Hi,

Thank you for your query.

It is not unusual for children of this age to develop upper respiratory tract infection frequently. As a newborn reaches the first birthday the immunity received at birth from the mother wanes off and the child has to develop his own immunity. This is only possible by repeated infection and this phenomenon persists for a couple of years. Most of the time nothing has to be done but a few times in a year medication will be required to control the infection.

Giving the child a well balanced nutritious diet will help develop the immunity. You can continue giving your son cod liver oil 5-10 ml. daily. However, do not neglect other nutrients in the diet which can only come from a balance diet.

I hope I have answered your query to your satisfaction.

Wishing your son a speedy recovery.

Regards,

RKK

Dear SateshKumar

Thanks for your query.
Recurrent cough, cold and fever with a green nasal discharge is a common complaint about a child by many parents. I am sure you may have been prescribed lots of antibiotics every time child gets these symptoms. Firstly let's analyze why your child is getting it repeatedly:
1. Improper or inadequate drug dosage and duration of treatment
2. An allergic problem with superimposed bacterial infections and a persistent chronic infection in the sinuses or tonsils.
3.Repeated exposure of child to sources of infection at school or in the family
4. Excessive consumption, by the child, of Ice cream, candies , chocolate, cold drinks, sauce and other junk foods.

I feel next time your child has this infection, have him treated by a Pediatrician who should give him a full one weeks' course of antibiotics and decongestants. Also cut down his consumption of the above mentioned junks which most of the kids are fond of. Give Steam inhalations during illness especially in winter.
For prevention, cod liver oil containing Vitamins A & D may or may not be helpful. You may give him 1/2 a teaspoon in milk every day.
I have been using one (Ayurvedic) Himalaya company drug called " Septilin" for recurrent cough, cold and green or yellow nasal discharge and it has proven quite beneficial. Although as an Allopathy doctor, I should not be prescribing this herbal medicine, yet over many years of prescribing it, I have not come across any serious side effects even after giving it for 2-3 months and it is a good substitute for antibiotics. So you may try it after consulting your Pediatrician.

Hi

For this present episode: how long has he been having these symptoms?
It might be a virus- in kids it might take about 2 weeks or so for viral illness to subside. Some viruses can cause prolonged cough- about 3 to 8 weeks too.
A visit to your doctor will help. If its suggestive of a bacterial infection he might need antibiotics.
For relief of his cold and cough, he might need antihistamine preparations like Sinarest- AF, 5 ml twice a day for 5 days.

Does he go to a day care/ play group? If yes, he can catch frequent infections.

There are no magical medicines to improve immunity in kids.
Upto 5 yrs of age, they are prone to get 6 to 8 episodes of upper respiratory infection per year. Each infection will give them more and more immunity.

Give him a nutritious diet- with plenty of fresh fruits/ vegetables/ nuts/ eggs etc.
Restrict milk/ any health drinks to twice or thrice a day.
Avoid junk food.
Teach him the need of washing his hands often.
Give him all needed vaccines.

You may ask your doctor for a micro-nutrient supplement for a couple of months.
You may try preparations like Septilin for few months- though one can`t be sure of its effect on immunity.

Hope that answers your query.
Wish your son good health.