Baby toiletry recommendations?

[Anonymous]

Happy New Year, everyone.

I'm a first time (almost) mom. Does anyone have recommendations for must have baby toiletries? I know the familiar brands like Destin and J&J, but would appreciate any feedback if people think certain products are actually better than others. Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Boudreaux's Butt Paste, although my infant didn't need diaper cream on any regular basis until he started eating table food.

My pedi told me that almost all baby washes/shampoos are much too drying for the average baby (go figure). So she recommended Cetaphil. You don't have to use anything for a while, just lukewarm water. But when you do, Cetaphil is great.

Aveeno lotion works well for dry skin. Aquaphor for problem skin like eczema.

I used sensitive wipes (no alcohol), which were fine for my son. Some people use water and cotton balls (those circular cotton pads for removing makeup are tougher and work well).

Honestly, they really don't need much for a few months.

A humidfier, during winter/dry months, helps keep baby skin soft and healthy, as well.

And congrats!

[Anonymous]

I put the butt paste on my registry and it didn't work for my DS, it made the rash worse. I found that desatin creamy worked the best. We have to put it on every few diaper changes to keep away the rash. I have lots of J&J/aveno products my friend works for them so she loaded me up. The J&J moisturizing bath, night time bath, natural bath and aveeno baby wash have all worked good for us I use the pink J&J baby lotion after baths because we do one almost every night just because DS likes them (now 4 months old) His skin has been fine, never over dry. If you have a boy and get him circumsized you might want to have some vasaline and gauze squares because you have to put them on the penis for a while. The hospital will send you home with some but just incase you run out. Other thinks I have used now that he is a bit older, tylenol drops, saline nose spray, gripe water, gas drops, vicks rub
Congrats!

[Anonymous]

On the more expensive/luxury end, Davies Babies is yummy stuff.

Also, for cradle cap the Mustela cradle cap foam shampoo worked wonders with my kids, also make sure and get the super soft plastic scrub brush from the hospital and ask for an extra, use those brushes with the Mustela and there will be no cradle cap.

[Anonymous]

Desitin Original
- I used Desitin Creamy and Boudreaux's Butt Paste until my daughter had a bad case of diaper rash. Neither worked for the real diaper rash - but Desitin Original worked great. So I threw out the Creamy and the Butt Paste, and now all we use is Desitin Original.

Aveeno lotion (for babies)
- Her cheeks got dry and bright red around 2 months of age. This worked great. I apply morning and night. Now am also using it on dry skin on legs.

Aquaphor (for babies)
- Good for even drier skin that Aveeno won't help.

Hydrocortisone 1% - Corisone 10 brand
- Use on the driest, itchiest skin. My daughter had red, inflamed skin under her skin neck folds due to formula and drool getting under them. Our pediatrician recommended we use this, and it cleared it up overnight. Also cleared up a dry skin patch that wouldn't go away on her cheek.

Lotrimin
- Use on the red, inflamed skin under skin neck folds, to prevent infection.

Mustela baby hair and body wash
- I love the smell.

[Anonymous]

I agree that not much is needed in the beginning, but later on for moisture and washing Kiehl's baby products are terrific.

[Anonymous]

I'm a big fan of the California Baby line for its very low toxicity levels (check out Skin Deep at http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/index.php?nothanks=1, which is the Environmental Working Group's website for non-toxic cosmetics and other products, including a special section for babies). I use the Shampoo and Body wash every day as well as the massage oils, and my 19 m.o. daughter tolerates them well (and she has super sensitive skin). They use pure essential oils, and the lavender in the Calming line is my favorite. Their sunscreens, especially the one with citronella, is great to protect that baby skin from the sun and (a bit) from bug bites.

I also use homeopathic and organic creams for diaper rashes -- though my daughter has never really had a bad one. My favorites are Weleda Diaper Cream and Boiron Calendula cream. Any time she has a red tush, that's what I slap on and it works wonders. I also use Aquafor, which has been really good (and is more cost effective).

I love the Seventh Generation wipes, which are perfume-free and not that expensive (I buy them online in bulk from Amazon). Again, they're non-toxic which is a big deal for me.

Nothing beats good old vaseline, though, for keeping the tush free of rashes. I rinse off my daughter with lukewarm water every time I change her diaper no matter what's in it, and then dry her well and slap some vaseline on, and she's good to go.

Peace!

[Anonymous]

One of the Johnson's "soothing naturals" line is a nice thing. It's a balm stick... looks like a tiny solid deodorant. I use it on the little dry patches that crop up, and this week, I'm putting it on her nose and upper lip, since the constant stream of snot has her all chapped. Heck, I'm using it on my own sore nose!

[Anonymous]

We've tried/liked the California Baby and Earth's Best body wash/shampoo 2-1 because I try to steer clear of petroleum/SLS/parabens/pthalates, etc., and check things against the safecosmetics database. While I like both those brands, our latest discovery and now favorite is Little Twig (available at My Organic Market and Wegman's). We rarely use lotion b/c our ped. said it wasn't necessary, especially early on when their skin is still adjusting to the outside world. When DS's cheeks (face!) get chapped, though, a little Aveeno (exczema formula) worked great.

For the occasional issues on his other cheeks we most often use the Boudreaux's but paste we got as a gift off our registry, but found Desitin works just as well. Fortunately we don't really have diaper rash issues very frequently - not sure if we're just lucky, or if it's because we use 7th Generation wipe and diapers. (I'm totally willing to concede it could be luck, but after a year, I can count the number of diaper rash episodes on one hand, so am not changing a thing!)

For cradle cap, our pediatrician said we could either ignore it or rub in plain baby oil or olive oil and then gently comb out the scales. I tried the former and my DS smelled like a salad, so switched to whatever baby oil they sell at Whole Foods, I can't recall the brand.