All About Ear Infections - Prevention
Ear infections are all too common and cause a lot of distress for kids and their families. What can we do to help prevent them from happening?
This is part 3 of a three-part series.
All About Ear Infections - What they are and why they happen
All About Ear Infections - Prevention
What can be done to prevent ear infections?
Avoid all smoke exposure.
Tobacco smoke is known to predispose children to ear infections, upper respiratory infections and wheezing.
Do not bottle prop.
Keeping a baby's head elevated a bit while bottle feeding can help prevent ear infections.
Breastfeed.
Breast milk is protective against many types of infection, including ear infections.
General infection prevention.
Avoid taking your infant to places where there are a lot of people during sick season.
Wash hands often. Teach kids to really wash their hands. Because they don't do a great job much of the time.
Attempt to limit sharing of toys that young children mouth, and wash them between children.
If your child attends daycare, try to find one where there are fewer children per room.
Vaccinate.
One of the biggest causes of bacterial ear infections is pneumococcus. Your child will be vaccinated against this as part of the standard vaccine schedule.
Saline.
If you know me, you know I often recommend saline to the nose.
Saline drops for babies followed by suctioning.
Nasal saline rinses for kids over 2 years of age. (Nasopure has a great library to teach proper use and even videos to get kids used to the idea.)
Saline is a great way to clear the mucus from our nose, which can help prevent cough, sinus infections, and ear infections.
Keep the pacifier in the crib.
When kids play, they often drop their pacifier, which can encourage germs to accumulate on it before they put it back in their mouth.
Xylitol.
There are several studies that suggest chewing gum with xylitol as its sweetener helps prevent ear infections in children who can chew gum. For younger infants, there are nose sprays with xylitol. Xylitol is a naturally occurring substance that is used as a sweetener is many products, many of which are reviewed here. I do not endorse any of these, but do find this a helpful resource.
Treat acid reflux.
This can include dietary changes, positional changes, or medications. Talk to your doctor to see which is right for your child.
Treat allergies.
Treating allergies can help decrease mucus production and improve drainage.
For More Information:
Middle Ear Infections: Summary of the AAP ear infection guidelines Xylitol sugar supplement for preventing middle ear infection in children up to 12 years of age