It is necessary to clean toddler’s ears regularly with utmost care to prevent injuries and infections. Learn to keep your little one’s ear clean and free from infections with the simple ways of ear cleaning. Your toddler is now busy exploring the world around. He has to touch, pick and feel each stuff that is within his reach and feel it in a way that he thinks best! This can well imply that some of those things can find their way into the little one’s ears as well! So it is pretty natural that you will be quite concerned on the overall hygiene of the baby and ensure that his ears are clean. Even if your toddler is not the type to put everything into his ears, and make a mess out of it, you must take care that the ears are free from earwax. In this articleRemove the Wax by Using Drops and Not SwabsCheck Before Lathering Check the Nooks Properly Check Regularly for Infections Here are Some Ways of Ear Cleaning: Let us have a quick look at the ways of cleaning toddler’s ears. Remove the Wax by Using Drops and Not Swabs – First point to note, toddler wax is not a ‘bad thing’. It’s a protective mechanism of the ear as it keeps the ear canal free from the intrusion of harmful elements from the natural environment. This yellowish waxy matter keeps the ear protected from bacteria, fungi, small insects and water. They need to be cleaned so that the deposit do not harm the ear canal and cause pain. Apply a few drops of baby oil or mineral oil which can wash out the wax gently. Do not use your fingers nor swabs for the cleaning as you can hurt the delicate tissues of the little one’s ear. In some cases you might require to check with your paediatrician whether the wax needs to be removed clinically. Check Before Lathering – Before applying the oil to clean the wax, take a good look inside the ears of your toddler. It can be a raisin or a bug! If the object can be readily removed from outside, well and good, else take the toddler to the doctor immediately and do not use any instrument at home to remove the object. Such objects should be removed with the help of special clinical tweezers to ensure the safety of the child’s ears. Check the Nooks Properly – There are numerous tiny folds and crevices in the ears of your little one. These are also easy places for the dirt and grime to get deposited. While bathing your little one, use a soft cotton cloth or a cotton swab to gently remove the gunk that is deposited behind his ears and outside it. Check Regularly for Infections – Toddlers are found to catch ear infections pretty easily and frequently. So you need to be very observant about any change happening in and around the toddler’s ears. Parents may often get confused whether it is an ear infection or a symptom of common cold, but whenever, in doubt do not delay in consulting your paediatrician. A timely treatment is always an effective one. Mothers are well aware that cleaning the ears of the little one can prove to be quite an ordeal. The first point is that it is quite difficult to make the little one stay still for over a minute. They are constantly in the wiggling mood. And the exercise of ear cleaning can get dangerous if you cannot control this persistent movement. Some toddlers have a tendency to throw tantrums or whine at the mere mention of ear cleaning. This can be due to some idea that this is an ‘unwanted’ exercise or may be due a previous experience where the toddler felt pain or discomfort in the process. So it is a time to get innovative and devise strategies and understanding with your little one and convince him to stay put for a while as you do the ear cleaning. For a mother, this is not much of a deal!
It is necessary to clean toddler’s ears regularly with utmost care to prevent injuries and infections. Learn to keep your little one’s ear clean and free from infections with the simple ways of ear cleaning. Your toddler is now busy exploring the world around. He has to touch, pick and feel each stuff that is within his reach and feel it in a way that he thinks best! This can well imply that some of those things can find their way into the little one’s ears as well! So it is pretty natural that you will be quite concerned on the overall
hygiene of the baby and ensure that his ears are clean. Even if your toddler is not the type to put everything into his ears, and make a mess out of it, you must take care that the ears are free from earwax.
Here are Some Ways of Ear Cleaning:
Let us have a quick look at the ways of cleaning toddler’s ears.
Remove the Wax by Using Drops and Not Swabs
– First point to note, toddler wax is not a ‘bad thing’. It’s a protective mechanism of the ear as it keeps the ear canal free from the intrusion of harmful elements from the natural environment. This yellowish waxy matter keeps the ear protected from bacteria, fungi, small insects and water. They need to be cleaned so that the deposit do not harm the ear canal and cause pain. Apply a few drops of baby oil or mineral oil which can wash out the wax gently. Do not use your fingers nor swabs for the cleaning as you can hurt the delicate tissues of the little one’s ear. In some cases you might require to check with your paediatrician whether the wax needs to be removed clinically.
Check Before Lathering –
Before applying the oil to clean the wax, take a good look inside the ears of your toddler. It can be a raisin or a bug! If the object can be readily removed from outside, well and good, else take the toddler to the doctor immediately and do not use any instrument at home to remove the object. Such objects should be removed with the help of special clinical tweezers to ensure the safety of the child’s ears.
Check the Nooks Properly –
There are numerous tiny folds and crevices in the ears of your little one. These are also easy places for the dirt and grime to get deposited. While bathing your little one, use a soft cotton cloth or a cotton swab to gently remove the gunk that is deposited behind his ears and outside it.
Check Regularly for Infections –
Toddlers are found to catch
ear infections pretty easily and frequently. So you need to be very observant about any change happening in and around the toddler’s ears. Parents may often get confused whether it is an ear infection or a symptom of common cold, but whenever, in doubt do not delay in consulting your paediatrician. A timely treatment is always an effective one.
Mothers are well aware that cleaning the ears of the little one can prove to be quite an ordeal. The first point is that it is quite difficult to make the little one stay still for over a minute. They are constantly in the wiggling mood. And the exercise of ear cleaning can get dangerous if you cannot control this persistent movement.
Some toddlers have a tendency to throw tantrums or whine at the mere mention of ear cleaning. This can be due to some idea that this is an ‘unwanted’ exercise or may be due a previous experience where the toddler felt pain or discomfort in the process. So it is a time to get innovative and devise strategies and understanding with your little one and convince him to stay put for a while as you do the ear cleaning. For a mother, this is not much of a deal!
