How To Treat Diaper Rash

We recently survived a near three-week bout of the stomach flu.  And, when I say we, I  mean my 5-month-old and me.  The poor guy was going #2 around the clock and poor mama bear was up changing dirty diapers with each and every movement.

Alas, the dreaded diaper rash couldn’t be avoided.  It was horrible — to the point where our baby sucked in his breath in pain when we wiped away the poop.

We tried every recommendation and after a trip to the ER and multiple visits to the drug store, I can honestly say, we nailed it.  Our soothing remedy was so successful that I had to share it:

(1) Bath your child in Aveeno Baby Oatmeal Bath

I didn’t even know this existed and randomly came across it in a store.  We used half a package per path for our infant’s bum rash and a full packet for our toddler’s eczema.  After two baths there was a noticeable difference.  You do have to let you kids soak though.  10 minutes for infants and 20-30 for your toddler.  It works so it’s worth it and they can just play in peace.

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(2) Use cloths and water only (no wipes)

This is the most obvious tip, but do it.   NO wipes whatsoever.  Even if it’s 2:00am.   Get a bowl of warm water at each change and gently use baby cloths to remove poop and pee.  Color code your cloths and have certain one specifically for diaper changes.  Even the most gentle wipes can still irritate baby skin.  Don’t do it!!  Use warm water.
face cloths

(3) Finish off diaper changes with a hair dryer

This tip sounds ridiculous but you’d be surprised at how the smallest amount of dampness can irritate already angry baby bottoms.  I used a blow dryer on the cool setting to get in all of the baby-fat folds.  This was a diaper game-changer.  I did this at every change and things really cleared up.

(4) Cornstarch

Once the bum area is dry, apply cornstarch to really keep out the dampness.  Use your fingers to get it into all of the creases.

cornstarch

(5) Desitin Cream

I tried everything from the most natural bum creams to the most expensive.  I typically stay away from Desitin because of the odour (hard to tell if an infant has gone poop because I find the stench of the cream to be over powering) but it has a high zinc concentration at 40% and that’s what you want.  Most store brands (from Aveeno to Sudocream) containt 10-12% which doesn’t do much for those nasty raw, rashes.  You need 40% zinc or higher.

desitin

(6) Live Clean Soothing Oatmeal Relief

Along with the Aveeno bath, we washed our little guys with Live Clean (baby) soothing relief.  Again, this works for rashes and dry skin so we targeted two things at once.  The scent is fabulous and it’s a naturally derived product.  When skin is raw or irritated, it’s really important to treat it with extra care — especially when it comes to our little ones.

soothing oatmeal relief creamy head to toe wash

Note: None of these products in any way collaborated with us for this post.  These are honest opinions and discoveries we made after trying desperately to sooth our infant.  His bum was so raw and we tried everything from diaper free days to anti-fungal creams.  Yes, other items did help in some way (the anti-fungal for example) but nothing worked quite as well as the combination of the above.

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