What should I do if my baby has white eye mucus?

The baby's physical health is an issue that parents are very concerned about. If the baby has some diseases, parents will definitely be worried and don't know how to deal with it. For example, if the baby has white eye mucus, parents will definitely be at a loss. In fact, there are many reasons why babies have white eye mucus. Parents should help their babies find out the cause of white eye mucus and take appropriate measures.

1. Normal eye mucus: When a child is born, there is a layer of grayish white stuff on the eyes, but it is not eye mucus. This layer of grayish white stuff is medically called "vernix caseosa". Vernix caseosa has the function of protecting the skin and preventing heat dissipation. It can be absorbed by itself, so it cannot be wiped off casually. When the baby is 2-3 months old, there may be some eye mucus on the eyes when you wake up in the morning. This is because the eyelashes tend to grow inward during this period, and the friction and irritation of the eyeballs produces eye mucus. Generally, around 1 year old, eyelashes will grow outwards naturally and eye mucus will gradually decrease, so there is no need for treatment. You can wipe it clean with a warm towel, or use a cotton swab dipped in 2% boric acid solution and gently wipe it from the inner corner of the eye to the outer corner.

2. Eye mucus caused by inflammation: Children’s gastrointestinal tract is still in the development stage, and their digestive functions are not yet fully developed. Excess nutrients are difficult to digest, causing food accumulation to turn into heat and “internal heat”. Excessive eye mucus is one of the typical symptoms of a baby getting angry. It is a common phenomenon for babies who eat less fruits and vegetables and drink formula milk to get angry. In addition to excessive eye mucus, babies often have other symptoms of getting angry, such as dry stools, thick tongue coating, etc.

3. Pathological eye mucus: When there is a lot of eye mucus accompanied by itchy and red eyes, you should go to the hospital for a check-up to see if you have an eye disease. If a newborn has conjunctivitis, treatment measures should be taken promptly, otherwise the inflammation will spread into the eye and may even develop into chronic conjunctivitis, which is more difficult to cure.

In the above article, we introduced a symptom that may occur in babies, that is, the appearance of white eye mucus in the eyes. We know that there are many reasons for the appearance of white eye mucus in babies. The above article gives us a detailed introduction to the causes and treatment methods of white eye mucus in babies.