Colds can be frequent throughout the first year, but there are a few other conditions to watch out for:

Allergies

These occur when the body reacts to something that has been inhaled, injected, eaten, or even just touched.

What to watch for:

• Itchy or runny nose
• A sore throat
• Diarrhoea
• Watery eyes
• Itchy rashes

Reducing the risk:

• If there is a family history of allergies, breastfeeding exclusively for the first six months can help decrease the incidence in your baby. Avoid early weaning and talk with your health visitor about which foods to offer and when.

Asthma

An inflammation of the small breathing tubes in the lungs.

What to watch for:

• If your baby has a persistent cough or wheeziness which does not go away, even when she does not seem to have an infection, ask for your GP’s opinion. Wheezing is common in babies, even if they do not have asthma. It can be difficult to decide if a baby ahs asthma until he is 2-3 years old.

Reducing the risk:

• Don’t let anyone smoke anywhere near the baby. Babies and young children who breathe in cigarette smoke are more likely to get coughs, asthma attacks and chest and ear infections.

Bronchiolitis

A highly infectious viral illness, more common in winter.

What to watch for:

• Baby not feeding well
• Cough
• Very runny nose
• Wheezing
• Chest flaring out when baby breathes

How it’s treated:

• Bronchiolitis usually gets better in about a week without any treatment. However, a few babies may need to go to hospital for oxygen therapy and help with feeding.

Chickenpox

Caused by a virus, but it is rare in babies under one year. A child with chickenpox is infectious from the day before the rash appears until all the spots are dry. Your baby will start to be unwell 14-16 days after catching it – see your doctor to confirm that it is chickenpox.

What to watch for:

• Baby clearly not well
• A rash
• Slightly feverish
• Red spots which develop into fluid-filled blisters and eventually dry into scabs

How you can help:

• Make sure your baby has plenty to drink (frequent breastfeeds, or extra bottles of cooled, boiled water if formula feeding).
• Give carefully measured doses of infant paracetamol, if recommended by your GP.
• To soothe the itching, apply calamine lotion, give lukewarm baths, and dress her in loose clothes.

Keep your baby away from anyone who is having steroid treatment and from anyone who is, or is trying to become, pregnant. Chickenpox can cause serious problems for a non-immune mother and her baby.

Diarrhoea

May be caused by a virus or bacteria in the intestines and your baby should be seen by a health professional.

What to watch for:

• Watery, greenish stools that smell different from her normal ones for more than 24 hours. See your doctor.
• If your baby will take no fluids at all, see your doctor within 12 hours.

How to help:

• Offer the breast frequently, or if you are formula feeding, give bottles of cooled boiled water to supplement bottles of formula.
• Be extra careful with hygiene. Always wash your hands before making up your baby’s bottles (if she is formula fed), and after going to the toilet or changing your baby’s nappy.

If the diarrhoea is severe and your baby is formula fed, your doctor or health visitor may advise:

• Stopping formula feeding for 24 hours.
• Using a special rehydration mixture, available from chemists, to prevent dehydration.

If you are breastfeeding, your health professional will advise you to continue breastfeeding, and possibly give your baby some cooled, boiled water or rehydrating fluid from a spoon or syringe.