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Ditch the Dyes Cheat Sheets

Dear SafeMama: Dry Skin Advice

By Kristie Turck •  Published 02/18/09 •  6 min read

Last updated on August 20th, 2022 at 12:19 am

I’m at your site daily, and trust your product reviews.  I was hoping to get your thoughts or maybe some of your other reader thoughts on lotion. Like I  said I read your reviews so I know you have already reviewed several products. However, my daughter is 9 months old and suffers from horrendously dry skin. everywhere. I cannot put enough lotion on her. I was using the Little Twig brand but it’s just not enough. I even, went to non-organic lotions like J&J and Aquaphor to see if those worked. they last longer, but still don’t do the trick. Any suggestions?

I really feel your pain.  My son generally doesn’t have dry skin, but this winter has been particularly raw, so we’re all suffering pretty badly from dry, scaly skin.   This is a situation where there’s no one-size fits all solution.   So you may have to play around with some things before you find something that works.   But I have some ideas on what works for us.

You might not be able to escape dry skin entirely, but you may be able to help minimize it and help keep your baby comfortable.

Reader tips:

We’ve gotten a few tips already today, great job SafeMama Readers!

SafeMama Lisa writes in:

My son is 6 months old and is Milatto and we live in northern Minnesota. So all the odds are against him to have dry skin and he does! Like you said, i only give him a bath about every 3 days. I don’t use any soap as he just doesn’t need that right now. I actually don’t use much lotion either. I am breastfeeding him and I take DHA (omega-3) vitamins about 3 times a day during the winter. It helps keep both of our skin much more hydrated! So if mom is nursing, her diet is also important! I also use the Angel Baby Bottom Balm from Earth Mama Angel Baby on anything that may need it: cradle cap (which is almost gone!), his lil booty, scratches, dry patches. That product is amazing!

SafeMama Catrina writes:

“I just wanted to suggest … maybe just using coconut oil would help.  You can find it in most stores, make sure it is unrefined, not in a liquid form, and just use it like a oil on her skin.  It is all natural, and great for dry skin.  My son gets really bad eczema in the winter time, and I use that on his face, and since it is a natural oil, I don’t have to worry about him getting any in his mouth. “

SafeMama Britta suggests:

“I have really dry skin and eczema. Especially in the winter. I use Weleda Calendula Oil for my body and Weleda Baby Cream for my face. You can also use the cream for the body but the oil is just a bit better. I have used it on my 13 month old and had no problems with his sensitive skin. I hope that helps…”

SafeMama Laura writes:

“… we tried California Baby Calming Botanical Moisturizing Cream.  Wow, it worked immediately.  It is nice and light, easy to rub in, smells great, and, IT REALLY WORKED.  We put it on after her bath one night and noticed her skin was better the next morning.  Now her skin is baby-soft, just the way it should be.”

Thank you for all the tips SafeMamas!

If you are breastfeeding make sure that YOU also stay very hydrated as it will definitely help with dry skin.  Your skin is made up of about 70% water, but as you get older, that number starts to go down (to about 60%), so you want to make sure you’re getting enough for both of you.   If she’s able to drink out of a cup,  make sure she also  gets enough water during the day.   I should also mention the soap as well.   I try to not use as much soap on my son (although toddlers, tend to get pretty funky), and if he’s not too stinky, I’ll just wash his hair, condition and let the soap residue do the rest,making sure to pay attention to the targeted areas I mention above.   You could also take advice from the “no poo” movement.  I know a lot of people that don’t use shampoo.  Me? Personally?  It’ll never happen, but babies don’t really need a lot of soap and in most cases, they don’t really have much in the way of hair either.   We always like to stress that less is more.

SafeMama readers have any tips for dry skin?  Submit them and we’ll post them here!

And of course, if YOU have a question for Dear SafeMama, you can submit them in our contact form.  Just use the “Dear SafeMama” option  in the drop down box.

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