You only just got home from the hospital, and already your new baby is developing dry skin. Instead of wondering what is going on and if you did something wrong, here are some helpful tips to put your mind at ease and provide helpful advice.
The first thing you should know is that dry skin is very common, especially in babies and young children.
Keeping your baby’s skin clean and moisturized is very important. This will help keep the skin healthy and prevent irritated, dry skin. Taking baths once a day and using moisturizing creams 2-4 times a day will help prevent dryness.
New babies get dry skin, just like older children and adults. In fact, your baby’s skin may develop dry, flaky patches with a few hours after birth. Newborns are especially susceptible to dry skin because their skin is so delicate. Many babies have dry, peeling skin immediately after birth, particularly if they’re born after 40 weeks. This is normal and gets better quickly.
One of the most common reasons for your baby’s dry skin is their body adjusting to life outside the womb. Your little one lived in liquid for the past nine months, so their skin cells were not able to flake off like yours do. Now that your baby has come into the world, their skin is making up for lost time by shedding off its top layer and this process presents itself as dry, flaky skin.
Another cause of dry skin is your baby’s body adjusting to new hormones. For nine months, your baby relied on your hormones. Now your newborn’s body has to start producing its own hormones, and this change often leads to newborn dry skin. In fact, you may have developed dry skin during pregnancy for a similar reason.
In short, your baby’s body simply needs time to adapt. You should keep your baby comfortable while this is happening and ensure that it doesn’t get worse by following the tips below.
BATHS
Your baby should be bathed at least once a day. Baths will introduce moisture into the skin, remove irritants from the skin, and help prevent infections. Try to follow these tips:
- Lukewarm water is most gentle for the skin.
- Keep baths short (around 10 minutes).
- Use a mild, unscented soap or cleanser such as Fabie Baby Moisturizing Soap or Fabie Baby Head to Toe Baby Wash
- Gently pat the skin dry with a towel. Do not rub the skin dry.
- Immediately put a moisturizing cream or ointment on the skin. Moisturizing right after the bath seals in the moisture from the bath water.
MOISTURIZERS
Once you take your baby out of the bath, quickly pat them dry with a towel, then apply moisturizer immediately. Applying the moisturizer within minutes of taking your baby out of the tub will seal in the water that's still in their skin from the bath. Moisturizers can be used several times during the day.
Moisturizers like Fabie Baby All Day Care Baby Lotion are designed to lock moisture into your baby’s skin and prevent it from evaporating. This helps to keep your baby’s skin soft and supple and reduce itching.
Keep taking care for your baby’s skin even after dryness or irritation has calmed down. Skin may get irritated again, so it needs special care daily.
ADDITIONAL BABY’S SKIN CARE TIPS
- Dress your baby in cotton clothing. Wool and other synthetic fabrics may cause skin itching and irritation. Loose, soft fabrics will prevent their dry skin from becoming more irritated.
- Dress your baby in one-piece pajamas to prevent itching of the skin in the night.
- Keep your baby's fingernails short to prevent the skin from breaking open because of scratching. Your baby has none of the self-control that you do and may even scratch without meaning to.
- Use mild laundry detergent without scents or added chemicals.
- Avoid fabric softener sheets for everyone in the household. Liquid, unscented fabric softeners used in the washing machine are ok to use.
- If the air in your home is dry, add moisture by running a vaporizer or humidifier.
- Your baby’s diaper area is especially susceptible to dry skin because of all the activity going on down there. You can care for your baby’s diaper area by using gentle products like Fabie Baby Soothing Diaper Cream
