When I was a kid, I apparently cost my family many hours of peaceful sleep, and I’m still hearing about it all these years later.

My dad tells me - and I do sort of remember - that I kept him up many a night with multiple bouts of croup. Croup is a virus common in young children that causes swelling in the windpipe and voice box. The word sounded funny to me, and I thought it was just some special type of cold: I’d get a runny nose, my temperature would be taken, and I would cough.

Oh, would I cough! And not just any cough. This was the croup cough - wheezing accompanied by a lovely, mellifluous, and CONSTANT cough that sounds a lot like a barking seal.

My dad’s remedy was to crank up the humidifier and plop it in the middle of my bedroom. I recall the soft hum and the puffs of warm, misty air emanating from it. But did it help soothe my symptoms? Could I breathe easier? Maybe, but all I remember is that I liked how the humidifier made my room feel a little like a garden greenhouse.

Still, if my dad said it would help, it must have, right? Well, I recently read a study that made me wonder if my father really does know best!

According to research conducted at SickKids Hospital in Toronto, mild to moderate croup did not respond to humidity - even when it was given in the most clinically ideal way. Though it may not be as effective as parents hope it will be, humidity is still recommended by many experts.

via Medbroadcast: Although several recent studies have not shown a clear benefit from using mist or humidity for children with croup in the emergency department, this is still recommended for the management of croup at home. If your child has stridor, a humidifier may help him or her breathe more easily. A cool mist vaporizer or warm moist air may both be effective. Sitting with your child in a bathroom filled with hot shower steam for 10 minutes often helps. Taking your child outside into the cool air for about 10 minutes may also help.

(Now I’m trying to remember if my dad ever bundled me up and sent me out to play in the cold when I was barking like a seal. I’ll have to ask next time we talk!)

The Canadian Pediatric Society doesn’t take an official position on croup, but does advise parents to seek immediate medical care if certain symptoms occur:

> A fever that persists for more than 72 hours (in a child under 6 months, any fever should be checked out)

> Rapid or difficult breathing

> Severely sore throat

> New or increased amounts of drooling

> Difficulty swallowing or discomfort when lying down

If you choose to harness humidity to soothe your child’s croup symptoms, consider these 8 things to think about before buying a humidifier (or just buy this one - it’s so cute!).

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