They just don't get it, do they?

[fisil]

Hayfever, that is.

DP has always suffered from hayfever.

DS (15 months) has been suffering with a snotty nose and droopy eyes - basically his whole face is just giving out slimey stuff!

I think it's a cold and that babies don't get hayfever. DP thinks it's just like what he's got and so is hayfever.

Who do you agree with (careful ... )

anyone?

I didn't think so - seem to remember they don't get it as tinies - but there always seems to be an exception somewhere.
There are tonnes of colds doing the rounds at the moment though. DD haas had snooty nose for 2 weeks now with latest cold (14mths)

Sorry Fisil, I'm with your dp on this one - especially if it's in the family. Ds got hayfever last summer and the GP prescribed him piriton. Ds would have been about 9/10 months. If it's not improving then it's probably hayfever, if it's getting better then it's most likely a cold. If you can't decide then Medised (over the counter stuff) has an antihistamine in it anyway as well as paracetamol so would help.

We can't catch anything in our house without dh saying "You've got exactly what I had/whatI've got!" It drives me insaaaaaane!

Ds1 seems to suffer from hayfever. I've noticed it's only at certain times of the day or if we've had the windows open. If your ds is snotty all the time then I would say it's more likely to be just a cold.

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If the snot eventually turns yellow/green, then I think it's more likely to be a cold. But I do think babies can get hayfever/allergic reactions. One yo DD1 once had a reaction, such as you describe, to oil seed rape flowers. (There - am I sitting suitably on the fence??)

I've heard women on MN say their GP insisted that children under 2 couldn't get asthma, but asthma was diagnosed among a lot of little babies I met in Leicestershire in the last few years. I think that means... nobody really knows for sure. Probalby same with hayfever.

So, I would think a baby could get hayfever, but they might also be much more likely to outgrow it, too. Therefore I'd be minded to treat it for the annoying symptoms, and wait and see if it didn't go away.

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Thanks for all your thoughts. The general opinion seems to be in agreement with dp. I think in the grand scheme of things it's probably better if I give in gracefully here!

However, the snot is most definitely of the yellowy green variety and his eyes are pussing a little. So I think we can compromise with "babies can get hayfever, but this one has a cold right now!"

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The eyes have it. A cold doesn't affect their eyes in the same way as hayfever.

We had to rush our toddler to the doctors after fluid collected under his eyeball when we were on holiday in Cornwall. It was diagnosed as acute hayfever and antihistamines soon made it better.

Although we were by the sea, there was a rape field on the headland which we suspect was the culprit.

Since then we can see the hayfever is coming when his eyelids go puffy.

Oh, I beg to differ, Meysey. My ds has had yellow snot coming out of his eyes with a cold. Yuk, yuk, yuk!