What is the best way to take a baby on a plane?

Keep your baby or toddler buckled. Buckled snugly into a car seat or other approved restraint is the safest place for a baby or toddler on an airplane, especially in case of unexpected turbulence. Your child is used to being secured in their own car seat the entire time during trips to the store or zoo.



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The AAP recommends that the safest way for your baby to fly is in a child safety restraint?an FAA-approved car seat or airplane harness device approved for your child's age and size installed with the airplane's seat belt. Booster seats cannot be used on airplanes.

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Make sure you bring plenty of pacifiers and bottles with you on the plane so that your baby can use them as needed throughout the flight. If your baby is particularly sensitive to loud noises, consider using ear plugs or ear muffs while flying.

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The best time to fly with kids 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. The idea here is to bypass the toddler phase, and, more importantly, to avoid flying with young infants. The latter is especially risky says Dr.

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For kids (especially babies and young children), it can feel especially odd and even be scary at first. But it's a common, normal part of flying. This sometimes uncomfortable sensation is related to pressure changes in the air space behind the eardrum (the middle ear).

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Your baby's ears. 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.

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If you think your toddler is likely to cry, yell and be noisy on the plane, you might want to book seats near the back of the aircraft. This section of the plane, behind the wings, is generally noisier, thanks to the engine, and the background hum might cover the sound of your child.

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You may bring your child's car seat and stroller free of charge as checked baggage. You can check these items with your other baggage, or wait until you reach the gate area. Strollers can be checked at the gate or with your regular checked baggage at the ticket counter.

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In the absence of obstetric or medical complications, occasional air travel is safe for pregnant women. Pregnant women can fly safely, observing the same precautions for air travel as the general population. Women should check with specific carriers for airline requirements.

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To calm babies, parents should take a bottle or pacifier or breastfeed. Also, airplane cabin noise levels are loud, especially during takeoff. Parents can also consider using cotton balls to limit a baby's exposure to this noise. This may help make it easier for the babies to sleep.

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They may be in pain because of pressure changes at takeoff and landing; they may be tired and find it difficult to sleep without their normal surroundings; they might want to move around instead of being stuck in a confined space or they might be disoriented and scared.

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And just like adults might lose their cool on a plane, babies — who, after all, communicate by crying — can't always keep it together. Experts say sometimes the tears are unavoidable, but they do offer some tips on the best ways to help.

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Also, airplane cabin noise levels are loud, especially during takeoff. Consider using cotton balls, noise-canceling headphones or small earplugs to limit your baby's exposure to this noise. This may help make it easier for your baby to sleep.

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Once you're inside, assemble your supplies — diaper, wipes, and disposal bag — next to the sink and layer some paper towels or a changing pad on the closed toilet seat. Place your child on the seat, whip off the dirty diaper, stick it in an airsick bag or plastic bag, and dispose of it in the garbage.

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Water for babies is allowed in reasonable quantities in carry-on bags. Remove this item from your carry-on bag to be screened separately from the rest of your belongings.

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Help the Parents
If a baby is crying and the parents are having trouble consoling them, a flight attendant may offer to help out. This could involve anything from holding the baby for a few minutes so the parents can take a break, have their own bathroom visits, etc.

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Nurse your baby during takeoff and landing when traveling by airplane. This will help to protect your child from ear pain due to cabin pressure changes. Feed your baby on demand.

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But the best way to stop your baby crying during take-off or landing (when their ears may pop or hurt) is to feed them, from the breast or from a bottle . As long as the airline doesn't require your baby to be in an air baby travel cot or bassinet, you're good to go.

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