How to Aspirate a Baby's Nose

Babies are unable to do lots of things on their own, including blow their nose. Thus, you must aspirate a baby's nostrils to remove mucus that can block the nasal passages and prevent him from breathing correctly. Aspirating a baby's nose takes only a few seconds, but it must be done properly to prevent damaging the baby's nasal tissue and upsetting him.

Things You'll Need

• Nasal aspirator
• Tissue

Instructions

1. Lay your baby flat so that she is relaxed and you can see into her nostrils.

2. Take the aspirator and squeeze the bulb, pushing all the air out of it. While still squeezing the bulb, carefully stick the pointed end in one of the baby's nostrils.

3. Slowly release the bulb so that it sucks in air and suctions mucus out of the nostrils.

4. Remove the aspirator from the baby's nose. Squeeze it and expel the contents into a tissue. Discard the tissue.

5. Repeat steps 2 to 4 on the other nostril, or repeat on the same nostril as needed.

Tips & Warnings

• Buy more than 1 aspirator so that you can keep one on hand at all times in case of an emergency where your baby has difficulty breathing and you need to clear his nostrils.

• Use saline drops before aspirating to help loosen the mucus and bring it out, making aspirating easier.

• Aspirating a baby's nose too often can dry out the nasal passages and possibly damage them. Aspirate only when necessary.

References

• Baby Nasal Aspirators