How Do I Give My Baby A Bath?
Infants grow and develop best in a clean atmosphere. Since your newborns immune system is susceptible to illnesses, it is essential that parents keep both their environment and their newborn baby clean. Giving newborn baths are essentials skills that are necessary for parents to learn to learn. Many may take this knowledge for granted; however, it is important to understand that there is a wrong way and a right way to give a newborn child a bath.
How often do I bath my child?
You should bath your newborn daily. This does not mean, however, that they need to be fully immersed in water each day. The idea here is to not give germs or bacteria the opportunity to accumulate. Immersing a small child in water each day is not necessary, especially if the naval has not fallen yet. Thoroughly wiping the child down with a cloth and mild warm water will suffice initially. Immersing the child a couple of times per week will do for a newborn. You will immerse the child more frequently as he or she gets to be around one to two months old.
What temperature should the water be?
You want the water to be slightly warmer than lukewarm. Definitely check the temperature of the water against your newborns skin when performing newborn baths. The baby will let you know if the water is too cold; he or she is likely to flinch if it is cold. Even a newborn will react to cold temperatures. You do not want to shock your baby in this way. You also do not want to burn the newborns sensitive skin if the water is too hot. It is essential to make sure that the water is the right temperature prior to bathing the child, even if you are simply wiping the child down.
What type of soap should I use?
You definitely want to use a mild soap. There are a myriad of baby soaps on the market that you can purchase. There are also specialized soaps and organic soaps that can be found online. Some wonder if sensitive skin soaps for adults are suitable to wash a newborn with. The answer to this question is no. These too contain harsh chemicals that can irritate the delicate skin of a newborn and burn his or her eyes if it gets too close to the face. Stick to baby soaps until the child is at least one year old. The baby soaps can even initially be used to wash the hair of the infant as well.
What about cleaning the genitals and naval?
Special caution should be used when cleaning these areas. The naval of a newborn is very sensitive and is prone to infection. It is actually best to simply wipe around the naval of the child until it has fallen off. Even after it has fallen, do not immerse the child in water right away. Simply dab a warm wet cloth on the naval to clean it. If you have a newborn boy who was recently circumcised, you must be extremely gentle with this area as well. Take extreme caution just as you would with the naval. A warm, wet dab of a cloth on the area will suffice.
A newborn boy who is uncircumcised will need the foreskin of his penis to be pulled back and cleaned since the area underneath the foreskin is prone to bacteria buildup. When pulling back the foreskin of a newborn boy, use extreme caution. You can gently wash this area with a cloth as well. While the area under the foreskin is not as sensitive as a circumcised penis, the skin is still very delicate.
When cleaning the genitals of a newborn girl, make sure that you gently wipe around and inside of the genital area. Make sure that you wipe downwards so that bacteria from bowel movements do not accidentally make contact with the genital region. Just as with a boy, use caution because the skin here is very delicate.
Prior to giving newborn baths, make sure that you have all of the items that you will need handy. You do not want to leave your newborn unattended even for one second. Have your towel, water basin, and baby soap and washcloths right next to you. If you are using a baby tub, do not fill it with more than three inches of warm water. Make sure that you are supporting the baby's head and neck throughout the bath, and do not use soap on the baby's face.
While this may be a scary process at first, it will definitely get easier and more enjoyable overtime for both you and the child. Before you know it, your baby will be looking forward to bath time and splashing away in the water and having a blast.
