Why does my baby have a diaper rash?

Some less commonly known reasons for a diaper rash, and some solutions

1. Your baby is having a reaction to perfumed chemical-laden disposable diapers. If you don't want to switch to cloth, then try Tushie's brand disposable, which don't have the gross gel beads, any perfumes, dyes, or bleach. Seventh Generation diapers may work too, but they still have the gel beads, which I tend to think are not healthy.

2. Your baby is teething. During teething God designed the body to change the pH, making the teeth easier to push through. You may notice your baby also has a little rash around his or her mouth, indicating that his saliva also is a bit more acidic. Frequent changes and washes with a wet wash cloth will help, and after washing you can also coat the baby's bum with a diaper ointment like Burt's Bees Zinc Oxide to keep the urine from irritating baby's delicate skin.

3. Baby is sensitive to something he just started eating. Citrus (oranges, orange juice, etc) is a common culprit, as are tomatoes. Think about what baby recently started eating, or has been eating a lot of and try cutting that out of his diet.

4. Baby is sensitive to polyester, commonly found in 'wicking fabric' in modern cloth diapers such as FuzziBunz. Buy some inexpensive CPFs (Chinese Prefolds) from an online retailer (Not a department store! The Target and Walmart Prefolds by gerber contain polyester which a. doesn't absorb squat and b. baby would still be sensitive to) and see if the rash clears up. We had some beautiful used work-at-home-mom made diapers that had a 'microfiber liner' that gave my baby a rash every time she would pee :( Very sad. I finally figured out that it was the diapers, not anything else and switched to only cotton interiors. Easy all-in-one diapers with cotton interiors are also sold here.

5. Baby is sensitive to detergents. Unknown to most, 'Free and Clear' detergents are designed to clear the laundry of allergy-causing dust mites, and are not 'clear' of potential allergens. They contain enzymes that babies are often sensitive to. Switch to a natural detergent like Seventh Generation, or, in a pinch, use a natural baby shampoo- just a squirt- to clean baby's clothes and diapers.

6. There is buildup on your diapers. A double wash on hot/hot (turn off the cold water coming into your machine if you don't have a hot/hot cycle and run it on warm/warm). This can be caused by using fabric softener (a no-no for babies due to it's allergy potential and chemicals) or diaper cream. Washing on hot/hot with a quirt of hand dishwashing liquid (like Dawn or Joy or anything) should get rid of the detergent buildup. If you have very soft water, you may need to use 1/4 the amount of detergent always, and run an extra rinse on your laundry.

Solutions:

One of the best solutions for chronic diaper rash is to let your baby's bum breathe each day. Perhaps during 'tummy time' allow him to be on a blanket on the floor in the nude to get fresh air to his diaper area.

If you want to use cream, and sometimes bad rashes demand something more than air-time, I recommend Burt's Bee's natural ointment. It is zinc oxide based like Desitin, but doesn't contain fish oil that makes your baby smell icky and can be an allergen. A&D can be okay, but it does contain mineral oil, which is controversial. Plain coconut oil is antibacterial, as is vitamin E oil (just buy capsules in the vitimin section and break them open and spread around).

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Cooking for babies

When you're cooking for babies, there are some things to keep in mind. First is keeping it a texture they can digest. Babies don't necessarily need pureed food, but they do need to be able to break it down on their own. Soft chunks of things like bananas or cooked sweet potatoes are great.

For my daughter, starting when she first learned to sit up and was putting things in her mouth on her own, we started giving her beans, cooked squash, and bananas. She loves beans even to this day. When seasoning baby food, be sure to use natural sea salt, which has a natural form of iodine in it, not a synthetic form. Typical iodized table salt is not good for anyone, much less babies.

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My Love...

My dishwasher is running. I ♥ Dishwashers. I really think they help me cook more, and we actually eat healthier because of them. Is that insane? After having a dishwasher for a year, then not for 3 years, I'm back to having them, and it's my new best friend... :)

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Finding your fundal height

There are times in every woman's pregnany where they have a nagging feeling about the baby, or they are just curious and want to understand their body. Measuring fundal height can give you information about the size of your baby, if he or she is growing correctly, if you have 'dropped' in preparation of labor, and if it is likely that there is more than one baby.

Fundal height refers to how tall your uterus is. The bottom of your uterus is measured from your pubic bone, the one that sticks out in front under your hairline. The top of your uterus (or fundus) is found at different places depending on where you are in your pregnancy. When you are not pregnant, it rests in the pelvis behind the pubic bone.

Nonpregnant Uterus

Your nonpregnant uterus is about the size of your fist. Hard to believe that is how small it is, and how it can cause you so much irritation for your monthly cycle, isn't it? It rests in your pelvis and the cervix (bottom portion) of it can be felt at the top of your vagina.

Finding your fundus in pregnancy.

To find your fundus in pregnancy, you lay flat on your back. On the floor works the best, or some other hard surface. You will want a measuring tape that measures centimeters with you, a flexible one like the kind used for sewing works the best, but a ruler can work as well. While laying on your back, locate your pubic bone. If you know what week you are in your pregnancy, you can lay the measuring tape on your belly, with the '0' of it resting on your pubic bone. Then count up in cm until you get to your number of weeks. Start feeling around, while relaxing so your muscles are not tense, and you will soon feel a vague ridge that is your uterus. Once you have found it a couple times, it becomes easier. It is generally within 4 cm, plus or minus, of your gestational age in weeks. So, if you are 12 weeks your uterus could be 8 cm or 16 cm and that is still considered normal.

Alternative to a measuring tape

If you do not have a measuring tape with you, and you are still curious, an age old method is to use your fingers, the width of one finger is one week.

What the number tells you
If your uterus is measuring larger than 4 weeks ahead of your expected gestational age, it can mean a few things. You could be carrying twins, you could have your due date wrong, or your baby may be growing bigger than normal, due to something like gestational diabetes. It is worth looking into a little further. If you have had more than 2 pregnancies, it is common to measure larger. If you are a larger woman, it is common for that to add a little bit to your measurement as well.

If your uterus is measuring smaller than 4 weeks behind, then you may want to look into that a little more. It could indicate, again, that you just have your due dates wrong, or it could indicate something more serious like your baby is not receiving enough nutrients and is not growing well.

If you measure your fundus weekly, you can keep a chart. This will be helpful for making sure that your pregnancy is progressing as expected and can give you assurance that your baby is growing. This can also help you to determine when you 'drop' or the baby's head engages in the birth canal in preparation for labor.

I hope this helps you to feel confident in your body. As with all things, if you have questions or concerns, be sure to do your research and ask your healthcare professional if needed.

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