What causes irritation to your baby’s sensitive skin? Read on.
Itchy skin? Red spots? Rashes on your baby’s skin? These are just some of the common skin problems your baby encounters. Since baby’s skin is so sensitive, it could react to almost anything—intense sunlight, insect bites, room temperature, food, clothes…the list is endless. In fact, baby’s skin is a lot thinner than adult skin and produces fewer moisturizing oils compared to an adult’s, which is why their skin easily flakes, chaps, and gets irritated.
The good news is that there are ways to combat baby’s skin irritation.
Here’s are some tips that can help prevent, address and protect your baby’s skin against these common skin problems:
1. Dry Skin
As baby’s skin absorbs and loses moisture quicker than an adult’s skin, it’s more prone to drying out. To help prevent dry skin, keep baby’s baths short, preferably under 10 minutes, and use lukewarm water and gentle skin cleansers. After bath time, apply an extra gentle hypoallergenic lotion or oil on your baby’s skin and re-apply every 12 hours to help keep it moisturized.
2. Infant Eczema
That red, inflamed itchy rash you see on your baby’s skin is usually hereditary and is triggered by skin dryness, allergens and irritants, and sometimes by heat and sweat. While there is no cure for eczema, it usually becomes less severe over time. To help prevent your baby’s eczema from flaring up, make sure that his skin is always moisturized. Keep your baby’s nails trimmed as well or let him wear hand mittens to avoid any scratching on the rash. You can also use anti-inflammatory medications and topical steroids but they must be prescribed by a pediatrician.
3. Infant Acne
Yes, your baby experiences this because of some hormonal imbalance. But it is nothing to worry about – those little zits on your baby that appeared a few weeks after birth will clear up eventually. What you can do to help clear the acne is to cleanse your baby’s skin daily with gentle cleansers, though avoid excessive washing and remember to gently pat dry to not aggravate the bumps. Never apply acne cream, lotion or gel meant for adult skin to your baby’s skin.
4. Diaper Rash
When poo and pee come in contact with your baby’s bottom for prolonged periods of time, flat red patches or diaper rashes are likely to appear and these make your little one extremely uncomfortable. To help soothe the irritation, you may apply petroleum jelly or an emollient cream, but prevention is still the best way. It has been proven that the best way to prevent diaper rash irritation is to use a good quality diaper that protects baby’s skin. A good quality diaper—like Pampers Active Baby—not only keeps baby’s skin dry but also has baby lotion that prevents rashes.
Smart Parenting Best for Baby Awards 2014 named Pampers Active Baby the BEST disposable diaper versus four other leading brands. They’ve discovered that Pampers Active Baby really does have 5 star skin protection — including a soft cottony cover, 12 hour dryness for baby’s skin, and stretchy sides to fit baby comfortably. It also has hypoallergenic baby lotion on its top sheet which acts as a protective layer between your baby’s sensitive skin and the diaper to reduce friction and skin irritation.
To know more about Pampers Active Baby’s 5 Star skin protection, visit their official website: http://www.pampers.ph/pampers-active-baby-diapers.