Sister Lilian Centre’s Top Ten Tips For Treating Nappy Rash

Everyone raves about how smooth and soft a baby’s bottom is; but when you open up Baby’s nappy you find red, inflamed skin and a tender looking bottom. Nappy rash. Don’t worry, most babies get nappy rash occasionally, especially if they have sensitive skin or get diarrhoea! You’ll need to treat it so that it doesn’t develop into something more serious, but it shouldn’t require a trip to the doctor – unless it doesn’t disappear after a few days of home treatment.

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Here are Sister Lilian Centre’s top ten tips for treating nappy rash:

1. Change soiled nappies as soon as possible.Urine contains urea which gets converted into ammonia and irritates the skin, causing painful redness. This is made worse by poo, because it contains urease which speeds up the conversion of the urea to ammonia.

2. Clean thoroughly.Wipes and cotton wool and oil aren’t very effective at removing all traces of urine and stool, so wash Baby’s buttocks with gentle soap and water at every nappy change, so that the rash is not aggravated.

3. Leave Baby to play without a nappy for ten minutes after you’ve cleaned him up. This allows the inflamed area to dry properly.

4. Expose Baby’s buttocks to direct non-midday sun. Do this for ten minutes each day to help speed up healing.

5. Use rooibos to treat nappy rash naturally. Rooibos has wonderful skin-healing properties! Moisten a rooibos teabag with two teaspoons of boiling water, allow it to cool, place it on the affected area, and leave it on under the nappy until the next nappy change.

6. Treat stubborn rashes with thrush in mind.There is often a candida infection when Baby has frequent nappy rash or it is resistant to all home treatment. Calendula tablets and cream, and the tissue salt remedy Kali mur, are likely to support Baby’s body to heal itself. Alternatively, candida in the nappy area can be treated using anti-fungal cream from your pharmacy.

7. Try changing nappy brands.This is especially if Baby is prone to rashes. You can also try switching to cloth nappies or placing a nappy liner inside disposable or terry nappies.

8. Cut out baby cereal from Baby’s diet. Rashes can also be a reaction to Baby’s diet, and baby cereals are a prime trigger.

9. Avoid dairy and soy-based formula milk.If you’re breastfeeding, reduce dairy and grains in your diet too.

10. Try changing washing detergents if you use cloth nappies. The detergent may be too strong and irritate Baby’s delicate skin.