(NAPSA)—It starts with a harmless little sniffle, then a con- stant trickle from your kid’s nose, and before you knowit, your child is coughing and sneezing and generally miserable. It’s cold season, so you better get used to all that extra mucus in his nose and chest! Believe it or not, mucus is actually good for the body and helps protect it. In fact, the body produces up to four cups of mucus a day. The nose continually produces mucus so it can moisten and clean the nasal membranes, humidify the air in the nose and fight infection. Those hard things in your kid’s nose? Mucus that has dried and hardened around dust and other particles that try to sneak into his body through his nose. Allergies and infections can make the body produce too much mucus. Too much slow- moving mucus can trigger coughs, sore throats, a husky voice and bad breath. When this happens, it’s time to break up the mucus and move it out of the bronchial passageways. So what can you do to provide relief when Junior has too much mucusin his chest and nose? Have him (or help him) blow his nose, which is the best way to get rid of mucus. For children under the age of 2, use a bulb syringe to suck mucus out of the nose. Give him plenty of liquids, which help thin out the mucus. Hot liquids soothe coughs and sore throats while also clearing mucus. Think tropical! An enzyme in pineapple is believed to thin mucus. If he likes spicy food, chili peppers also have been known to break up mucus and act as a decongestant. Makesure he gets exercise. Physical activity can loosen mucusin the respiratory system. * Use humidifiers, which help While it may be impossible to prevent your child from getting sick during cold/flu season, par- ents can provide relief for the uncomfortable symptoms. add moisture to the air and ease the flow of air through nasal and breathing passages. Be sure to clean your humidifier at least once a week to prevent the growthof bacteria. Give him an expectorant to loosen and thin out the mucus so he can cough more productively. A new form of expectorant for kids offers parents a whole new wayto help the medicine go down, and provides fast relief from chest congestion. Mucinex Mini-Melts™ are quick-melting granules that taste good and are easy for children to swallow. Give him nonprescription cold remedies, including decongestants and cough suppressants. The medicine won’t prevent or shorten the length of the cold, but it can provide relief from some of the symptoms. While it may be impossible to keep your child from getting sick during the cold and flu season or prevent the increased production of mucus, it is possible to provide relief from the uncomfortable symptoms. For more information about kids and mucus,visit www.mucinex.com. Useas directed. 2006 Adams Respiratory Therapeutics, Fort Worth, TX 76155.
