29.03.2024

The first bath of the newborn at home

The best time for water procedures is the evening before bedtime. After bathing, most babies fall asleep well, but if the child, on the contrary, is too active, it is best to postpone swimming for the first half of the day.

The first bathing of a newborn is better to be carried out with assistants, so it will be easier to navigate in the future if there may be no additional help.

The most crucial and difficult moment is to properly organize and conduct the bathing of the newborn for the first time. There is no need for clutter and unnecessary excitement, so it’s better to prepare everything you need in advance and instruct everyone involved in this action.

List of everything necessary for bathing a child:

  • Bath for bathing newborns. Many models are on sale, in principle, anyone can use it, the main thing is that the child fits completely. Often parents use an adult bath, but in the first days of life it is advisable to bathe the child only in boiled water, and it will be problematic to heat such a large capacity.
  • Thermometer for water. The water temperature for bathing a newborn baby should be between 34 and 37 ° C. With gradual hardening, it is necessary to lower by one degree every day, this will create the necessary conditions for the motor activity of the baby.
  • You may not even need a mattress for bathing newborns if you plan to swim in an “adult” bath after healing the umbilical wound. A simple diaper or towel that fits under the back of a child can also perform the functions of this device.
  • Suitable detergent. It is best to use liquid soap, shampoo or a special gel. It is best to choose a bottle with a dispenser, but this is purely individual.
  • Diaper or towel after bathing. It is optimal to first wet the baby with a diaper, and only then wipe it dry with a towel.
  • Hygiene products: zelenka and a cotton swab for navel processing, diaper cream or powder. It is better if it is at hand when the baby is already bought.
  • Nappy and clothes for the baby.

Further water treatments

Subsequently, when the umbilical wound has completely healed, you can bathe a newborn baby in a large bath. The need to boil and disinfect water will disappear, it will be enough to add a suitable decoction of herbs. A great help for parents will be the use of a special circle on the neck for bathing newborns. It can be a purchased inflatable model, or maybe just a homemade hat with sewn pieces of foam, the main thing is that the child is comfortable.

Many parents are interested in how many months to use the circle for bathing newborns. The answer will be simple: if there are no special prescriptions by a doctor, such a device can be worn already from the first month. As a rule, it is more advisable to use the circle for bathing newborns only in a large bathtub, so this moment will depend on the healing speed of the navel.

Using special tools

In addition to the above mattresses and circles, many other various products have also been invented for a comfortable pastime in the water. Among them, one can note a slide for bathing newborns – a plastic board under a slight slope with protrusions convenient for the body. The baby will be in a half-sitting position, will not swallow water, and parents will not have to bend and hold it.

There are models of bathtubs in the form of the slide described above, but the period of use of such devices is very short: already in three to four months the child will roll over from such a slide. Also the lack of such a model will be the lack of motor activity. This option is more suitable for passive kids while swimming.

A relatively new invention is a hammock for bathing newborns. It is a special mesh, the edges of which are fixed on the sides of the bathtub, and the central part is intended for the baby. A similar device will also not allow the child to swallow water, and for parents there will be no need to hold the baby while swimming.

Everyone determines the value of such an acquisition in their own way, if it is not possible to use a large bath, the first months the child and parents will be more comfortable with such insurance. This is especially true in cases where only one of the parents spends bathing.

What can be added to bathing water

The most common question among young parents: in which water should a newborn baby bathe? Previously, without fail pediatricians recommended boiling and disinfecting water with potassium permanganate. Now many doctors are more loyal and allow the use of ordinary tap water.

Do I need to boil water for bathing a newborn? The answer is yes, but in the first days after being discharged home, until the umbilical wound has completely healed.

In order not to spend money on buying a new bath for the baby, hygienic procedures can be carried out with ordinary warm water (washing the baby in the sink) or using baby wet wipes. After waiting for the moment when you can bathe a newborn without harm, bring the infection into an open wound, you can simply brew a suitable herbal decoction for water.

As to whether it is advisable to use herbal preparations for bathing a child, there is still no definite answer. Most doctors insist on a high risk of causing an allergic reaction and skin rashes with such procedures. On the side of the opponents are proven “grandmother’s” methods and positive experience of use by many already adult generations.

It is advisable to buy herbs for bathing a newborn at a pharmacy or from trusted people who really understand the safe methods of collecting and drying raw materials. You can stock up on everything you need in advance by collecting a “herbarium” during pregnancy, but usually the cost of such a product is pretty cheap, so it’s easier to go and buy and not be puzzled by such issues.

A series of best for bathing newborns has proven itself best.

The healing properties of this plant have a beneficial effect on the skin. Often added to the water motherwort or valerian “for a quiet sleep” of the child.

Chamomile for bathing newborns is used for small inflammatory processes, dermatitis in a mild form and simply as a prophylactic.

How to prepare a decoction of herbs for bathing a child:

  1. Pour a tablespoon of the dry mixture into a clean container (for a large bath, take about half a glass).
  2. Pour boiling water and wrap.
  3. Strain from solid residues before adding to the bath.
  4. Dilute in water and then start swimming.

For optimal results, you can use a separate thermos, as well as boil the herbs in a water bath. While the child is small enough, do not experiment and make complex multicomponent compositions.

In case of any kind of allergic reactions, such additives must be removed from everyday life.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oex0S5TRyto

How often to bathe a newborn baby

In the first year of life for a baby, bathing is not just a hygienic procedure, but an opportunity to develop and improve their skills. It is easier to move in water and even a newborn will be able to perform simple exercises, until which “on land” remains for several months. Everyone determines the comfortable frequency of water procedures individually, it is advisable to establish the frequency of at least every other day.

The main task of parents is to provide comfortable and safe conditions for active movements. The use of modern means is designed to make life easier for parents and make bathing a child more convenient.

In order to stimulate the baby a little to active water games, simple tricks will be enough. Most parents find their own approach and know how to keep their child busy, depending on their individual preferences.

Games with a baby while swimming
  • You can offer toys to a grown up baby. The range of suitable options starts from the “classic” yellow ducks and ends with interactive floating models.
  • Special bathroom stickers can lure a child for a long time. Even the kids are happy to look at them and try to reach out with their hands. Thus, you can develop your first swimming skills.
  • Short dives in the water will benefit the child. In the first three months of life, children still have reflex breath holding, which can be further developed. Special courses and swimming in a large pool can make the expression “like fish in water” apply to your baby. Unfortunately, not everyone has the opportunity to attend such courses, but home workouts will benefit.
  • It is possible to put energetic, but quiet music to the baby during the procedures. Usually, children are very sensitive to classical works and try to make movements to the beat even at a very young age.

Determine at what temperature it is easy to bathe a newborn so that he actively moves. It is enough to gradually lower the temperature of the bathing water by a degree so that the child feels the need for movement.

By the end of the first year, the baby will be more comfortable swimming at 30 degrees, and not like in infancy at around 37.

Recommendations for the correct bathing of a newborn
  1. The ideal temperature for bathing the newborn and active games will be slightly below the prescribed 37 degrees. It is necessary to lower it gradually.
  2. Bathing in a large bath is preferable, for the convenience of parents and the baby, you can use special circles or a homemade hat with polystyrene foam to support the head above the surface.
  3. The first two weeks it is advisable to use boiled water. For a large bath, such a volume is difficult to provide, so you can use a weak solution of potassium permanganate. After the umbilical wound has finally healed, there is no point in boiling and additional disinfection.
  4. Use herbal bathing with caution, observing reasonable proportions. When skin rashes and other negative reactions appear, they should immediately be abandoned.
  5. The regularity of water procedures is very important, it is best to bathe the child daily or at least every other day. Gradually, the child himself will wait for this process with pleasure.
  6. Previously, it is better to prepare everything you need in close proximity to the child, so that in no case be absent from the process.
  7. Detergents are preferably used no more than once a week. Even the most sensitive formula is not designed for daily use on children’s skin.
  8. The duration of the procedures in water should not exceed 30-40 minutes. For the first acquaintance with the water element, 15 minutes is quite enough.
  9. Equally important is a positive attitude. Do not treat water procedures as a routine duty, it is better to look at it from the other side: a similar stage in a child’s life will not last long, take this time for your baby.

Bathing a newborn baby is a responsible and extremely important matter. Providing the baby with all the conditions necessary for active movements, you will not only provide him with full-fledged “aerobics”, but also will form the first important skills of the swimmer. In order for bathing to bring a lot of positive emotions and not be a burden, it is necessary to prepare in advance for this daily ritual, and it is better to use assistants as well. It will help with swimming, and will also help to capture the first moments of growing up a child in a photo.

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