We’ve all been around those “snotty-nosed” kids who always seem to have a runny nose—in fact, we may have been one of those kids at one point in our lives. But why do children have perpetual runny noses? In most cases, this is likely due to three reasons:
- Children are not able to blow their noses are effectively as adults. Additionally, young children do not know or care to sniff the snot back into their throats like adults do instinctively. So, in part, children appear to have a runny nose much more often just because it is much more visible.
- Young children tend to experience many colds during the first few years of their lives. Since their immune systems have not yet matured, they are much more susceptible to upper respiratory infections, which often result in a runny nose.
- Infants and young children do not yet have fully-developed sinuses, which also causes the nose to run more often than adults.
Fortunately, most children are able to grow out of this phase by the time they are school-aged and dealing with sticky cheeks and crusty sleeves will no longer be an issue.
Have more questions? See more answers from Alot.
