A Fun Daily Baby Bath & Skincare Routine : Guide

 

Bathing your child is an experience many parents always treasure. It's an exceptional time to bond, as your little new family member enjoys the warm water on their skin. Keeping babies clean and in good skin hygiene are essential to the overall health of the baby. Cleansing helps to keep the skin free of unwanted substances, including irritants (saliva, nasal secretions, urine, feces, and fecal enzymes), dirt, and transient germs. Keeping hands clean, particularly in the case of babies with their hand-to-mouth behaviors, can help reduce or prevent oral transmission of microbial contaminants. However, this parenting ritual of bath and cleansing comes with a lot of questions, and anxiety, about when and how to do it well, and in a fun way. We've tried answering most common questions below, hope this shall help.

 1) How To Bathe A Newborn?

• Prior to undressing your baby, wipe their eyelids (from inward to outer eye) with cotton bud dipped in lukewarm water. Squeeze out additional water, if any. Use a new piece of cotton bud for each wipe. Then wash the entire face. Be careful so as not to put anything into your child's ears or nose. 
• Tenderly sprinkle some water onto their head. You don't have to use a cleanser or soap.
• Gently wash your baby’s private parts and base last, using water only.  Likewise wipe out any pieces of crap or milk from your child's body wrinkles that might be stuck.
• Always use a Tear Free , Mild and Gentle wash for the baby's delicate skin, hair and safety of eyes.

 

 

2) How To Ensure That  Baby Enjoys Bath Time ?

To help your baby enjoy bath time, you can try placing your hand tenderly on their stomach. You can likewise put a warm wet washcloth on their chest and stomach. This will help your child feel a sense of security and safety during baths. 

On the off chance that your child doesn’t like baths, give them a 'top and tail' shower one day and a legitimate shower the following. For the most part, babies become used to showers by around 90 days.

 

3) How To Dry & Dress The Baby ? 

Here's how to take your newborn out of the bath, for drying and dressing: 

• Place your baby with their back on a clean and soft towel. If possible, dry your child on the floor so they can't fall. In case you're changing your child on a raised surface like a table, keep one hand on your child at all times. 
• Wrap your child with a super soft towel and wipe them off. Dry child's skin wrinkles, including armpits, crotch, under the jaw, around the neck and behind the ears. 
• In case your child's skin is dry, apply a mild allergen free moisturizing lotion to the skin. 
• On the off chance that your child has a nappy rash, apply a thick cream with non nano zinc oxide to form a protective layer around and on the nappy region. 
• Dress your child, putting their nappy on first. 
• Put your child in a protected spot,  like a cot. 

 

4) How To Prepare For Bathtime?

• Take the phone off the hook or turn it off while bathing your child. 

• Ensure you have all you require is reachable – for instance, towel, washcloth, lotion or cream, clean garments and clean nappy. 

• Try not to utilize soap since this will dry out your child's skin. Always use a non drying, sulphate free, pH balanced and soap free cleanser for the baby shower.

• Position the shower somewhere stable and at a height where you can easily hold your child. 

• Fill the bathtub with lukewarm water to wash your child. Use containers of water to fill the bathtub in case you're intending to shower your child away from the tap, for safety purposes. 

•  Caregivers should give special attention to skin on the facial area, which may be irritated easily by milk, food, and saliva. Skin folds and creases on the face also should be kept clean.

• Remove your watch and jewelry and wash your hands. 

• Ensure the water temperature is 37-38°C before you put your child in the shower. On the off chance that you don't have a thermometer, utilize your wrist or elbow to test the temperature – it ought to be lukewarm, not hot. 

 

5) What Is The Best Place To Shower Your Baby?

You can give your baby a bath in a little plastic tub or even in the kitchen sink. The kitchen sink may be least demanding in the initial not many weeks. 

You can bathe your child in any room that is warm, protected and clean – it doesn't need to be a restroom. 

 

6) How to choose the best wash or cleanser for Your Baby?

The Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric, and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN) Neonatal Skin Care Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guideline recommended that parents or caregivers should select a mild cleansing gel, bars or liquid cleansers that have a balanced pH (5.5) that are preservative-free or contain preservatives that have a demonstrated safety/tolerance profile.  

Although soap is an effective skin cleanser, it can disrupt skin surface pH, alter skin lipids, and cause dryness and irritation. Hence experts in baby skincare suggest going for cleansers in liquid form, pH-balanced, or mildly acidic cleansers preferably (pH 5.5) over traditional alkaline soaps

Hence Liquid cleansers are recommended to cleanse and hydrate skin better than water alone as these often contain emollients as compared to cleansing soap bars. It should contain minimal and appropriate preservatives and should not cause irritation, alterations to skin surface pH, or eye stinging. Finally, baby  skin care products should be selected on the basis of evidence acquired in practical use conditions.

 

Key Note -

• Newborns need a bath just 2-3 times each week. A ‘top and tail’ on other days is fine.
• Prior to bathing your newborn, ensure all you require is within your reach.
• Wash newborns in  shallow lukewarm water.
• Never leave babies alone in the bath. They can drown quickly in exceptionally shallow water as well.

 

Body Wash or Soap Bars

most parents are confused, whether to use baby soap or body wash

Many traditional soaps contain detergents that are derived from saponification (e.g., the process of mixing a strongly alkaline solution with a fatty substance such as vegetable oil or tallow, leading to soap formation). Alkaline soaps can increase skin surface pH beyond what is considered an ideal range [5.5 - 7]; they can also dissolve fat-soluble and water-soluble barrier components from the surface of skin. Moreover many traditional soaps can be irritating, 

An infant cleanser should be mild to accommodate the maturing skin barrier. Infant cleansers should also wash away dirt, sebum, saliva, urine, fecal matter, and fecal enzymes with minimal effort. Medical Studies suggest using a mild, allergen free and hydrating wash over babies. A cleanser which has a mild surfactant system (without sulfates or allergens) can enable maintenance of skin barrier integrity; these cleansers may also be minimally disruptive to skin surface pH and have minimal potential to stimulate the production of proinflammatory molecules. Emollients can provide benefits to premature infants or infants with compromised skin barrier function. 

 

Why an all in one cleanser is recommended for newborns?

Babies have a Lower ability to regulate body temperature (prolonged bath time may lead to body temperature drop which increases probability of cold and fever). A single cleansing routine reduces the fatigue that the baby faces. Hence a tear free, pH balanced , moisturizing head to toe cleanser is the most suited option for babies. Baby's sensitive skin needs a wash pure enough to clean without irritating or damaging its delicate pH balance.