

will keep the other things in mind for stopping them once they start, but hopefully this will help to prevent them from happening in the first place.

is it typical for them to only occur on one side (it's always her left nostril)?

[mbravebird]

Yes, my son had one nostril that was more susceptible, too. I think it's a self-perpetuating cycle, with the vessel walls getting thinner the more they are broken. But my son's eventually got better. We also moved to a different house where the air wasn't so dry (although we still have a wood stove.) But also, castor oil's unique tissue-healing properties may have helped after the long-term use, too. Hope you find success!

[samstress]

used the castor oil last night and no nose bleed (dd was pretty happy about that this morning).  i realize it's only been one day, but will definitely keep using it.

thanks again for the suggestion.

[34me]

We may have to try the caster oil too, thanks. My 12 yo ds has had nose bleeds most of his life. Each nostril has been cauterized twice. We can't do it any more. We've used pharmaceutical grade sesame oil in the past but it's hard to get a hold of.