I’m a flying nanny – here’s how to stop your kid’s ears hurting during a flight

A FLYING nanny has revealed how to stop your kid’s ears hurting during a long flight.

Ear pain on a plane is uncomfortable for most travellers but can be much worse for passengers who are too young to understand how to pop their ears.

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Denya Glover, who looks after children on planes as part of her job as a flying nanny for Etihad airlines.

She told Conde Nast Traveller: “When taking off, many children experience ear pain due to the increase in air pressure.

“Most parents think that ear plugs will solve the problem, but I recommend something else.

“Ask the flight attendant for some warm water (not too hot, not too cold), a tissue, and a cup.

“Place the wet tissue in the cup and then over the ear. The steam will relieve the pressure and soothe the pain. Happy children, happy flight!”

The pain is caused by a drop in cabin pressure – there’s a pocket of air inside your ears that is normally at the same pressure as the air outside, but if the air pressure around you changes, you feel the air pushing on your eardrum.

During take-off, the pressure in the cabin will decrease rapidly, making the eardrum bulge outwards – resulting in a sharp pain.

Yawning helps to reduce the pressure, as does blowing with your nose and mouth shut, but it’s hard to explain that to young children.

Tiktok user Victoria, a flight attendant from San Francisco, also shared a video listing things that can help with popping ears.

She told her 76k followers: “Chewing gum or sucking on candy or a cough drop does seem to help [during] taking off or landing.”

Victoria said that medicines can help too if you want to help clear your sinuses.

She continued: “I always carry some kind of nose spray or cold or sinus medicine to keep with me.

“If I ever feel like I’m getting stuffy on a flight, I definitely always make sure to take it right before take off and 30 minutes or so before we land.”

Her final piece of advice was to not be afraid to speak to a doctor if you often have problems with ears popping, as there are medical procedures such as “semi-permanent tubes in your ears” which last a few years.

Another flight attendant explained why there was one item she also took with her – called an Eustachi.

Sun Online previously revealed how to stop pressure from building in your ears when you’re flying in the first place – if your kids are old enough to understand.

You can read more tips on ear pain when flying here.

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