Feelings of discomfort, exhaustion, hunger, loneliness, boredom, anger, pain and general unrest are all expressed by wails and tears, if not a total meltdown. However, there is general agreement that the pressure caused by flying at altitude is particularly difficult to bear for babies and toddlers.
There are many reasons that a baby cries on an airplane. They can have feelings of discomfort, exhaustion, hunger, loneliness, boredom, anger, pain and general unrest. But one of the main reasons is popping ear.
If they are inconsolable, try taking your baby to the back of the plane where the hum of the engine may mask their crying. Try to remain calm – a good distraction is to gently talk to your baby – or try letting them look out the window where they may see other planes or perhaps a nice view.
Changing cabin pressure during a flight causes temporary changes in middle ear pressure. This can trigger ear pain. To help relieve the discomfort in your baby's ears, offer your baby a breast, bottle or pacifier to suck on during takeoff and the initial descent.
Air travel is not recommended for babies younger than seven days of age. This is because cabin pressure in an airplane changes often, and newborn babies' systems may have trouble adjusting.
In general, doctors recommend you wait to fly until your baby's immune system is better developed. This could be as soon as one month for full-term infants, though most doctors recommend anywhere between three months and six months.
The best time to fly with kids
While you can't always fly at the optimal time (based on your child's age, that is), it's great when you can. The best times, most agree, are between three and nine months, when kids aren't yet mobile, and any time after age two or three.
Distract With Toys
Change your scenery by walking the aisles with your child and his or her favorite toys or stuffed animals. “The more you can keep your child's attention on you and on things that are interesting or fun, the less likely they are to cry,” says Dr. McCarthy.
Japan Airlines has introduced a feature on its seat booking system that shows where young children are seated. A "child" icon appears when a passenger is travelling with children aged under two years. One traveller said the feature let him know where babies "plan to scream... during a 13-hour trip".
The bassinet will give your baby ample space to lay down completely for an uninterrupted sleep during the flight. If bassinets are not available, invest in an inflatable foot pillow or footrest. Just inflate it once the seatbelt sign goes off. You can deflate them once you have put your tray tables away during landing.
A crying child can expose caregivers and health care providers to sound pressures as high as 120 dB(A), merely 10 dB(A) less than the intensity of noise from an airplane departure. Continuous exposure to this amplitude may cause auditory discomfort, ear pressure, mild pain, and even tinnitus.
Call your airline to secure a bassinet for the baby. Let baby sleep!! If you're traveling with an infant in arms, you may want to call the airline to request a bassinet for the baby. (only available on long haul flights) These bassinets give the baby their own place to laydown flat and sleep uninterrupted on the plane.
Babies tend to travel with a lot of stuff, including strollers, car seats, diaper bags and toys. It can be difficult, if not impossible, to carry it all along with your baby. Check with your airline in advance about what you can check; in general, strollers and car seats can be checked for free.
When deciding either window or aisle seat, the window is found to be the loudest on the plane. While aisle seats are quieter, do note there's also a higher chance that other passengers from the inner seats might interrupt you if they need to go to the washroom.
The back of the plane is definitely the worst place to sit for travelers who hate turbulence since it's far from the plane's center of lift and gravity. This section can also be very loud since some planes have engines and auxiliary power units toward the back of the body that make a lot of noise.
It's not unusual for parents to consider avoiding such potential problems by using medication to make their baby sleep. Medication is a tempting way to keep your baby quiet for a few hours during a trip, but I don't recommend it.
Coping with your baby
Most people find the first six to eight weeks to be the hardest with a new baby.
Infants or children under 2 years of age can travel on the lap of an adult for free (within the United States) or at a reduced fare (for international travel).
A 7 a.m. start may work beautifully for early risers but not so well with children who tend to be cranky in the morning. A late-night flight, on the other hand, may find your child either sleeping peacefully or overly tired, just as he might be at home.
In general, lap infants, referring to children under 2 years of age who sit on an adult's lap on board, can typically travel for free (mostly on domestic flights) or at a discounted fare (for international routes).
Air travel increases a newborn's risk of catching an infectious disease. Babies born prematurely, with chronic heart or lung problems, or with upper or lower respiratory symptoms may also have problems with the change in oxygen level within the air cabin.
Flying can cause pain in babies' ears, and it can temporarily reduce hearing, but it is not a cause of permanent hearing loss. The pain results from stretching of the eardrum caused by pressure changes.
Babies and children should always wear hearing protection during takeoff, and many babies and children benefit from hearing protection during the duration of the flight. Don't worry if they don't wear it the whole time, intermittent protection goes a long way in safeguarding little ears from noise-induced hearing loss.