how often to bathe a baby? - Page 2

[MamaScout]

When my baby was a newborn I only bathed her about once a week. When she hit about 3 months, I started doing it maybe every 3rd or 4th day. But now that she is crawling about on the floor all day, I bathe her every day just to get the dust and dog hair off! I do not always use soap, though. Sometimes just a rinse.

I don't know about the rash, but I use Weleda diaper ointment for all my baby rashes. (I CD, too.) Have you checked into the possibility of it being yeast? You might want to check with your Dr. Both my DS and my DD have gotten yeast diaper rashes. Some lotrimin cream (over the counter) will clear it up. You could probably google for more specific instructions on that.

[Mama Poot]

At that age I give em a bath every other day. As for the rash, I would try to locate a salve that has comfrey in it (I make my own). You could even use fresh or dried comfrey, make an infusion and make a little poultice (use something small like a baby washcloth?)

[leosmommy]

we bathe our ds about once every 2 weeks...he gets a morning face/hands/peri area/feet wipe with a warm damp cloth, but that's it for daily cleaning. we go diaper free a lot during the day...at least one or two naps/day are diaperless. and we use cloth diapers and disposables, depending on who's doing the changes (me or dh). no rashes anywhere, and we wipe and then use vaseline or a similar type ointment at every change, wet or poopy.

[akaisha]

saw this on the new posts and just wanted to say that if the rash has anything to do with bathing (which it likely doesn't) it would be more likely that bathing him too often or with soaps would cause the problem, not not bathing him often enough or only doing a rinse. soaps can obviously cause irritation and frequent bathing can be an issue if baby isn't totally dry before the diaper goes on. baby can get moist dermatitis for one, you can destroy all the natural (good) bacteria that grow on the skin, and you can weaken the skin by stripping it of it's natural oils.

once every 1-2 weeks with wipe downs as necessary in between would seem sufficient to me for a baby that age. i wouldn't use soap every bath either, maybe every other one.

in any case, if your DH thinks lack of bathing is the problem, why doesn't he just bathe babe himself?

[Elismum]

It is so dry where we live, I only bathe my LO once a week, sometimes once every two weeks with sponge baths in the middle. We use very little soap, too.
As for the sore, it needs to air out and be dry before you put any ointment on it. I like Weleda Diaper Care. But if you put it on damp skin, it retains the moisture and makes the rash worse. Just let it air. Don't put any powders on it, it could make it worse.
Good luck!