Cool mist vaporizer vs. steam

My oldest son has managed to get everyone sick. The joys of school! Yesterday the babies had there 2 month check up. I told the doctor about their colds and she suggeted a cold mist vaporizer to help them breath. I have the steam one. What is the difference? Wondering if I should buy the cold mist one. Thanks!

Trina

 

I have always been told to use a cool mist humidifier. Are you saying you have a warm mist one?

 

I have the one warm one that you can put Vicks Vapor stuff in.

 

I don't think there is really a difference except one puts out cold air, the other warm. Most people recommend cool ones just so little kids don't get burned. Personally, I have a warm one. It's great for the winter when their rooms are cold since it warms the room a little, a cool mist one would be great for the summer when their rooms are hot.

 

The way that it was explained to me is that the cold air humidifiers are just fan aided evaporation, while the warm mist vaporizers produce a low tempurature steam which can cause condensation more easily. We have a cool are vaporizer, but we point it away from the kids.

 

I asked our ped. why cool mist is recommended... He explained that besides the safety issue of burns, warm mist humidifiers over time build up unseen mold on the wall and ceiling, leading to further breathing issues. This is because of the increased condensation. He said that cool mist is much less likely to do that, yet it treats the lungs just as well. As soon as we heard that, we bought a cool mist vaporizer and discarded our warm one. Our girls have both got respiratory issues and use nebulizers frequently, so we didn't want to run the risk of adding to their problems.

Also, we've been told by several doctors that Vicks is actually an irritant to the breathing passages, that it is not recommended to be used on any persons of any age, young or old. It doesn't "treat" the problem, and that its use actually irritates the breathing passages, FWIW.

 

I used a warm mist vapourizer last week when my babies had colds. Worked like a charm and only cost me $16 at the drug store!

 

All I know is the cool mist ultrasonic ones are MUCH easier to take care of!!! :good: I used a warm one myself for years, but it was such a pain keeping it clean. I got one of those cute animal ones at Target for the boys and I LOVE it! No filter to get nasty, it doesn't leave condensation... and it seems to work just as well. (plus the safety factor and it's cute!! )