Baby Skin Care » Baby Products

Baby Skin Care – More or Less?

admin — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 13:21:33 +0000

We all try to do our very best for our children and especially when our subject happens to be baby skin care.

As parents we have an ingrained desire to gain as much knowledge as we can and apply it for the benefit of our children. We take it very seriously when it comes to making decisions that could affect their current and future health.

However one of the major problems that we have to face is the modern day phenomenon I call ‘flavor of the month’. What I mean by this is one month we are advised to do things a certain way or use a particular product in a certain way and then next month it all changes.

There is so much research done today on everything. Every kind of statistic is available both for and against every conceivable process, chemical, or point of view. Even many of the so called ‘natural’ products have at times been described as harmful. So what is the most sensible approach?

No sooner are we settled on a course of action, or have begun using particular products or doing things in a certain way when ‘new’ research tells us we have in fact been doing it all wrong. Our method or product is no longer beneficial it is now considered to be harmful.

How on earth are we supposed to make our way through the maze of ideas and end up in a place where we can adopt standards? Where on earth can we to turn to and what should be our approach in trying to make sense of it all?

What should be the best approach when it comes to baby skin care despite all we read and hear in the media? Well believe it or not there is a way and there is a best approach and it isn’t too difficult to follow!

When it comes to baby skin care follow this simple method and you won’t go far wrong!

We have talked extensively in the past about using ‘natural’ products for our baby skin care but have you asked yourself the question; why does your baby need baby skin care products at all? What help does Mother Nature need with reference to baby skin care?

Why do you need to put anything on your baby’s delicate sensitive skin in the first place? Have you ever thought about letting Mother Nature strengthen your baby’s skin first? For a period of time let Mother Nature do her job without your baby having to cope with chemicals whether they are considered natural or otherwise?

The basic message here is; use as little as possible for as long as possible or for the very least the first couple of months of your baby’s life.

Make it water only-remember the chemical soup we all live in. Now regardless of baby skin care you would do well to adopt the same attitude with everything connected with your baby. This principle goes for food, clothing, washing, bathing, shampoos in fact the whole of your baby’s environment should be considered.

This way your baby will have a fighting chance for its own immune system to develop and become strong and healthy. I don’t believe you will go far wrong with this very simple but often overlooked principle.

Harmful Chemicals In Everyday Baby Products

admin — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 09:51:35 +0000

When I immigrated to Canada a couple of years ago, I was happy to leave the busy world of The Netherlands behind. In that country, everything is arranged for and everything is taxed. Shortly after my arrival in Canada, my wife became pregnant. We were very excited about adding a new member to our family. And with pregnancy comes the joy of buying all kinds of baby furniture, toys, clothing and baby care products.

One of the biggest differences I have seen so far is the way babies get delivered. In Canada, most women give birth in a hospital, whereas in Holland special trained nurses visit your house. After you have given birth, the nurse visits you twice a day and teaches you how to take care of your newborn. In Canada, most women are on their own.

One day my wife came home with a big box of essential baby care products. As always, the first thing we did when a new products enters our home is to look at the list of ingredients. The first products (Penatal Creme, a very common baby skin care cream) had as its first listed ingredient Petroleum. Petroleum based creams are another example of how a commonly used baby product may actually create problems in some case. Petroleum can block pores and that can lead to a build of sebum and oils in a babies skin. This can lead to irritation, inflammation and the possible build up of the bacteria responsible for acne. Normally I am quite willing to negotiate about almost everything, but this time I said: NO, we are not using gasoline related products on our newborn.

A new study suggests that baby lotion, baby powder, and baby shampoo may be exposing babies to potentially harmful chemicals called phthalates. Phthalates are used to make plastics flexible and stabilize fragrances, and are found in a plethora of consumer products including toys, personal care products and medical equipment.

“At this time, we do not know what the potential long-term health effects might be, but there is a large body of animal studies to suggest developmental and reproductive toxicity (from phthalates) and a few human studies with changes in health outcomes as well,” Dr. Sheela Sathyanarayana told Reuters Health (February 2008)”.

Why are so many care givers concerned about only using natural baby skin care? There is evidence that suggests some commonly used infant products may actually do more harm than good for baby skin leading or aggravating skin conditions like cradle cap, rashes and infant acne. The differences between adult skin and baby skin can help to illustrate why some baby products can be so damaging. When a new born comes into the world their skin develops a protective barrier. This barrier keeps out many harsh environmental elements like allergens and bacteria. Harsh detergents may strip a babies skin of much of that protection and may increase the likelihood that damage can occur. Very young infants and premature babies may be at a higher risk.

By: Chris De Feijter

Natural Skin Care For Infants – Which Products Are Best?

admin — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 22:47:07 +0000

There are plenty of products filling up the market these days, advertising themselves as the best baby natural skin care for your little one(s). But there are lots of shortcomings in these ads especially since many of what these products claim to do just never happen or they fall short of what they are supposed to do. Eventually this leads to your baby suffering from skin irritations, rashes and allergies because of the chemicals and other irritating ingredients found in these baby products. If you are really looking for the top-of-the-line products for your baby, make sure that the products you buy don’t contain anything which would irritate your baby’s skin. The first step for you would be to go for products with natural ingredients rather than those with chemicals.

As you turn towards natural ingredients, remember to avoid ANYTHING (no matter how good it is) which has petrochemicals. Take care when buying lotions and moisturizers because these are the ones which usually contain petrochemicals. This means that you have to take off petroleum jelly from your baby skin care products’ list too.

To keep your baby’s skin as smooth as petals, go for baby lotions made from natural oils. Many of the best baby natural skin care products contain aloe which is an important ingredient in moisturizers and looks after irritations too. Another natural ingredient that you want to be looking for is chamomile. Chamomile is known for its soothing effect on the skin. Watch out what essential oils you buy and if in doubt, consult your pediatrician about prospective products.

Just because you want the best doesn’t mean it has to go out of your budget. There’s absolutely no necessity for you to buy expensive products just because you want good quality products. There are plenty of products out there which can fit snugly within you budget AND look after your baby’s skin too. Start looking from your local health food store!

Smaller companies might actually be the best providers of baby natural skin care. This is because smaller companies are more committed towards making sure that the products you get are of high quality and packed with all the right ingredients. It’d be ideal for you to support a local company as you are more likely to know where all the ingredients came from.

If you still have little or no idea about what might be best for your baby, look for a board or guide that ranks organic and natural products. Read the labels and pick products which don’t have any artificial fragrances or colors.

The more natural the product is, the better it will look after your baby!

By: Susan Hutson

Skin Care For Newborns

admin — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 13:18:00 +0000

Bringing home a new baby is an exciting moment but as you step into the world of motherhood you have a whole new list of things to worry about. You have to make sure you get the proper nutrients so your baby stays healthy and keep an eye out for anything that could imply they are sick. You also need to have the right skin care for newborns so that your baby is happy and healthy.

You might wonder what skin for newborns has to do with a healthy baby, outside of keeping their skin soft and clean. The reason skin care is so crucial is because the first few months of an infant’s life is when they start to develop their immune system. They need to be exposed to bacteria, germs, and the common “bad things” that the body faces every day so that their bodies learn to resist it. If you use lotions and soaps with antibacterial in them then you are killing the germs for your baby’s body so that their body won’t learn to do it itself. Baby products are filled with “helpful” bacteria killers and sterilizing chemicals so wait to use them until your child is a few months old.

Babies don’t get dirty every day. Unlike you, they aren’t walking around all day and exposing themselves to all kinds of dirt. They also generally aren’t spending all day sweating from overworking themselves or having to wear clothes even on really hot days. This means that you shouldn’t be giving your baby a bath every day like you might do for yourself. The oils in a baby’s skin differ from the oils in adult skin and your baby desperately needs to keep the oils their skin is naturally producing. When you give your baby a bath you are removing those necessary oils, so the less often you do it the better. Of course, babies do get dirty sometimes so a sponge bath a few times a week is enough to keep them clean while still practicing good skin care for newborns.

Just because you shouldn’t wash your baby too often and use antibacterial soaps on it doesn’t mean that you can’t clean the things that you baby will be exposed to. You should be washing everything that the baby deals with on a regular basis and especially wash new products you bring home for them. Whether you get them from a yard sale or brand new sealed tight in plastic packaging you should clean all the toys you buy for your baby to play with and wash the clothes you get for them to wear. If you buy used items you should definitely use antibacterial soaps because you don’t know what those items were exposed to. New items should be cleaned with regular soap and water. All of these things will not only affect the skin care of newborns but half the time they’ll wind up in your baby’s mouth too. Cleaning the things they come into contact with will help avoid rashes and other ailments they could pick up from touching dirty toys.

By: Amy Nutt