When will my child be old enough to blow her own nose?

Developmentally, most children are able to blow their own nose at about age two, and in some cases, even earlier. Whether or not they want to do it, is another matter entirely of course. Up until the time that your toddler can blow their own nose, it is up to you to see that their nasal passages are clear, especially when they’re eating or asleep.

You can buy saline solution from your chemist, and put a drop of the solution into each nostril. They will more than likely snort or sneeze to get rid of the solution in their nostrils, and this will clear the nasal passages of any mucous build-up. If he or she doesn’t do this, then you can do it for them, by carefully suctioning the nostrils with a rubber bulb syringe.

If your toddler is two years old or thereabouts, there are a few ways that you can try to teach them to blow their own nose. In the meantime though, your toddler might want to blow their nose by imitating you, so let them, if they’re interested in doing it on her own, then they’ll learn to do it a lot faster.

Just remember to teach your toddler to blow gently, as using force to blow their nose could force any mucous to back up into their middle ear or sinuses, which could lead to infection.