Baby Allergies?

Spring is in the air, and so are allergens.  Since moving to Germany, my husband has been popping Claratin daily and since spring has arrived, I've had to take a Sudafed or two.  And with the May showers came coughs and sneezes for our baby girl.  But with all of the coughing and sneezing that she has been doing, it hasn't effected her mood.  She still has a pleasant disposition, smiles and coos, naps well and her appetite is just fine so I was going with the assumption that this wasn't a cold that is ailing her but rather allergies.  I went to Google to try to find out a little more about allergens, allergies and how they effect babies.  There is a great amount of information out there but the article I found the most helpful is from BabyCenter.com.  Here is their checklist of questions for you to answer if you are wondering if your little one is suffering from allergies:

Because the symptoms of nasal allergies are much like cold symptoms — runny nose, watery eyes, cough, nasal congestion, sneezing — it can be tough to tell the difference. There are some telltale signs of allergies, though.

Ask yourself the following questions:

• Does it seem like your baby always has a cold? Colds usually wind down in a week to ten days; allergies don't.
• Is your baby's nose continually stuffy or running?
• Is she constantly wiggling, wiping, or pushing her nose up in what doctors call the allergic salute?
• Is the mucus that drains from her nose clear and thin (as opposed to yellow or greenish and thick)?
• Does she seem to sneeze a lot?
• Are her eyes itchy, red, and watery?
• Does the skin under her eyes look dark or purple or blue — what doctors call allergic shiners?
• Does she breathe through her mouth?
• Does she have a dry cough?
• Is her skin irritated or broken out in an itchy red rash?

If you answered yes to one or more of these questions, there's a good chance your baby is allergic to something in her environment. 

(Click here for the entire article)  Since I answered "yes" for almost every question it's time for me to get going on de-allergifying (huh? Did I just invent a word?) her environment. All of her blankets and bedding are going into the wash in hot water, the bathroom attached to our bedroom is getting scrubbed with Soft Scrub with bleach (mold is a huge trigger) and that mountain of clothing on hubby's side of the bed? Well, that needs to be sorted through and put away. In the meantime I'll continue putting saline drops in her little nose (I totally recommend Little Noses Saline drops, you can find them here at Amazon.com) and reclining her head slightly when I lay her down so she can breathe a little easier.