A newborn’s skin is delicate and not always easy to read. Some infants have zero trouble with their skin while others seem to always have a rash, eczema, or irritation of some sort.
It’s important to be informed and educated on your infant’s skin so that you are able to keep it healthy and ward off potential problems.
Here are some of the easiest ways that you can help your baby’s skin in those early months of life.
Washing/Bathing: Because an infant’s skin is so delicate, and really - what do newborn’s do besides eat and sleep, a daily bath isn’t really needed. Once every other day is more than sufficient for a newborn to get bathed.
As they grow and their skin develops more, then daily bathing can happen.
Be sure that when you are bathing your baby that you’re using a delicate shampoo such as Johnson & Johnson’s ‘Head to Toe Baby Wash’ or something from Aveeno’s baby’s line of products.
The kind of bar soap or body wash that adults would use is too harsh for such delicate skin, so stick to the products made especially for baby.
Moisturize: More often than not infant’s skin is dry and can even have patches of eczema is some areas. Moisturizing your baby’s skin with a moisturizer made for baby is important.
After bath time, take your time drying off and putting moisturizing lotion on your sweetie pie, why not work in an infant massage too? The bonding time this will give you and your baby is beneficial to both of you.
Protection: It’s always best to be proactive when it comes to this area. Protecting your newborn’s skin will help ensure that rashes and skin problems are attacked before they start.
Some rashes are caused by certain allergies to foods while others are caused by diapers and harsh detergents and perfumes.
Some easy ways to prevent skin problems is to use baby powder at diaper changes (or cornstarch-based powder works well also), and sprinkle a little powder over baby’s entire body as well - rub it in and don’t use too much. Just a little on their body and at diaper change will help prevent diaper rash and rub spots from clothes.
The biggest concern with talc-based baby powders versus cornstarch-based ones is that the talc can be dangerous if inhaled. An easy way to help prevent accidental inhalation is simply to not use a lot and always make sure to apply the powder away from your child’s face. You can apply it to your hands first and then put it on baby.
It’s also beneficial to always have diaper rash cream/ointment on hand in case your newborn does get a rash from their diaper. Also, changing diapers frequently will help in preventing rashes from wet diapers.
Detergent: For the first few months, it’s recommended that you wash your infant’s clothes separately from yours in a detergent that is gentle and specially formulated to be free of harsh chemicals and dyes.
This helps to keep baby away from harsh perfumes and whatnot that can be found in other detergents.
● It’s always best to speak with your doctor and do your own research. Write your concerns down and work with your doctor and educate to yourself to help keep your baby’s skin problem free.