While your munchkin’s skin appears smooth, soft, and sweet-smelling, it’s also quite sensitive. Their skin is particularly prone to dryness, especially during the colder months. But no need to worry though, because dry skin in your baby is rarely a matter of concern, and relief is relatively easy to come by. In this post, we discuss a list of home remedies for your baby’s dry skin and also baby skincare products that moisturise your little one’s thirsty skin and keep dryness and irritation at bay.
What Causes Dry Skin In Babies?
Before we get into the management of dry skin in babies, let’s first give you an insight into the real cause of this skin condition. Almost every baby (adults too) deal with occasional bouts of dry skin from time to time, with the condition being more prominent in the colder months. Exposure to cold temperatures and dry air can disrupt the skin’s usual moisture level and cause dryness and flakiness in your little one’s skin.
Additionally, spending too much time in hot baths, or skipping moisturisation can also have the same drying effects on your baby’s skin. And since your baby’s skin is delicate and thin, it’s much more prone to becoming parched as compared to you.
What Does Dry Skin In Babies Look Like?
Symptoms of dry skin in little one’s include roughness, flakiness, fine lines, and cracks. These dry spots can strike anywhere in your baby’s body, but they are especially common in areas like their face, feet, hands, and lips. Mild dryness probably won’t bother your baby much, but severe dryness can cause itchiness in their skin, and make them quite fussy and irritated.
How To Treat Your Baby’s Dry Skin?
Check out these simple at-home strategies that are effective enough to soothe your baby’s dry skin and provide ultimate moisturisation.
Stick To Shorter Baths
Long, bubbly, and warm baths can strip the much-needed moisture from your baby’s sensitive skin. Instead of long showers, stick with short baths with lukewarm water, and use a moisturising baby wash to prevent water loss from your little one’s skin. Ensure the baby wash has organic actives like moringa oil, almond oil, strawberry oil, and rose oil, which gently cleanse your little one’s skin, without drying or irritating it. Also, when it’s time to towel off, make sure to go easy on your baby’s skin, and gently pat, it instead of rubbing it harshly.
Focus On Hydrating Your Baby’s Skin
Apply a thick layer of moisturiser right after your munchkin’s bathtime, and again once or twice throughout the day. Opt for hypoallergenic and fragrance-free lotions, such as The Moms Co.’s natural sensitive skin lotion, which is formulated with plant-based ingredients like colloidal oatmeal, aloe vera, and calendula oil. While oatmeal works to reduce inflammation in your baby’s skin, aloe vera and calendula oil offer intense nourishment and prevent your baby’s skin from drying in the future. In fact, the lotion provides long-lasting moisturisation, so you don’t have to worry about your baby’s skin drying after exposure to cold air.
Take Care Of Your Baby’s Cheeks
Your baby’s lovely and squishy cheeks can get easily irritated when exposed to cold air, especially on windy days. This can cause dryness and inflammation in their skin, and turn their cheeks red. To prevent this, you can consider applying a generous layer of baby face cream to their skin. For instance, you can opt for The Moms Co.’s natural baby face cream, formulated with shea butter, cocoa butter, jojoba oil, and avocado oil, which offers deep nourishment and moisturisation to your baby’s skin, and prevents dryness by balancing their skin’s pH levels.
Keep Your Baby Hydrated
Make sure that your munchkin is well-hydrated and give them plenty of fluids in the form of breast milk and formula. You can also give your baby little sips of water throughout the day to maintain hydration. This will help keep their skin healthy from within and prevent skin conditions like dryness and itchy skin.
Adjust The Indoor Air
If you feel that the air in your baby’s room is quite dry, then try adjusting the temperature of the thermostat. You can also consider adding a cool mist humidifier in your munchkin’s room to add extra moisture to the air. More moisture in the air might help reduce dry skin in your little one.
Wipe Away Your Baby’s Drool Immediately
Keep burp clothes and wipes handy for wiping away any spit or drool from your baby’s skin. Excess moisture from your baby’s saliva or a runny nose can lead to dry, chapped skin, especially when you are out in the cold.
Keep Your Little One Bundled Up In The Colder Months
Exposure to cold air can make your skin prone to dryness. Before heading out, layer up your little one in thick clothing and ensure their skin is well-moisturised. On windy days, you can attach a rain cover over your baby’s stroller to prevent the cold air from reaching your munchkin and drying their skin.
While dry skin in babies is rarely a matter of concern, its occurrence can make your baby uncomfortable and fussy. Hence, use these home remedies for your baby’s dry skin concerns and make sure their skin is well-moisturised at all times. If you notice that their skin condition isn’t getting better even after trying the remedies, then you can consider consulting a paediatrician for further guidance.
Also read:
Best baby skincare products: Provide the ultimate nourishment and care to your little one’s skin with these best baby skincare products.
Remedies to treat dry skin in babies: Dry skin can make your baby’s skin itchy and irritated. Check out these effective tips that help soothe your little one’s skin.
Feature image: Freepik.com
