The body of a newborn is so sensitive. If this is your first parenting experience, we hope this information is going to help you a lot. It is important to look after the hygiene care, skin care and make sure your baby’s health is in well condition.
Skin Care and Bathing
You might feel a bit nervous while giving a bath to your small, wiggy baby. Try being calm and do it with proper care. Over time, you will become comfortable. Below are some tips to help you with the process:
- Keep this in mind, a newborn baby should get bathed two times a week, not more than that. Baby’s skin is so soft. More than two times would dry out the skin which is not recommended.
- If the umbilical cord has not fallen off, you should not place your baby in water for a bath but to wait for the umbilical cord to fall off. In the meantime, you may give your baby a sponge bath by using a soft piece of cloth with baby soup that is recommended by the doctor.
- Never ever leave your baby alone during the bath, not for a single second.
Make sure these items are within your arm’s reach before staring the bath:
- A basin of water. Make sure the temperature of the water is as required. Means, the water should be a bit warm, not hot.
- Clean clothes and diaper
- Two different baby towels
- A soft piece of washing cloth
- A hair brush
Steps to Clean
- First, start with the face by washing it gently with plain warm water.
- Clean both of his/her eyes using plain water. You will start from the corner near the nose to the outer corner using that soft piece of cloth. Or you may use cotton balls to clean the corners.
- Now you are going to clean the ears and nose. You are advised to clean only the surface of the nose and ears. Putting a cotton swab in the ear or nose will be harmful for a newborn.
- Now you can wash the rest of the body with mild soap. You should not think of using a perfumed soap for your baby.
- Always clean a baby girl’s genitals while giving the bath, do not hesitate.
- Clean the diaper area last.
- You may shampoo, you actually should, the hair and make sure you are holding your baby in the crook of your arm. Then you are going to put mild soup on the hair and gently scrub and rinse out all of the soap in order to do it smoothly. This process will help preventing yellow, scaly flakes from building up on the head.
- You are now going to use a towel to dry the hair so you can brush it with that soft baby brush that we talked about earlier.
- You should not use any oil or lotions because they may cause a rash. Well, if your doctor recommends, then it’s okay to use.
Nail care
- You should trim your baby’s fingernails regularly to prevent scratches. If you are facing problem cutting it because it has a rough edge, use a nail file made for babies then.
- You may do the trimming after the bath. Because taking a bath soften the nail.
- The best time to trim the nails when they are asleep.
Using Bulb Syringe
If your baby has spit up or stuffy nose, there is a helpful way to clear the mouth and nose using a bulb syringe. Let’s see how you are going to use that:
- Squeeze the bulb. That way, all the air will be out.
- Now you are going to release the bulb by putting the tip of the syringe into the nostril.
- Then take out the syringe of the nostril, squeeze it into a tissue for couple of times.
- Clean the bulb syringe using hot soapy water.
Changing the Diaper
We have previously talked about the diaper changing process. Let’s include some key points here:
- You may use a nice piece of soft cloths or wipes to clean the diaper area.
- Make sure you have removed all the stool and urine.
- After you have cleaned the diaper area, wait until it’s dried, or use a fan to do the job.
- Apply a new and clean diaper now.
If you notice any redness on the skin of your baby, clean the area with proper care and dry it. You may also apply diaper rash cream recommended by doctor before putting the diaper on. Babies are the future heroes, and we believe this guide will help you through.
