Coughs, colds and baby sleep

As I write this I am sucking an Olbas lozenge.

It’s a lovely image isn’t it?

I was given them at an event I attended recently, hosted by Olbas, about coughs, colds and how to make sure your baby sleeps well, even with the snuffles. As it turned out, I had a cold on the day, so thank goodness there was plenty of decongestants on hand.

Try as we might though, we just can’t figure out a cure for the common cold. Over the years, people have come up with all sorts of remedies, from shoving bits of orange peel up your nose to the mysterious carbolic smoke ball.

The carbolic smoke ball was very popular in the late 1800s as a cure for everything from coughs and colds to asthma and bronchitis, and it even came with a no win no fee style promise – if you could prove that it didn’t work or made you ill, there was a guaranteed payout of £100. £100 was a lot of money in 1892.

Nowadays though, nobody even pretends that they can do anything to cure a cold or flu, you just have to tough it out. (With the help of your Olbas lozenges obviously). If your children are struggling with coughs and cold this winter though, here is sleep expert and paediatric nurse Kathleen McGrath with a few top tips:

If you or a member of your family is suffering from non-snot related sleep problems, try the Sleep Matters Helpline. The helpline, run by the Medical Advisory Service, puts callers straight through to trained nurses who will talk through problems and, if necessary, refer to the right source for further help and advice.

Tel:   020 8994 9874 (6pm-8pm daily)