What to do if your child has noisy breathing

A newborn baby raises a lot of questions for inexperienced parents. Among them, one can especially often find bewilderment at the child’s rapid and irregular breathing. This is quite normal anxiety, because adults are accustomed to the fact that even breathing is considered normal. Having discovered that it is not like that, all new parents are very worried, and many panic. But is this justified?

Finding out your breathing rate

Your baby's sleep can be deep and still, active and noisy, even rough and messy, all in one night. Your comfort level will increase with experience, and you will gradually feel like you need to check on your baby less and less as he gets older.

What is normal breathing for a baby at night?

And the number of false alarms these monitors produce may actually give you more anxiety than peace of mind. Look: Lean so your eyes are level with your baby's chest and follow the up and down movement of the breath. Feel: Place your cheek next to your baby's mouth and nose and feel his tiny breaths against your skin. Listen: Place your ear over your baby's mouth and nose and listen to breathing sounds. . When your baby has his first check at six weeks and eight weeks, the pediatrician will check his heart and chest sounds.

How does a newborn baby breathe?

Typically, babies breathe by alternating short breaths with deep ones. Sometimes this scares parents, because... It seems that the child is not breathing at all. However, this lasts literally a few seconds, so there is no reason to be afraid.

Sometimes children make uncharacteristic sounds when they breathe. This is absolutely normal. This happens because the child’s respiratory organs are not yet fully developed, but a large amount of air is already passing through them. All this will pass, and breathing will improve about a month after birth. But it has already been proven that breathing takes a little longer to adjust.

If you are still concerned about your baby's breathing, this is a good time to mention it. Your child's doctor will be able to monitor your child's breathing and reassure you or refer you for treatment if necessary. However, you should call the doctor if your child has.

A relationship where your baby's chest and neck muscles appear to move in and out much deeper than usual. Breathing that stops for more than 10 seconds. The face changes and his lips, fingers and toes appear blue. A blue, triangular shape around and around his forehead, nose and lips, meaning the blood is not getting enough oxygen from the lungs.

• More than 60 breaths per minute.
• Persistent grunting at the end of each breath.
• Pointed nostrils, indicating increased effort to breathe.
• A high-pitched, rough sound and a barking cough.

Banerjee.
"Sudden infant death syndrome." Newborns breathe approximately 2-2.5 times faster than adults. This is vital for babies, because their lung capacity is small and their blood is not fully saturated with oxygen. The child compensates for this with his rapid breathing.

Other causes of increased breathing

Sometimes the child's breathing is accompanied by all sorts of whistling or wheezing sounds. In this case, it is necessary to immediately show the baby to the doctor, because such breathing most likely means an infectious disease. In children, pneumonia occurs almost unnoticed, so this change in breathing is one of the indicators in identifying this disease.

Indian Journal of Otolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery. Profile on smoke-free environments in the Southeast Asia region. The average person takes between 12 and 20 breaths per minute. Rapid, shallow breathing, also called tachypnea, occurs when you take more breaths than usual in a given minute.

When to Seek Medical Attention

When a person breathes quickly, it is sometimes called hyperventilation. Any term applies to this condition. Rapid, shallow breathing can be the result of anything from a lung infection to heart failure. You should always report this symptom to your doctor and receive prompt treatment to prevent complications. You should always treat tachypnea as a medical emergency, especially the first time you experience it.

Increased breathing can occur at elevated temperatures and holding your breath during sleep. If there is shortness of breath in this case, it may turn out that the baby has a pulmonary or. Then the child needs to be hospitalized as quickly as possible. With bronchitis, shortness of breath is also often present. If the breathing rate decreases, meningitis may be suspected, although this severe brain damage is less common in children than in adults.

What causes rapid, shallow breathing?

Call 112 if you experience any of the following.
Tachypnea can result from many different conditions. A proper diagnosis from your doctor will help determine the cause. This means that you should report any case of tachypnea to your doctor. Rapid, shallow breathing can be caused by infections, choking, blood clots, diabetic ketoacidosis, heart failure, or asthma. Infections that affect the lungs, such as pneumonia or bronchiolitis, can cause difficulty breathing. This can lead to shorter and faster breaths. If these infections get worse, the lungs may fill with fluid. Fluid in the lungs makes it difficult to take deep breaths. In rare cases, untreated infections can be fatal.

If a child is interested in something, his breathing may become faster. But in this case it does not require observation. It is normal for breathing to accelerate when emotions are expressed.

Children under one year of age require special attention. During this period, counting breaths is necessary. At an early age, it is most difficult to identify any diseases, and the respiratory rate helps to notice the disease at an early stage.

When you are choking, an object partially or completely blocks your airway. If you can breathe at all, your breathing will not be deep or relaxed. In cases of suffocation, immediate medical attention is critical. A pulmonary embolism is a blood clot in the lungs. This can lead to hyperventilation, chest pain, coughing, and fast or irregular heart rate.

How does tachypnea manifest?

This serious condition occurs when your body does not produce enough insulin. As a result, your body produces acids called ketones. This often results in rapid breathing. Hyperventilation is a symptom of an asthma attack. Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the lungs. This is often the cause of rapid and shallow breathing in children.

Signs of “heavy” breathing in a baby. Causes of occurrence. What should parents do?

A newborn baby is a source of happiness and joy for his parents and grandparents. And at the same time - the cause of constant anxiety and worry: is everything okay with the baby, who himself cannot say about his condition. Smiling or crying, sound, restful sleep, temperature, skin color become the object of close attention. Various signs tell adults that everything is fine with the child or, conversely, he needs help.

A baby's breathing is one of the important symptoms of a baby's well-being.

How does a healthy child breathe?

A child's respiratory system develops approximately seven years after birth. During the formation of the respiratory system, babies tend to breathe shallowly. Inhalations and exhalations of healthy children are frequent and shallow. Frequent, rapid breathing should not alarm parents. After all, it is a feature of the respiratory system of children.

Parents can count the number of inhalations and exhalations of the child per minute to compare them with normal breathing. Please note: with age and, accordingly, the degree of development of the respiratory system, normal breathing indicators change, the child begins to breathe more calmly:

• 1-2 weeks of life - from 40 to 60 inhalations and exhalations;
• From 3 weeks to 3 months - from 40 to 45 inhalations and exhalations;
• 4 - 6 months of life - from 35 to 40 inhalations and exhalations;
• 7 - 12 months of life - from 30 to 36 inhalations and exhalations.

Counting is done while the child is sleeping. For accurate counting, the adult places his warm hand on the baby's chest.

Heavy breathing is a sign of malaise

Loving adults notice any changes not only in the baby’s behavior. They pay no less attention to how the baby breathes. Heavy breathing in a baby should alert others. Especially when it is accompanied by a change in the usual rhythm and frequency of inhalations and exhalations, it becomes confusing. Often this is complemented by specific sounds. Moans, whistling, and wheezing also make it clear that the baby’s condition has changed.

If the baby's breathing rate is disturbed, changes in the depth of inhalation and exhalation are noticeable, there is a feeling that the baby does not have enough air, which means the child has shortness of breath.

Let's consider what could be the cause of the baby's difficulty breathing, what causes shortness of breath.

The atmosphere in the nursery is the key to the baby’s health

When it comes to creating comfortable living conditions for a newborn, many mothers and even grandmothers make some mistakes. Having ensured sterile cleanliness, they do not always attach importance to maintaining the required air regime. But the baby’s developing respiratory system requires certain conditions to be met.

Maintaining the required air humidity

Excessively dry air will cause the newborn's mucous membranes to dry out, which will lead to heavy breathing with possible wheezing. The child breathes calmly and easily when the air humidity in the room reaches from 50 to 70%. To achieve this, it is necessary not only to frequently perform wet cleaning, but also to specifically humidify the air. Aquariums with water work well for this, but if you don’t have them, fill any containers with clean water.

But it is better to avoid carpets, a large number of books, and indoor plants: they can become a source of allergies and lead to heavy breathing for the child.

Clean air is the norm for a baby

There is no doubt among any adults that the baby should breathe clean air. Systematic ventilation of the room will fill the nursery with freshness. Equally important is not only the ban on smoking near a child (even while walking), but also communication with the baby immediately after a cigarette. A child who is unwittingly forced to inhale tobacco smoke or air laced with tobacco tars experiences breathing problems.

But even under ideal conditions, infants' breathing often becomes heavy.

Causes of heavy breathing

Experts name several main causes of heavy breathing in newborns:

1. Disease;
2. Allergy;
3. Foreign body.

In each case, heavy breathing is accompanied by additional manifestations that help more accurately determine the reason that the child is breathing heavily. Having identified what led to heavy breathing in each specific case, medical specialists prescribe comprehensive treatment.

We will tell you about each reason in more detail so that the parents of the baby can respond promptly and correctly to changes in the baby’s breathing.

Foreign body

Every day a healthy baby, growing and developing, becomes more active and mobile. Getting acquainted with the world around him, he examines the world around him with curiosity, manipulates objects that are in his palms. The adult is required to be extremely collected and attentive and not allow small objects to fall into the child’s hands.

Often they become the reasons for the baby's heavy breathing. Once in the baby's mouth, they can then move into the airways during inhalation and become an obstacle to airflow.

It is also dangerous for small parts to get into the baby’s nasal cavity. His breathing becomes harsh, wheezing appears, sometimes quite strong. If a child a few minutes before was healthy and playing happily, and then began to breathe with heavy wheezing, a foreign body in the nasopharynx may be the cause of the changes.

The main thing that parents should remember in this case is: there is no need to waste time, waiting for everything to “go away on its own” and the baby to return to play. Immediate contact with a specialist is the best decision!

Allergy

Young parents may be surprised when experienced grandmothers, noticing that the baby is breathing heavily, check to see if the baby has allergies. You shouldn't be surprised. Indeed, in addition to such manifestations of food or other environmental factors as redness of the skin, peeling, rash, allergies can also be a problem for the normal functioning of the respiratory system.

Heavy breathing with wheezing, shortness of breath, tears, constant clear discharge from the nose is a reason to urgently consult a pediatrician. Allergies are dangerous and insidious not only because of their sudden occurrence, but also because of their very rapid development. You cannot delay in clarifying the diagnosis - allergies are not a cold, and without timely help the baby may go into shock.

Disease

In addition to a foreign object entering the respiratory system and developing an allergic reaction, a variety of colds and infectious diseases are accompanied by heavy breathing of the baby.

Colds

Often the cause of difficulty breathing in a small child is even a minor cold (cold, acute respiratory viral infections, bronchial lesions). The mucus that accumulates during coughing and runny nose clogs the narrow nasal passages, the baby begins to breathe more often, inhales and exhales through the mouth.

Asthma

Inflammation of the airways, known as asthma, is not coincidentally the Greek word for suffocation. An adult notices that the baby is breathing with difficulty, and there is a feeling that the baby is not getting enough air. This is due to the fact that the child takes a small breath and exhales the air for a long time. During physical activity or during sleep, a severe coughing attack may occur.

Pneumonia

A serious illness, which is a serious problem for adults, becomes a real challenge for newborns. The sooner professionals begin treatment, the faster the baby will recover. Therefore, the mother should immediately call a doctor if she notices signs of illness. Inflammation of the lungs is characterized by heavy breathing of the baby, accompanied by a severe cough.

The general condition of the baby also indicates a serious illness. The temperature rises, sick children become noticeably paler, in some cases the child refuses mother's milk or other food and becomes restless.

Other children continue to breastfeed, albeit sluggishly, but the mother should be wary of such a change in the skin. The triangle formed by the baby's nose and lips takes on a bluish tint, especially during feeding or when the baby cries. This is evidence of oxygen starvation. And at the same time - an indication of the need for urgent intervention by specialists.

Helping a child who is breathing heavily

Shortness of breath that occurs in children due to various diseases requires consultation and intervention of professional doctors. What can the baby's parents do when the doctor has already been called, but is not yet near the baby.

First, calm down so as not to transfer your anxiety to the little person.

And secondly, try to calm the baby down, because in a calm state it will not be so difficult for him to breathe. To do this, you can follow the following procedures:

Ventilation of the room

Fresh air will make your newborn's breathing easier.

Ensuring freedom of movement

If the child is dressed, he should be allowed to move and breathe freely. It is better to take off tight, constricting clothes or at least unfasten them.

Washing

Washing helps many children. The water should be comfortable, preferably cool water that is pleasant to the baby.

Drink

You can give your child something to drink. In many cases, when children have heavy breathing, their mouth becomes dry; liquid will relieve this symptom.

The pediatrician will determine the causes of the baby’s heavy breathing and make the necessary appointments. Having found out why your baby began to breathe heavily and received recommendations to alleviate the child’s condition, you can help him. Strict adherence to the procedures prescribed by the doctor will return your baby to free breathing, and he will continue to delight you every day.

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Disease Prevention

The room must be maintained at a temperature of about 23°C and optimal humidity. Pay special attention to this in winter, when the rooms are heated, which negatively affects the respiratory organs of not only adults, but also children.

When walking, take into account the temperature outside. The child must be dressed in such a way that cold air entering his respiratory tract does not cause a cold. In other words, it is highly not recommended to overdo it when wrapping your baby.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Anxiety attacks, also called panic attacks, are a physical response to fear or worry. They are often a symptom of an anxiety disorder, which can be treated with prescription medications and counseling. It includes chronic bronchitis or emphysema. Bronchitis is an inflammation of the airways. Emphysema is the destruction of the air sacs in the lungs.

How is the cause of fast, shallow breathing diagnosed?

Your doctor can immediately prescribe treatment to correct your breathing pattern and make it easier for you to take deep breaths. They may then ask questions related to your symptoms or your condition. Your treatment may include receiving oxygen-rich air through a mask.

If the child has already caught a cold, you need to use a pear or a special device. If necessary, use nasal drops.

It is very important to monitor your baby's health. And you need to remember this from the first days of the baby’s appearance in the family.

If a child holds his breath while sleeping, attentive parents begin to worry. And not in vain. But before you start seriously grieving, you need to make sure that we are talking about a delay (temporary cessation) of breathing during sleep, and not about a change in the frequency of the infant’s respiratory movements.

Respiratory rate in children

Once your condition has stabilized, your doctor will ask several questions to help them diagnose the cause.
When did you experience any breathing problems or lung diseases such as asthma, bronchitis or emphysema? Have you recently had a cold or flu? . After taking a medical history, your doctor will listen to your heart and lungs using a stethoscope. They will use a pulse oximeter to check your oxygen levels. A pulse oximeter is a small monitor that you wear on your finger. Conditions of so-called sleep apnea (SSA) are considered dangerous - stopping breathing during sleep for more than 10 seconds, which cause disturbances. From 5 to 100 such phenomena can be recorded per hour.

If the pause between inhalation and exhalation lasts about 10 seconds, then the body experiences hypoxia, that is, oxygen starvation and hypoxemia, that is, an excess of carbon dioxide in the blood. This causes restless sleep with frequent awakenings. Sometimes the total duration of breaks in breathing is from 3 to 4 hours during the period from 22 pm to 6 am. Not only the baby’s normal sleep physiology is disrupted, but also the functioning of his organs and systems (primarily the brain and heart).

If necessary, your doctor can check your oxygen levels using an arterial blood test. For this test, your doctor removes a small amount of blood from your artery and sends it to a laboratory for analysis. The test causes some discomfort, so your doctor may apply anesthesia to the area before drawing blood.

What are the treatment options for fast, shallow breathing?

Your doctor may want to take a closer look at your lungs to check for lung damage or signs of disease or infection. Doctors usually use an x-ray bath for this, but in some cases ultrasound may be required. Treatment options vary depending on the exact cause of your breathing problems.

Such conditions are truly dangerous. For infants, they threaten Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). The causes of “death in the cradle” still remain unclear. They cannot be identified even after an autopsy. But the risk of SIDS is thought to be higher in babies who suffer from sleep apnea.

SSA must be differentiated from periodic breathing in infants. During the neonatal period and early infancy (up to 6 months), the baby’s breathing during sleep may be uneven, the following are noted:

An effective treatment for rapid and shallow breathing caused by infection is an inhaler that opens the airways, such as albuterol and antibiotics to help clear the infection. Antibiotics are not helpful for some infections. In these cases, breathing procedures open the airways and the infection goes away on its own.

However, as you treat, you can minimize rapid and shallow breathing. Treatment for such conditions may include condoms, inhalers and oxygen tanks in extreme cases. If you experience rapid and shallow breathing as a symptom of anxiety, your doctor will likely recommend a combination of therapy and antiangiotics.

• Increased/deceleration of respiratory movements (RR).
• Shallow/uneven breathing.

This is due to the imperfection of the central nervous system (instability of neurochemical reactions) of the baby and the physiological characteristics of the development of his respiratory system. Periodic breathing has no clinical significance. It is believed that in a state of rest, differences in infants in the regular and periodic types are insignificant. From a physiological point of view, such differences are questionable and do not require treatment. You need to contact a specialist if:

If you are still breathing quickly and the above treatments are not working, your doctor will prescribe a beta blocker medication to correct your breathing. These drugs include acebutolol, atenolol, and bisoprolol. They treat fast, shallow breathing by counteracting the effects of adrenaline. Adrenaline is a stress hormone that increases your heart rate and breathing.

Reasons for changes in breathing

Preventative measures depend on the cause of rapid breathing. For example, if it is related to asthma, you should avoid allergens, strenuous exercise, and irritants such as smoke and pollution. You can stop hyperventilation before it becomes an emergency. If you are hyperventilating, you need to increase your carbon dioxide intake and decrease your oxygen intake. To do this, place your lips as if you were sucking through a straw and breathe.

1. This phenomenon continues in the child after he reaches six months.
2. Parents report breathing pauses and frequent night awakenings.
3. A change in respiratory rate is accompanied by a pronounced slowdown in heart rate (bradycardia) and cyanosis.

Most often, low birth weight babies (birth weight up to 2.5 kg) and premature babies are susceptible to SSA.

You can also close your mouth, then cover one of your nostrils and breathe through the open nostril. The cause of your hyperventilation may be the difficulty in preventing it. However, seeking quick treatment for the underlying cause can prevent the problem from getting worse or becoming more frequent.

Drowning is the second leading cause of death in children under 4 years of age. Boys appear to be particularly at risk, drowning three times more often than girls. Parents often underestimate the dangerous situation and allow your children to sing in the water unattended. But once a child is large enough to move independently, there is a risk of drowning. Baths, children's pools, swimming pools, garden ponds, rain barrels, etc. may be dangerous depending on the age of your offspring. Even 10 cm “shallow” puddles are sometimes a death trap.

The main causes of rapid breathing. Why does the baby breathe like a dog?

Rapid breathing (tachypnea) of a newborn is associated with imperfection of the respiratory system, because it continues to develop. Over the next two to three months, the lungs open, and as a result, the number of inhalations and exhalations begins to decrease.

Neonatal tachypnea is normal for both full-term and premature infants.

Rapid breathing occurs with increased physical activity. It happens that while the baby is awake, it begins to breathe frequently, with its mouth slightly open, like a dog. This usually happens at moments when he experiences positive emotions: while playing with his mother, because of vivid impressions, new sensations. If a newborn suddenly begins to breathe like a puppy in his sleep, grunts or sobs, most likely he dreamed something.

In other cases, tachypnea with a deviation of 20% from the age norm (see plate above) indicates health problems in the child.

Reasons for changes in breathing

There are many factors that provoke this phenomenon, and not all of them are related to the organs of the respiratory system. In addition to sleep apnea, a baby’s breathing rhythm may change due to:

• Respiratory diseases.
• ENT pathologies and some structural features of the nasopharynx.
• Allergies.
• Diseases of the central nervous system and birth injuries of the brain (primarily due to compression of stem structures), and meningitis.
• High temperature.
• Obesity.
• Gastrointestinal pathologies.
• Some hereditary factors.
• Overheating.

If holding your breath is accompanied by whistling or wheezing sounds, or an incomprehensible gurgling sound, then you should think about the infectious cause of the phenomenon.

Feature: in children, the main focus, unlike adults, is due to the large head not at the level of the navel, but in the chest area. If a small person leans curiously over the mirror surface of the water, he is easily hit. Untrained neck muscles can hardly lift a relatively heavy head out of the water. Babies and toddlers languished quietly and almost unnoticed. They become disorientated when their head is under water and do not resist drowning. They simply leave and usually do not appear again to seek help.

This phenomenon may be a signal of health problems:

1. Sometimes increased respiratory movements (tachypnea) are the only sign of pneumonia in young children. This disease can occur with virtually no symptoms.
2. If, along with holding your breath, a child suffers from shortness of breath, there is a risk of developing heart disease or serious lung pathology. In both cases, the baby requires hospitalization.
3. Increased breathing may be associated with bronchial obstruction or false croup. In the latter case, the baby often coughs, exhaling air noisily.
4. Babies' breathing becomes rapid if they are dressed too warmly.
5. SSA may be due to a disorder of the nervous system.

A change in respiratory rate while a child is awake may be associated with increased interest in a toy or event, an emotional outburst, or physical activity. This phenomenon is considered completely natural and does not require either observation or medical intervention.

Parents should be aware of their special responsibility and therefore never allow their child to escape during bath time! The mechanism of drowning is different in children than in adults. As soon as the face touches cold water, breathing reflexively stops. If the baby does not return to the surface quickly enough, a decrease in blood pressure and a slow heart rate will occur. After all, air cannot be stopped and it is a matter of spontaneous breathing. The water is inhaled and enters the lungs.

The child gets convulsions and becomes unconscious. Finally, the heart stops beating. This truly intelligent protective reflex means that although the baby is not breathing water, it is difficult or impossible for him to breathe again. Stay out of the water, preferably using a lifeboat, swimming pool or similar. If the child is unconscious, but breathing and heartbeat are normal, bring him to a stable lateral position. It is important that the baby's stomach is deep and the head is full. Don't try to grab your child's legs and shake your head to get the water out. This is not only useless, but even dangerous. Remove wet clothing and wrap baby in warm blankets. If your child has foreign matter in his mouth, such as sand, remove it. Start breathing immediately, ideally when breathing stops, rescue from water. In case of cardiac arrest, simultaneous start of an emergency call for cardiac massage.

• Alert the responsible manager immediately.
• In the swimming pool, which is a lifeguard and sea watch the beach.
• Don't spread any more panic.

Caution: Any child who has a near drowning should continue to receive medical supervision.
The frequency and depth of breathing may change if the baby is in pain. Decreased respiratory movements (bradypnea) is a rare symptom and usually accompanies meningitis. In this case, immediate medical intervention is required.

Children may also have insufficiency of the respiratory center, and it is primary. Its consequence is alveolar hypoventilation. Clinically, this disease manifests itself in the form of sleep apnea and cyanotic skin. During the examination, no pulmonary or cardiac pathology is detected.

There are many reasons why a child holds inhalation or exhalation. In any doubtful case, you should show it to your pediatrician. If it is suspected that the child is suffering from apnea, the frequency of breathing movements, the length of the delay and any changes that the parents may notice should be recorded.

Changes in respiratory rate are more noticeable during the REM sleep phase. In addition, it is believed that children with pauses in breathing have a harder time waking up during slow-wave sleep.

Another cause of the development of night apnea in adults is considered to be Pickwick's syndrome (a disease that occurs with myocardial hypertrophy, obesity, and drowsiness). It is usually diagnosed in adults. But there are also several described cases of this disease in children (though not infants).

Why does a baby sigh in his sleep?

Normally, small children sleep almost silently. Only in some cases can they sigh loudly enough in their sleep. However, mothers should not worry: if the baby sighs in his sleep, it means that his sleep is truly sound and good. Let's find out the 5 main reasons why small children sigh in their sleep.

1) Taking a deep breath helps babies up to 3 months develop their airways. In other words, newborns' lungs are still developing, and taking a deep breath helps move more oxygen into the airways.

2) Babies are still learning to control their breathing rhythm. And until it reaches a “habitual pace,” the baby will make loud sighs in his sleep quite often.

3) Sighing is also characteristic of the REM sleep phase. This sometimes happens not only in children, but also in adults.

4) Sighing helps develop the baby’s autonomic nervous system, which is responsible for the normal functioning of the digestive system, heart and other internal organs.

5) When a baby falls asleep, the brain’s work accelerates, while the body remains motionless. Because of this, heart and pulmonary rhythms may become disturbed.

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It is important to note that parents must distinguish normal loud sighs from breathing apnea. The latter is dangerous for the baby and is accompanied by noticeable snoring, bluish skin of the baby and breathing through the mouth.

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Inhale-exhale: 5 reasons why your baby sighs in his sleep

Mothers sometimes jump up and down in the middle of the night for no reason - just to make sure the baby is breathing. After all, babies sleep almost silently. And only sometimes they sigh. Why?

Natalya Evgenieva · January 19, 2018

You can’t even hear a snoring, and then suddenly a deep sigh, which a young mother will certainly find sad. Maybe something is wrong? Don't worry ahead of time. We found five reasons why a baby sighs in his sleep, and not a single dangerous thing is among them. Moreover, if your baby sighs, it means he is sleeping well. And that's why.

1. When a child sighs, this movement helps his lungs open so that the body receives more oxygen. A newborn’s lungs are not yet fully developed, and his still weak airways sometimes need this kind of “support” in the form of a deep breath.

2. Newborn babies still have a lot to learn, including breathing rhythm. Sighing helps the body remember the movements that the body makes when breathing itself. In addition, sighing is needed to regulate the frequency of inhalation and exhalation, as well as to learn to respond to different noise levels.

3. During sleep, the child’s autonomic nervous system develops. This system is responsible for the normal functioning of the heart, digestive tract and other human organs, and controls many muscles and glands of the body. Sighing, oddly enough, also helps in the development of a healthy autonomic nervous system.

4. Babies sigh more often during REM sleep. During this stage, brain activity increases. The body remains motionless, and the rhythms of breathing and heartbeat become confused.

5. It is important to be able to distinguish apnea from periodic breathing. The latter is completely normal for newborns. But if a child breathes through his mouth, snores, or his skin color changes, then this is apnea and a cause for concern.

What you need to know about baby sleep to stop worrying.

— Newborns can sleep from 10 to 18 hours a day. The rest of the time, if they do not sleep, they feel drowsy.

— Children from three months to a year usually need from 9 to 12 hours of sleep per day. True, such sleep is extremely rare and continuous.

— The need for sleep and its nature are different for each child. It is important to have a natural sleep pattern.

— The quality of a child's sleep can affect how he grows. The healthier the sleep, the better things are with the growth and mental development of the baby.

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Difficulty and rapid breathing in a newborn baby

Newborn breathing is of great importance as an indicator of health. The oxygen supply system is a vital function. Especially in children in the first days of life.

The structure of the respiratory tract of babies is special: they are still short, so deep inhalations and exhalations are not yet possible. A narrow nasopharynx aggravates the process, so it is extremely important to ensure the most comfortable sleeping conditions.

It would be useful to know why a newborn breathes often in his sleep, when is this normal, and what signs indicate abnormalities.

The baby's respiratory system in the first weeks after birth

A newborn baby develops very quickly. Human systems and organs grow at an accelerated rate. Therefore, pulse, respiration and blood pressure are always higher than those of an adult. In particular, the child's pulse can be up to 140 beats per minute. The baby's breathing is still shallow, frequent, and uneven. But this should not frighten parents if there are no additional signs of disease.

By the age of 6-7 years, life support systems return to normal, immunity increases, and all diseases are not so difficult to tolerate.

Rapid breathing movements of a baby: normal or pathological

The frequency of inhalations and exhalations on the first day is very high, up to 60 movements. This is called transient hyperventilation and helps the baby adapt to life outside the womb.

Different types of breathing

So that mom and dad don’t worry about the frequency of movements of the child’s oxygen supply system, you should know about certain types of breathing. There are three of them in total. Let's look at each of them in detail:

1. Breast. With such movements, the upper section actively works. In this case, the baby may suffer from poor ventilation of the lower lungs.
2. Abdominal. This is evidenced by movements of the abdominal wall and diaphragm. And with prolonged breathing of this type, the upper parts of the lungs suffer.
3. Mixed. The most optimal type, in which both the abdomen (diaphragm) and chest rise rhythmically.

Standard Frequency and Deviation Parameters

If the little one does not have a stuffy nose, all systems work normally, he should inhale briefly 2-3 times, and then take one long breath. They are all superficial, but this is the norm. As the weeks pass, the breathing system is restored and becomes rhythmic and deep.

The number of movements can be determined by the rise/fall of the baby’s chest at rest:

• up to 21 days of life takes 40-60 inhalations/exhalations;
• in days 22-90 of life – already 40-45 movements per minute;
• from 3 to 6 months their number decreases to 35-40.

Frequent breathing: causes

It is normal for a baby to inhale frequently. But if a newborn baby breathes heavily in his sleep, and the process is accompanied by strange sounds and movements, he may be developing a disease. If the baby twitches, breathing is extremely difficult, with wheezing and additional symptoms, this is a reason to immediately consult a doctor. You should call an ambulance.

The causes of difficulty breathing can be anything: a cold, a stuffy nose, a foreign object or mucus in the nasopharynx, an allergic reaction and much more.

Dangerous pathologies and their consequences

Apnea (holding your breath) in an infant is often a natural process. However, there are pathologies that require immediate specialist intervention:

• ARVI. Despite the simplicity of the disease, a cold causes a lot of problems for an infant. The infection spreads with hurricane speed, can quickly move to other parts of the body and cause inflammatory processes. Additional signs: wheezing, sniffling, severe holding of breath.
• Oxygen deficiency. Additional signs: cyanosis of the skin, obvious hypoxia. It’s not just hard to breathe, it’s impossible, the baby begins to gasp for air and may lose consciousness.
• Rise in body temperature. It may appear due to colds and teething.
• False croup. A most dangerous pathology in which delay in calling a doctor threatens death. The child is suffocating and does not move. An ambulance is vital here.
• Bronchial asthma. Threatens serious complications, suffocation.

Source: https://mostech-group.ru/nelzya/pochemu-mladenets-vzdyhaet-vo-sne/

Danger of SSA

When a child holds his breath in his sleep, this can not only cause the sudden death of a 1-year-old baby, but also affect his life and health in the future. With prolonged apnea syndrome, neurophysiological changes form in a small patient, the following appear:

• Increased sleepiness at night.
• Difficult morning rise.
• Irritability, tearfulness.
• Decreased cognitive functions of the brain (poor learning, memory, absent-minded attention).

Constant hypoxia negatively affects the functioning of the myocardium. There is a risk of developing serious heart disease:

• Angina pectoris.
• Arrhythmias.
• Heart failure.
• Hypertension.

In an untreated state, SSA significantly increases the risk of injury and can cause developmental delays in a child and a deterioration in the quality of life in an adult. In the future, young men with SSA are at higher risk of strokes and heart attacks.

Impaired breathing seriously complicates the course of allergic pathologies affecting the entire system (allergic bronchitis, bronchial asthma) and chronic obstructive pathologies of the bronchi and lungs.

Preventing moaning and other sleep disturbances in children

Properly organized, healthy sleep for a baby is a favorable environment for all family members. Dr. Komarovsky’s advice will help prevent night groans and ensure proper rest.

You need to do the following:

• take care of the health of parents;
• clearly define your sleep schedule;
• choose a comfortable place to rest at night;
• avoid oversleeping during the day;
• organize rational feeding;
• distribute physical and emotional stress throughout the day;
• thoroughly ventilate the room and do not neglect wet cleaning;
• pay due attention to evening swimming;
• choose the right bedding and nightwear;
• Choose your night diaper carefully.

There is no point in panicking if parents notice their baby moaning in his sleep. In most cases, the conditions are not symptoms of the disease and are easily corrected. It is important to try to take a closer look at the baby, consult with a specialist, and ensure comfortable sleeping conditions. The most important thing is that the little person is healthy.

Source: znatoksna.ru

Signs

Sleep apnea is not always easy to notice. In babies, it is more often noted by parents with sensitive sleep or those who sleep little for one reason or another. You can suspect a short-term cessation of breathing in a child at night in the following cases:

• If he breathes through his mouth during the day.
• There is urinary incontinence (at night and during the day).
• The baby is sweating a lot.
• During the day he is sleepy and inactive.
• Sleeps in an unusual position (kneels and lies head down) or is very restless, screams, often wakes up, and suffers from nightmares.
• Snores or snores heavily.
• There are behavioral disorders.

During a prolonged attack, you may notice not only a lack of chest movement in a child, but also a decrease in heart rate. This is accompanied by a bluish discoloration of the nasolabial triangle and subungual areas.

Diagnostics

If parents complain that the child has breathing pauses during sleep, it is recommended that he be examined by a pediatric cardiologist, otolaryngologist, or neurologist. A reliable picture of SSA can be established after polysomnography. The procedure is lengthy, takes more than 8 hours and combines recording:

• Brain activity.
• Cardiac activity.
• Eye movements.
• Registration of air flows.
• The efforts of the muscles involved in the act of breathing.
• Blood oxygen saturation.
• Sleeping positions and snoring.

For pediatrics, this research method is quite new, but this area of ​​medicine is developing rapidly and has good prospects.

Measurement of NPV and standards

The act of breathing is one of the most important functions of the human body, which is associated with ensuring its vital functions. Standard indicators depend on the age of the baby:

• 50–60 respiratory movements are the norm for a newborn.
• 35–47 breaths is normal for a 1–2 month old baby.
• A 3-year-old child should do 28–35 respiratory acts.
• Children aged 4 to 9 years typically take 24–30 breaths.
• 18–20 breaths is the norm for 10–12 year olds.

It makes sense to calculate the respiratory rate at rest. Health workers usually use a phonendoscope for these purposes, but even if you simply put your hand on the child’s chest, you can determine the breathing rate and its filling. At the same time, jerky, uneven breathing is considered characteristic of children in the first year of life.

Should I worry if my child has noisy breathing during sleep?

• Cause of impaired breathing
• Other reasons

Even, calm breathing of your own child in sleep is what every parent dreams of. After all, then there is no doubt that his well-being and health are in perfect order. But sometimes during sleep this physiological process can be complicated by confusion.

The chest moves faster, and strange and unusual sounds begin to appear. And this phenomenon should be taken seriously. Noisy breathing in a child during sleep indicates various disorders and ongoing internal ailments.

Therefore, you should carefully monitor the general condition of the baby, paying attention to other symptoms.

Cause of impaired breathing

Noisy and heavy breaths in infants under two years of age may be due to the physiological characteristics of their body. The main reason for this disorder is the increased elasticity of the respiratory tract tissues themselves.

If the child eats well, sleeps soundly at night and does not lag behind in growth, then parents should not worry. When the child reaches one and a half years old, the cartilage tissue of the larynx will begin to thicken and the problem will go away on its own.

If a baby breathes loudly during sleep, this may be associated with certain diseases and pathologies. This:

• acute laryngitis;
• false croup;
• pneumonia.

The most common reason that children experience problems with the respiratory system is acute laryngitis. This disease is considered dangerous, but it is well treated.

It develops after a cold that has not been completely cured. Other symptoms of this disease include a dry, irritating cough that eventually becomes hacking and hoarse.

The voice may disappear, the baby may lose appetite, and experience pain when swallowing.

In order to alleviate the condition of a baby with this disease, you need to leave the child in the bathroom, which is filled with hot vapors, before going to bed. The baby should breathe moist air for ten minutes. This procedure will expand the lumen of the airways and thereby make breathing easier for the baby.

With false croup, the child’s body is affected by a viral infection, which is localized at the level of the larynx itself. The ongoing inflammatory processes cause swelling of this area, which makes breathing difficult. It becomes especially difficult for children to take a breath. In this case, the basis of treatment is drug therapy aimed at eliminating the infection.

Noisy breathing in a child during sleep may be associated with acute pneumonia. At the same time, the baby is bothered by a painful dry cough, shortness of breath appears, the temperature rises, and breathing becomes frequent. It is important to consult a doctor in time so that comprehensive treatment can be prescribed in a timely manner.

Other reasons

Heavy and noisy breaths in children that occur during sleep may be the cause of some childhood infections. Such diseases include:

• chickenpox;
• measles;
• scarlet fever;
• rubella;
• whooping cough;
• diphtheria.

When the inflammatory process occurs during such ailments, the larynx and tracheal mucosa are affected. As a result, the lumen begins to narrow. During the night's rest, the baby develops an oxygen deficiency. It is for this reason that breathing becomes very deep and heavy.

Additionally, the voice may become hoarse and a barking cough may appear. If the underlying disease is not treated in time, then gradual damage to the entire respiratory system occurs. Breathing becomes harsh.

In this case, in addition to the main treatment, the doctor prescribes inhalations based on medicinal herbs.

Heavy breathing during sleep in a child is sometimes associated with emerging allergies. In addition to the main symptom, small red spots begin to appear on the baby’s body.

Soft tissues may swell, air passage becomes difficult, lacrimation increases, and the child may experience an allergic runny nose. It is important to establish the type of allergen and exclude its contact with the baby.

The doctor should also prescribe medications depending on age that block allergic attacks. It becomes difficult for the baby to breathe during sleep if there is any obstruction in the respiratory tract.

Most often this is due to the fact that mucus accumulates there, a foreign body may be present, and pneumonia develops. In these cases, the baby's breathing becomes muffled, his chest rises and falls quite high, and the child himself may suffocate for moments.

It is necessary to pay attention to the baby’s difficulty breathing during sleep when other pathological symptoms are also observed. If the baby feels great and has an excellent appetite, then this disorder is age-related and the respiratory process will soon normalize.



Source: https://detskiezabolevaniya.com/u-rebenka-shumnoe-dyhanie-vo-sne.html

Treatment

Treatment methods depend on the cause of the problem. They can be either medicinal or non-medicinal, conservative and include surgical intervention. In the absence of additional pathology, the use of Theophylline helps to reduce attacks of respiratory arrest and shortens the pause period itself.

As a general guideline, sleeping with the head of the bed elevated is usually recommended. For babies, you can use special baby cocoons. It is advisable to avoid sleeping in a supine position. For allergies and inflammatory rhinitis, rinsing the nasal passages with saline solutions and the use of vasoconstrictors and decongestants may be recommended.

In case of pathology of the ENT organs, surgical measures may be prescribed (from a certain age). For example, to correct a deviated nasal septum, remove tonsils or adenoids.

The method of over-mask therapy using a special device capable of maintaining pressure in the respiratory system at a constant level is considered promising. In the central form of the syndrome, Diacarb (Acetazolamide) can be prescribed.

If a child suffocates in his sleep, what to do?

If a child begins to choke frequently during sleep, and also regularly wakes up at night, you should pay close attention to the listed symptoms. Such phenomena are quite dangerous for the lives of children.

Causes of breathing problems

The main reason that a baby suffocates during sleep is severe shortness of breath. This situation can arise for a number of reasons:

• pneumonia;
• false croup;
• accumulation of mucus;
• edema;
• foreign body;
• bronchial asthma.

In addition, shortness of breath can occur due to problems with normal hemoglobin levels, poisoning, heart and vascular diseases. Difficulty breathing and frequent situations where a child seems to be suffocating in his sleep can be symptoms of dangerous diseases that require individual, competent treatment.

If a problem with breathing has arisen, and a small child often begins to choke in his sleep, you should definitely visit a pediatrician.

Acute laryngitis

Breathing problems are often caused by laryngitis. During this condition, the child suffocates in his sleep from a dry cough attack.

Also, laryngitis can be distinguished by the fact that the child coughs violently and intermittently during sleep, suffocates and cannot independently stop the cough attack.

Symptoms of laryngitis also include a change in voice to a hoarse voice, partial or complete loss of it, sore throat when eating and swallowing, and lack of appetite. The disease can manifest itself against the background of influenza or ARVI.

If a small child coughs and chokes in his sleep, what should he do? You can alleviate the pathological condition with a hot water bath. Taking a bath will help moisten the air around you and help your baby cope with a dry cough. Moisture in the air helps expand the baby's airways. After providing first aid to your baby, you must call an ambulance.

False croup

Acute laryngitis is a fairly common illness in children aged from one month to three years of age. This is a serious viral infection, similar to acute respiratory infections. But, such a virus is localized in the laryngeal region and causes severe swelling and inflammation.

Can a small child suffocate in his sleep during such an attack? Yes, if the croup is quite neglected. Therefore, at the first signs of illness and difficulty breathing, you should contact an ENT specialist. Breathing with false croup is extremely difficult when inhaling. This is a hallmark of the disease.

Also, the danger of croup lies in the fact that once you get it, the risk of a recurrence of the virus exists with each subsequent cold for up to eight years.

Pneumonia

Acute pneumonia is the second most common cause of suffocation in sleep. This is explained by the strong effusion of specific fluid into the lung tissue and the subsequent lack of oxygen in the blood. A newborn baby suffocates heavily during sleep, wheezes, and shortness of breath appears. The best option would be to immediately consult a doctor.

Pneumonia can be distinguished by the following signs:

• distinct wheezing;
• temperature over 38 degrees;
• cough with attacks;
• retraction of the intercostal space during inspiration;
• frequent breathing.

Asthma

There is no need to guess whether a baby may suffocate during sleep due to breathing problems. You should definitely contact your pediatrician about possible asthma in your baby, especially if this disease is hereditary.

Asthma is characterized by a severe cough, especially during exercise. Shortness of breath at night can turn into severe suffocation. Cardiac asthma can be distinguished by characteristic pale skin and moist rales.

You should immediately call an ambulance to prevent pulmonary edema.

Foreign body

Severe choking in babies can be caused by foreign objects. The object can enter the respiratory tract and cause the baby to stop breathing. If an adult or a child manages to get rid of a dangerous object, you still need to see a pediatrician. This condition is often fraught with laryngospasm - subsequent reflex narrowing of the larynx after experiencing suffocation.

Runny nose

A runny nose becomes the simplest and most common cause of difficulty breathing during sleep. A child may choke in his sleep due to adenoids, colds, sinusitis or sinusitis.

Discharge enters the nasopharynx from the nasal passages and causes severe coughing; moreover, infants do not know how to breathe through their mouths and this condition is not uncommon for them.

It is necessary to check the baby for diseases of the nasal passages or colds, check the temperature, and be sure to contact a pediatrician.

Apnea

Can a baby suffocate in his sleep? With apnea, this is a fairly real phenomenon. Apnea is a specific cessation of breathing during the night, which is very dangerous for children under two years of age. The condition is typical for newborns, because their respiratory system is not yet fully formed.

The syndrome can be recognized by the following signs:

• blueness of the nasolabial triangle;
• disruption of the heart;
• hypoxia.

Mostly premature babies are at risk, because their respiratory center is not always fully formed. The risk group is also shared by children who have experienced:

• GERD;
• birth injuries;
• infectious diseases;
• complications during pregnancy;
• pathologies of ENT organs;
• children with a family history.

In preschoolers, apnea can occur against the background of adenoids or tonsillitis. Surgical correction of tumors and removal of tonsils are recommended.

If the cause is a runny nose of the usual or allergic type, you need to undergo treatment with vasoconstrictor drops, as well as rinsing the nasal passages. When moderate and severe apnea is detected, newborn children are prescribed SINAP therapy.

Quick help for breathing problems

If the baby is breathing heavily and does not feel well, you need to call an ambulance and take the first necessary measures to alleviate the baby’s condition until the doctors arrive. This can be done using the following techniques:

• calm the baby down with reading or cartoons;
• carry out alkaline inhalation with saline or mineral water using a nebulizer.
• Place the baby on his stomach to facilitate breathing;
• introduce vasoconstrictor drops into the nasal passages.

Also, as a preventive measure for such conditions, it is worth ventilating the sleeping room, avoiding feather bedding, not using perfume, hair or nail polish around the child, and not smoking.

Non-pathological causes

In most cases, breathing disorders are not pathological and are caused by unbalanced temperature and humidity conditions in the sleeping room. Infants are especially sensitive to this climate. Cigarette smoke or strong aromas can cause coughing and difficulty breathing.

Help with a foreign body

If a foreign body gets in, you should provide immediate first aid to the baby. The problem can be detected by wide open eyes and mouth, bluishness of the face and, in some cases, loss of consciousness.

Before the ambulance arrives, you should use:

• try to reach the object if it is visible;
• put the baby on your forearm, lower his head below the body;
• support the baby's chin with your hand;
• tap on the back with light movements.

After the manipulations, you need to examine the back wall of the pharynx when coughing to visualize a foreign body and, if it appears, remove it.

Conclusion

Breathing problems should not be ignored. Constant suffocation with adenoids is fraught with delayed physical and mental development, drowsiness and regular fatigue.

Apnea syndrome is quite dangerous for the baby’s life, so it cannot be avoided without medical help.

Since relatives may not always notice problems with the baby’s breathing during sleep, if you suspect an altered breathing rhythm, you should contact your pediatrician. The doctor will be able to determine the cause of the disease and prescribe appropriate treatment.

List of used literature:

• Bishop DV, Anderson M, Reid C, Fox AM; Anderson; Reid; Fox (2011). Koenig, Thomas, ed. “Auditory development between 7 and 11 years: an event-related potential (ERP) study.” PLoS ONE
• Hu Z, Chan RC, McAlonan GM; Chan; McAlonan (2010). “Maturation of social attribution skills in typically developing children: an investigation using the social attribution task.” Behavioral and Brain Functions
• Stiles J, Jernigan TL; Jernigan (2010). “The basics of brain development.” Neuropsychology Review

Source: https://PsySon.ru/rebenok-ne-cpit/esli-rebenok-zadyxaetsya-vo-sne-chto-delat.html

Preventive measures

Prevention is nonspecific. It consists of competent treatment of diseases of the endocrine system, ENT organs, respiratory and circulatory systems. In this case, multidisciplinary specialists can be involved - from pulmonologists and cardiologists, to gastroenterologists and neurologists. Additionally, to facilitate nasal breathing for the baby, it is recommended:

• Sleep on an orthopedic mattress using special pillows.
• Thoroughly ventilate the room before the baby goes to bed.
• Regular wet cleaning.
• Removing soft toys from the room that can cause allergies in the baby.
• Competent selection of nutrition. Replacing milk at night with baby yogurt or kefir starting at 7 months.

Holding your breath should not be ignored at any age. This is especially dangerous for infants. The child may stop breathing even for half a minute. Of particular danger in this case is the risk of sudden death of the baby.