cord question

[feministmom]

nak

my babe is 1 week old today and had a h.u.g.e. diaper blowout this afternoon. a poopsplosion unlike any i've ever seen. it was coming out the sides, back, and front of her diaper. her cord stump was covered in poop. i decided the easiest and most efficient way to clean her up was a rinse in the tub....i was concerned about her cord getting wet, but it seemed more urgent to get the poop off of it. after the bath i swabbed it with alcohol....should i be worried? is there anything besides alcohol i should be doing for it?

thanks!!!!

[JayJay]

You'll be fine - sensible decision mama! I'd have chosen a bath too.

Really the only reason "they" say to avoid a bath before the cord stump falls off is to make sure it doesn't get perpetually wet, which would then interfere with the cord's falling off. I think you'd have more of an "ick" factor and infection rate with poo than with clean water, so I think you're alright there.

Worry ye not!

[babymommy2]

Even "they" don't say you can't give a bath anymore, it is pretty old fashioned. I am one of "them" and we dont' tell people to not submerse babies. When you do , in less than an hour the cord will be completely dried out again. You don't need the alcohol either. Just leave it alone and open to air the majority of time, clean around the base if/when it starts to get goopy, and it will fall off in due time. If the skin gets red or it smells really bad, it could be infected, but that is not that common.

[feministmom]

Thanks! I figured it would be okay....just wanted some reassurance. Thanks again!

[JayJay]

Originally Posted by babymommy2

Even "they" don't say you can't give a bath anymore, it is pretty old fashioned. I am one of "them" and we dont' tell people to not submerse babies. When you do , in less than an hour the cord will be completely dried out again. You don't need the alcohol either. Just leave it alone and open to air the majority of time, clean around the base if/when it starts to get goopy, and it will fall off in due time. If the skin gets red or it smells really bad, it could be infected, but that is not that common.

Argh I've been discovered!

No, I'm only kidding. Though actually in the hospital I just had my daughter in last month, they did tell me not to submerse her until the cord had come off - and that hospital is part of the Mayo Clinic! So, yes, absolutely old fashioned but it does seem that some hospitals still pop it on the discharge instructions like your baby is going to get sick from it, or something... Silly isn't it?

[MissMommyNiceNice]

Interestingly, this time our MW sprinkled some powdered ginseng (I think) on it and said we wouldn't even have to worry about alcohol to clean it. I used a little peroxide to get the dried blood off after he lost it.

[akat]

Round here everyone uses Goldenseal Root Powder to help dry out the cord, rather than alcohol.