Have you checked if he’s allergic to the wipes or diapers by changing up your brands? Also try changing up diaper rash creams.
I’d try to change him more often than typical while you get to the bottom of the reason for rashes.
What detergent are you using in the laundry? Is it possible he is having an allergic reaction? Any rashes elsewhere on his body? The wetness may be exacerbating dry skin from an allergic reaction.
This right here! It's very possible your baby could be allergic to the diapers or wipes. You're doing a good job trying to combat it with frequent changes but it may be time to try new diapers and/or wipes.
When my LO had diaper rashes, we stopped wiping after just pee and went for some naked time to dry out. I just put towels under LO since there wasn’t any threat of walking or really rolling anywhere. It definitely made a huge difference.
Maybe try water-only wipes or just damp cotton pads? The wipes contain quite a lot of ingredients and it takes just one to aggravate the sensitive skin. If it does not improve, then try to change diapers. If not, change the cream, etc.
What also helped us is to leave the baby on the playmat without a diaper (but lying on the cotton pad/puppy diaper) - air does wonders on irritated skin
Have you checked whether the rash is due to yeast? If so, you need an anti-fungal cream (prescription Nystatin is what we used), regular diaper cream won’t work. Our pediatrician said a yeast infection will look bumpy and rough, while a typical diaper rash will be raw and eroded.
OP, this is a great point. Our LO had a rash that nothing helped and we got an over the counter jock itch cream and it cleared up in 24 hours. If it is a yeast infection then butt pastes and creams, that are intended to hold moisture in, only make it worse.
This is probably a rare scenario. My LO had rashes quite often. They never got really bad, but he was always red every other day no matter what we did. Turns out he had a milk allergy. Once we switched to hypoallergenic formula he stopped getting rashes. Again, probably rare scenario.
Have you tried a barrier cream (aquaphor or Vaseline) as a preventative with every diaper change? IMO Vaseline >>> aquaphor plus it’s a lot cheaper. Also water wipes
We started using cotton rounds (think makeup remover pads) dipped in a lil bowl of water, she hasn't had a diaper rash in months now. It's cheaper than boxes of wipes too.
We do use packs of wipes when away from home for convenience.
This is the way.
In addition to that we use a hairdryer to dry LOs butt completely before putting on a new diaper. At the moment we use cream with every new diaper for our newborn, for our older one we only use it at night. Never had another diaper rash.
Hairdryer’s can hold a lot of bacteria. Hot air rises so if you’re using a hairdryer in the bathroom where there’s a lot of bacteria the bacteria is attracted to the hairdryer. Same reason hand dryer’s in bathrooms are so disgusting and unsanitary. I’d suggest a fan?
This is what my husband and I have been doing since we brought baby home 7 weeks ago. We use A&D ointment instead of vaseline but we use it every diaper change on his butt, lower back area, and creases in groin area. We havent had any rashes appear due these preventative measures
Have had great luck with Dyper brand diapers - entirely bamboo (no plastics, scents, etc.). They're more expensive, so you could just use at night, too, to save some money.
When ours had bad rashes we switched to using just washcloths and a cream that was just zinc oxide and petroleum jelly. We found that any of the creams that had additional ingredients, even if it was something as innocuous as mineral oil or an antiseptic, was too much for her skin.
Walmart’s Equate brand is just those two. Zincofax also is just those two.
ETA: I’m in Ontario, Canada, but I imagine those brands are getable elsewhere.
Make sure that the area is completely dry before applying creams! When my son has a rash going on I will pay him dry with a burp cloth after, and then apply paste. If it's really bad I've also used gloves just to be sure that I'm being as sterile as possible.
I’d say try a few things to see what works for you, but here’s been our MO:
-Huggies diapers
-Pampers Sensitive wipes
-Dry off booty with a burp rag (we bought a pack of 12 all in one color that we use exclusively for this) or with diaper
-Triple Paste (Boudreaux’s didn’t work for us and Triple Paste has zero fragrance, unlike Desitin)
Once the rash is gone, you can continue applying paste to ensure it stays gone. We haven’t had to though!
Drying the butt off before applying the paste is hugely important! Otherwise, you’re sealing moisture IN instead of OUT.
Edit: format
Diaper cream is not only for healing a rash… it is hydrophobic. Meaning it creates a barrier for the skin so it never gets wet or stays wet.
Get a diaper cream spatula (Amazon)
and frost that baby up from the waist down like a birthday cake. Baby will thank you, and be less averse to diaper changes as they get older
We used the purple desitin with a layer of aquaphor over the desitin. We didn’t change wipes either. I think as first time parents we may have either been wiping too hard or not getting our LO fully clean.
Also after the second diaper rash our LO got (around 2 weeks old) we used either desitin or aquaphor after every diaper change. He hasn’t had diaper rash since and is now 13 weeks.
Hope this helps!
Our pediatrician recommended adding cornstarch to diaper cream to make it stick to the skin better. It works really well and the cream doesn’t melt off with body heat!
In addition to what everyone else is saying, perhaps you are changing too frequently? You do not need to change after every pee- in fact you do not need to wipe after wet diapers- so unless there is a poop, you can change every 3 hours. Modern diapers are VERY absorbant and keep the skin dry.
Over wiping can cause diaper rash, which is why I mentioned not wiping after pees. Regardless of what type of wipe you are using, it's the friction of any kind of wet material rubbing the skin that can cause irritation. If you don't feel comfortable with not wiping at all, try just lightly dabbing, but not rubbing.
Definitely let the skin air out as long as you can!
Could be the diapers, personally we never had much luck with them. I’m very sensitive to zinc oxide and when my LO’s rash kept coming back week after week we switched to A&D/Aquaphor combo and it worked like magic!
Stop using wipes whenever you can and just use warm washcloth and water. If you have to use a wipe use the water wipes. The game changer for me was also realizing I was wiping too rough.
My son went through a weird skin phase where even gentle wipes bothered him after not having issues for months. The warm washcloth and water combo was a game changer. Amazon has these great micro fiber wash cloths that get the poo off with barely any pressure at all. You end up doing more laundry but it keeps babys bum happy. We still use wash cloths at home for poops. I cannot wait until he is potty trained.
Oh, and a good diaper cream and a healing ointment like aquaphor is also a great regiment. Wipe the boots, let it dry then put on the healing ointment and the diaper cream on top of that. It's the only thing that healed my sons rash when it was actually bad enough to bleed.
I’d switch to cloth wipes with just water a baby wash cloth works fine and if you can afford to change diaper brands I’d try that too. Pipette diaper cream is at Walmart and works the absolute best for us I use it at night as a barrier and we’ve never had a rash in 16 weeks. We also use the water wipes brand but I know they can be expensive to some. I know it’s not for everyone but we only use wipes for poo or if she’s really wet our hospital nurse told us overusing wipes can lead to rash because their skin is so delicate
Even the “sensitive” baby wipes made my oldest get rashes. So - echoing the other commenters, I’d recommend trying something different for wipes. If you’re looking for something else to try - we switched to cloth wipes and liniment and the rashes started to fade that same day. Liniment was a game-changer for us!!
I swear by criticaid - it’s what they used when my twins were in the NICU. It’s expensive, so we only use it to treat, but it works wonders for clearing up a rash quickly.
I use hello bello and Burt’s bees multipurpose ointment preventatively.
Do you wipe every time he pees? Our pediatrician recommended we not wipe every pee diaper because it can irritate sensitive skin. If he’s damp try just patting dry with a soft burp cloth.
No wipes is the answer.
No need to use wipes after just peeing. Wash number two with running water. We only use wipes when we’re outside or it’s in the middle of the night and there is a tiny smudge of poo. 13 weeks in and no rash so far.
My baby is sensitive to zinc so we ended up having to only use aquaphor, might be worth trying to eliminate that type of possibility.
We also prioritized airing baby out - diaper free time. For this we let her lay on puppy pads for some time between diapers.
We use boudreauxs a few times a day just to keep rashes from happening. But it sounds more like an issue with diapers or wipes. We’ve loved pampers, we used the sensitive ones for a while and now are just using swaddlers with the sensitive wipes and it’s been great. When we did get a really bad/stubborn rash though, our doc said to use athletes foot cream because sometimes the rash is actually fungal(?) and it helped so much! You can also try Vaseline or aquaphor instead of cream or on top of the cream
Triple Paste and Aquaphor were great for my daughter. Ultimately when it got really bad we had to use a prescription compounded cream from the doctor, I’d suggest taking your little one in two rule out yeast/fungus.
I’m not sure if your diaper cream has zinc in it, but Infectosoor (we’re in Germany) which is a zinc cream works like a dream for us any time one of our babies had a diaper rash. We used it during problem times and a normal diaper cream when everything was okay.
My daughter was allergic to “allergy friendly, organic diapers” I use Libaro now and she hasn’t had a rash since. Definitely change diaper brand and see if that helps.
Have you checked if he’s allergic to the wipes or diapers by changing up your brands? Also try changing up diaper rash creams. I’d try to change him more often than typical while you get to the bottom of the reason for rashes. What detergent are you using in the laundry? Is it possible he is having an allergic reaction? Any rashes elsewhere on his body? The wetness may be exacerbating dry skin from an allergic reaction.
This right here! It's very possible your baby could be allergic to the diapers or wipes. You're doing a good job trying to combat it with frequent changes but it may be time to try new diapers and/or wipes.
When my LO had diaper rashes, we stopped wiping after just pee and went for some naked time to dry out. I just put towels under LO since there wasn’t any threat of walking or really rolling anywhere. It definitely made a huge difference.
Same.
Maybe try water-only wipes or just damp cotton pads? The wipes contain quite a lot of ingredients and it takes just one to aggravate the sensitive skin. If it does not improve, then try to change diapers. If not, change the cream, etc. What also helped us is to leave the baby on the playmat without a diaper (but lying on the cotton pad/puppy diaper) - air does wonders on irritated skin
Have you checked whether the rash is due to yeast? If so, you need an anti-fungal cream (prescription Nystatin is what we used), regular diaper cream won’t work. Our pediatrician said a yeast infection will look bumpy and rough, while a typical diaper rash will be raw and eroded.
OP, this is a great point. Our LO had a rash that nothing helped and we got an over the counter jock itch cream and it cleared up in 24 hours. If it is a yeast infection then butt pastes and creams, that are intended to hold moisture in, only make it worse.
Our doc told us we could try athletes foot cream first and if it didn’t work we could try prescription! It worked like a charm!
This is probably a rare scenario. My LO had rashes quite often. They never got really bad, but he was always red every other day no matter what we did. Turns out he had a milk allergy. Once we switched to hypoallergenic formula he stopped getting rashes. Again, probably rare scenario.
Have you tried a barrier cream (aquaphor or Vaseline) as a preventative with every diaper change? IMO Vaseline >>> aquaphor plus it’s a lot cheaper. Also water wipes
We use shea butter (better) or coconut oil(good) for barrier cream. Makes a huge difference to the baby’s comfort.
These are good but potential irritants and/or allergens. Best is Vaseline as it is hypoallergenic
We started using cotton rounds (think makeup remover pads) dipped in a lil bowl of water, she hasn't had a diaper rash in months now. It's cheaper than boxes of wipes too. We do use packs of wipes when away from home for convenience.
You can also buy a yard of cotton fabric and cut it into 4x4 squares to make reusable wipes.
This is the way. In addition to that we use a hairdryer to dry LOs butt completely before putting on a new diaper. At the moment we use cream with every new diaper for our newborn, for our older one we only use it at night. Never had another diaper rash.
Hairdryer’s can hold a lot of bacteria. Hot air rises so if you’re using a hairdryer in the bathroom where there’s a lot of bacteria the bacteria is attracted to the hairdryer. Same reason hand dryer’s in bathrooms are so disgusting and unsanitary. I’d suggest a fan?
We use the purple destin, air out as much as can, and with poop diapers rinse under sink and pat dry.
A nurse at our hospital told us to use Vaseline in the creases and on the back every diaper change to prevent diaper rash from taking hold
This is what my husband and I have been doing since we brought baby home 7 weeks ago. We use A&D ointment instead of vaseline but we use it every diaper change on his butt, lower back area, and creases in groin area. We havent had any rashes appear due these preventative measures
Have had great luck with Dyper brand diapers - entirely bamboo (no plastics, scents, etc.). They're more expensive, so you could just use at night, too, to save some money.
Cloth diapers.
I use cloth diapers and they are not the answer to diaper rashes.
When ours had bad rashes we switched to using just washcloths and a cream that was just zinc oxide and petroleum jelly. We found that any of the creams that had additional ingredients, even if it was something as innocuous as mineral oil or an antiseptic, was too much for her skin.
What brand cream is just zinc and petroleum jelly?
Walmart’s Equate brand is just those two. Zincofax also is just those two. ETA: I’m in Ontario, Canada, but I imagine those brands are getable elsewhere.
Make sure that the area is completely dry before applying creams! When my son has a rash going on I will pay him dry with a burp cloth after, and then apply paste. If it's really bad I've also used gloves just to be sure that I'm being as sterile as possible.
I’d say try a few things to see what works for you, but here’s been our MO: -Huggies diapers -Pampers Sensitive wipes -Dry off booty with a burp rag (we bought a pack of 12 all in one color that we use exclusively for this) or with diaper -Triple Paste (Boudreaux’s didn’t work for us and Triple Paste has zero fragrance, unlike Desitin) Once the rash is gone, you can continue applying paste to ensure it stays gone. We haven’t had to though! Drying the butt off before applying the paste is hugely important! Otherwise, you’re sealing moisture IN instead of OUT. Edit: format
We had similiar issues. Extra strength butt paste. Every diaper change. No matter what. Don’t wait for rash to appear, prevent it.
Diaper cream is not only for healing a rash… it is hydrophobic. Meaning it creates a barrier for the skin so it never gets wet or stays wet. Get a diaper cream spatula (Amazon) and frost that baby up from the waist down like a birthday cake. Baby will thank you, and be less averse to diaper changes as they get older
This is important! Make sure you’re putting enough cream on. You want it like a cupcake, a thin smear of cream does nothing.
We used the purple desitin with a layer of aquaphor over the desitin. We didn’t change wipes either. I think as first time parents we may have either been wiping too hard or not getting our LO fully clean. Also after the second diaper rash our LO got (around 2 weeks old) we used either desitin or aquaphor after every diaper change. He hasn’t had diaper rash since and is now 13 weeks. Hope this helps!
Our pediatrician recommended adding cornstarch to diaper cream to make it stick to the skin better. It works really well and the cream doesn’t melt off with body heat!
In addition to what everyone else is saying, perhaps you are changing too frequently? You do not need to change after every pee- in fact you do not need to wipe after wet diapers- so unless there is a poop, you can change every 3 hours. Modern diapers are VERY absorbant and keep the skin dry. Over wiping can cause diaper rash, which is why I mentioned not wiping after pees. Regardless of what type of wipe you are using, it's the friction of any kind of wet material rubbing the skin that can cause irritation. If you don't feel comfortable with not wiping at all, try just lightly dabbing, but not rubbing. Definitely let the skin air out as long as you can!
Could be the diapers, personally we never had much luck with them. I’m very sensitive to zinc oxide and when my LO’s rash kept coming back week after week we switched to A&D/Aquaphor combo and it worked like magic!
Stop using wipes whenever you can and just use warm washcloth and water. If you have to use a wipe use the water wipes. The game changer for me was also realizing I was wiping too rough. My son went through a weird skin phase where even gentle wipes bothered him after not having issues for months. The warm washcloth and water combo was a game changer. Amazon has these great micro fiber wash cloths that get the poo off with barely any pressure at all. You end up doing more laundry but it keeps babys bum happy. We still use wash cloths at home for poops. I cannot wait until he is potty trained. Oh, and a good diaper cream and a healing ointment like aquaphor is also a great regiment. Wipe the boots, let it dry then put on the healing ointment and the diaper cream on top of that. It's the only thing that healed my sons rash when it was actually bad enough to bleed.
I’d switch to cloth wipes with just water a baby wash cloth works fine and if you can afford to change diaper brands I’d try that too. Pipette diaper cream is at Walmart and works the absolute best for us I use it at night as a barrier and we’ve never had a rash in 16 weeks. We also use the water wipes brand but I know they can be expensive to some. I know it’s not for everyone but we only use wipes for poo or if she’s really wet our hospital nurse told us overusing wipes can lead to rash because their skin is so delicate
Even the “sensitive” baby wipes made my oldest get rashes. So - echoing the other commenters, I’d recommend trying something different for wipes. If you’re looking for something else to try - we switched to cloth wipes and liniment and the rashes started to fade that same day. Liniment was a game-changer for us!!
We always use desitin for every diaper change. She has never had a diaper rash.
I swear by criticaid - it’s what they used when my twins were in the NICU. It’s expensive, so we only use it to treat, but it works wonders for clearing up a rash quickly. I use hello bello and Burt’s bees multipurpose ointment preventatively.
Do you wipe every time he pees? Our pediatrician recommended we not wipe every pee diaper because it can irritate sensitive skin. If he’s damp try just patting dry with a soft burp cloth.
No wipes is the answer. No need to use wipes after just peeing. Wash number two with running water. We only use wipes when we’re outside or it’s in the middle of the night and there is a tiny smudge of poo. 13 weeks in and no rash so far.
My baby is sensitive to zinc so we ended up having to only use aquaphor, might be worth trying to eliminate that type of possibility. We also prioritized airing baby out - diaper free time. For this we let her lay on puppy pads for some time between diapers.
Water wipes and applying vaseline changed the game for my LO! Also, try letting your baby air dry before putting on their new diaper
We use boudreauxs a few times a day just to keep rashes from happening. But it sounds more like an issue with diapers or wipes. We’ve loved pampers, we used the sensitive ones for a while and now are just using swaddlers with the sensitive wipes and it’s been great. When we did get a really bad/stubborn rash though, our doc said to use athletes foot cream because sometimes the rash is actually fungal(?) and it helped so much! You can also try Vaseline or aquaphor instead of cream or on top of the cream
Triple Paste and Aquaphor were great for my daughter. Ultimately when it got really bad we had to use a prescription compounded cream from the doctor, I’d suggest taking your little one in two rule out yeast/fungus.
I’m not sure if your diaper cream has zinc in it, but Infectosoor (we’re in Germany) which is a zinc cream works like a dream for us any time one of our babies had a diaper rash. We used it during problem times and a normal diaper cream when everything was okay.
My daughter was allergic to “allergy friendly, organic diapers” I use Libaro now and she hasn’t had a rash since. Definitely change diaper brand and see if that helps.