What Are The Safe Must-Have Skin And Hair Care Products For Your Babies

Babies are delicate and so is their skin, therefore, it’s important to choose the skin and hair care products for your baby very diligently. During the initial years of development, the baby’s skin is still developing, therefore, it requires extra care and protection during the developing years. It becomes essential to choose products that are gentle for their skin and support skin development; this blog will help you navigate through simple yet essential products like a tear-free shampoo, a bath emollient, and a moisturizing soap to ensure optimal skin health and development.

What Are The Most Common Skin Diseases Babies May Experience?

Given the delicate, thinner, and sensitive skin babies usually have it makes sense that they are susceptible to allergies and related skin diseases while they are still developing their skin barrier to its full potential. The most common skin diseases babies have are listed below:

• Milia: Small, white bumps that appear on the cheeks, nose, or chin of the baby are called milia.
• Baby Acne: Also called neonatal cephalic pustulosis pertains to the bumps that are found on the neck, chest, and face of your baby.
• Erythema toxicum neonatorum: ETN refers to the small, fluid-filled bumps that appear on your baby’s skin right after birth that are harmless and painless, they subside over time and are one of the most common skin diseases observed in babies.
• Cradle Cap: One of the most common scalp conditions arising from the infant's seborrheic dermatitis resulting from the hyperactive sebaceous gland producing excess sebum, a natural surfactant-based Tear Free Shampoo may help with managing the condition effectively.
• Eczema: Characterized by dry, red, itchy, and scaly patches that are found around the elbows or knees of the baby’s skin is called atopic dermatitis, a type of Eczema. Incorporating a moisturizing soap, bath emollient, and a lotion for dry skin in your baby’s daily skincare routine could help alleviate the symptoms thereby helping manage it effectively with simple and readily available baby products.

What Products Do I Use To Keep My Baby’s Skin Healthy?

• A syndet bar is relatively more moisturizing as it is made with gentle ingredients like shea butter, ceramides, and milk proteins that do not strip off your baby’s skin’s natural moisturizing factors thereby ensuring gentle bath time.

• A Bath Emollient formulated with ingredients like olive oil, and lanolin after bathing your baby with a syndet bar helps in forming a moisturizing layer which further helps in preventing transepidermal water loss thereby promoting skin hydration along with alleviating and reducing the chances of skin dryness. It is an additional step that can make a huge difference in maintaining the optimal skin of your baby’s health.

• We often tend to overlook the hair care products for our baby which may lead to compromised scalp conditions like cradle cap, a common scalp condition seen in babies characterized by scaly patches on the scalp. As mentioned above, it arises due to the hyperactive sebaceous glands leading to the excess production of sebum, therefore, including a tear-free shampoo formulated with gentle and natural ingredients like suganate, a natural surfactant derived from corn and coconut plants, ensures mild yet effective cleansing to help get rid of excess oil and maintain a healthy scalp environment for your baby’s scalp and developing hair.

• It’s important to apply a gentle lotion after a bath or whenever your baby’s skin seems to be on the drier side to ensure adequate skin moisturization and hydration. It’s advised to look out for ingredients that are mild and moisturizing like ceramides, oats, glycyrrhetinic acid, and milk proteins to prevent your baby’s skin from drying and promote healthy moisture levels for optimal skin health and further proper skin development.

• You can also opt for an oats cream to help soothe any irritated or inflamed skin as oats are rich in avenanthramides that provide remarkable anti-itch properties. It is rich in beta-glucans that help balance the skin microbiome which helps in promoting skin hydration and optimal skin health.

These are ample skincare products that support healthy skin and skin development. Including a Moisturizing Soap, a tear-free shampoo, and a bath emollient may seem like simple non-significant steps, but in the long run, these products help keep your baby’s skin healthy and happy.

Quick Tips To Ensure A Healthy Skin For Your Baby:

• Always use lukewarm water to bathe your baby, avoid too hot or too cold water as it can be drying for your baby’s skin.
• Use light, breathable fabrics as the first layer of clothing to avoid any fabric-related (nylon, woolen) irritation to your baby’s skin.
• Weekly massage with olive oil, or mustard oil may also help with ensuring skin moisturization levels.
• Including a baby sunscreen for the baby above 6 months of age when outdoors could also help prevent photodamage in the initial years of their skin development.
• You may also prepare a DIY oat bath for your baby of age 12 months and above in cases of persistent itch or skin irritation given the natural calming properties of oats.
• Diaper rash or diaper dermatitis is one of the most common challenges that a baby’s skin has to go through, using a steroid-free lotion for dry skin or a moisturizing baby lotion enriched with mild yet effective ingredients like ceramides, oats, and glycyrrhetinic acid may help in managing the situation with ease. 

1. Ceramides are the most abundantly found lipids in the skin that form a whopping 50% of the skin barrier, topical application of a ceramide cream or lotion may help with restoring the damaged skin barrier like in the case of diaper rash.
2. Glycyrrhetinic Acid is extracted from the roots of licorice and is a remarkable ingredient to reduce itching which may arise due to several causes. It helps reduce itching and associated inflammation by its soothing properties.

If you made it this far to the blog and are still navigating through your parenting journey,  I hope this blog helped you with an insight into getting your hands on the best products that may help your baby attain and develop optimal skin health. It is okay to be concerned about your baby but it also is important to acknowledge that you are trying and probably are doing your best at parenting. Do not forget to take a pause and appreciate yourself for the same all while enjoying this beautiful journey of parenting you have embarked upon.