Can Childhood Ear Infections Be Prevented?

Ear infections: They’re painful for our little ones and certainly troublesome. Running to the doctor every week or two to have ears looked at is no fun for your child or yourself. It only makes sense that you’d want to do everything you can to prevent ear infections. We’ve put together a few tips that may help your children avoid ear infections this year.

Avoid Secondhand Smoke

Keep your kids away from secondhand smoke at all times if possible. Not only can it cause more frequent ear infections, but it is bad for the respiratory system as a whole.

Avoid Exposure to Colds During First Year

It may be impossible if you have your child in a daycare or your baby has older siblings, but most ear infections get their start from a cold or an upper respiratory infection.

Breastfeed Your Baby

If you can breastfeed a baby for the first six to 12 months, you’ll build antibodies that can reduce the rate of ear infections. Any breastmilk you are able to get in your baby will give the child an immune system boost.

Get Immunized

You can protect your child from some of the most common types of bacteria that cause ear infections by making sure he or she has the HIB, Flu, and Prevnar vaccines. Vaccines are a great way to protect your child from ear infections and other illnesses.

Look Into Allergies

Children who have allergies are more likely to have ear infections. If you can keep these allergies under control, you may be able to keep away some of the ear infections too.

Investigate Snoring

If your toddler snores every night or breathes loudly through his or her mouth, it could be caused by large adenoids. These are the glands on top of the tonsils, behind the nose. Large adenoids may block the Eustachian tubes and can lead to ear infections.

Keep in mind,

Not all ear infections are preventable.

Unfortunately, even if you are proactive and follow all these tips, it is not always possible to prevent all ear infections. Genetics plays a big role when it comes to ear infections. If mom or dad suffered from a number of ear infections as a child, there is a good chance the child will be more susceptible too.

While understanding everything you can about ear infections can be beneficial, they do still occur and some children are simply more susceptible than others. If you suspect your child has an ear infection, schedule a visit with an Ogden Clinic ENT today. You can also schedule a visit online using our “Book Appointment” feature.