[mendocino]

First, how much do you want to HURL when your toddler tries to drink the bathwater??!! DS has cups to play with in the bath and every so often I catch him trying to drink from them. He even tries sneak sucks on his wathcloth! GAG.

And second, just what exactly is the crust behind their ears? I wash that little boy every night, even put globs of aquaphor back there - but it's always there!

 

[whoamama]

1) they will always drink the water, get over it
2)the crust is very mysterious, after 4 kids, I still have no clue. But they all do get it. and outgrow it.

.

 

[greenmama3]

Breastfed kids are in a sideways position to eat, so if they drool a little bit while they're eating, the milk goes down their jaw and into that little dip behind their ear where it dries.

And since kids don't quite get the concept of germs (it's abstract since they can't see them), they think that it's cool that they can get themselves the water. Probably won't kill 'em. They all do it and I don't know of any deaths yet. LOL!

 

[mendocino]

Whoamama:

Mostly I was tongue in cheek - although I recall a story told to me by an ER doc, that her child - while bathing with a friend - drank the bathwater and subsequently rotavirus. I think about that when he goes for the cup and I just get SO SKEEVED!

greenmama3:

You might be right about the crust. Cracks me up.

 

[millionmom]

That's not as bad a drinking urinal water!!!

 

[faithnj]

My dd insists on drinking her bath water also. I just make sure her butt is clean and the tub is washed well before I give her a bath. Yes, it skeeves me out....but what can we do? Sigh. She tries to drink pool water too. And when I bathe her in the sink? She always dips her tooth brush in the water and then sucks the water off of the tooth brush. Yuk. I'm glad she likes water.....but not that much! LOL!

Faith

 

[Gigi2214]

Drinking bath water just has to be a kid thing,. My daughter tries to sneak in sips all the time and I've told her no a million times. My baby boy takes the sponge so fast I don't even notice.

mendocino.. If it's not milk behind your baby's ear, you might want to check with the Dr. just to see what it might be.
The story you mentioned rotavirus...is that the name of the virus?

 

[Sprucen]

Hm, Ds1 also loooves to drink the bathwater... and he, uh, pees in it almost every night... ugh! He also tries to sneak sips from the cups he plays with and even knows that drinking the bathwater is a no no, and it just gives me the heebees.

The crust behind the ears... I always thought that's where the "still wet behind the ears" phrase comes from. Not that I know what causes it, but it eventually goes away.

 

[tsfairy]

DS insists on drinking the bathwater too. He loves to dip his washcloth and then suck the water out, and he's actually getting pretty good with a cup from practicing in the tub.

He's not that dirty so it really doesn't gross me out too much, plus it's just him in there so no risk of catching something from someone else. My biggest issue with it is that our tap water is SO chlorinated.

 

[faithnj]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tsfairy DS insists on drinking the bathwater too. He loves to dip his washcloth and then suck the water out, and he's actually getting pretty good with a cup from practicing in the tub. He's not that dirty so it really doesn't gross me out too much, plus it's just him in there so no risk of catching something from someone else. My biggest issue with it is that our tap water is SO chlorinated.

tsfairy-- did you know you could put filters on your bathroom water supplies? I don't know about the faucet in the tub-- but they have one for the showerhead to reduce chlorine. I'm sure there are ways to filter the tub faucet as well, if you want to. Otherwise, you could just live with it. Hopefully, he's not drinking too much tub water! LOL!

Faith

 

[USAmma]

My dd has feeding problems and she just learned how to drink out of open cups a couple of mos ago! Her main practice was in the bath. I just made sure she had peed before getting in and made sure the tub was clean. What more can you do? It's her own germs.

The crust-ah yes! She still gets it. Have no idea what it is but was told once that it is a form of cradle cap. BTW my dd did not take a bottle after about 6 mos and was tube fed after that and has the crust.

 

[tatermom]

I've been letting DS drink water straight from the bathtub tap when he gets fixated on drinking the bathwater. He likes the novelty of it and usually will stop drinking bath water. Is tap water from the bath really that bad???

He has the crusty ear thing too, even though we wash behind his ears all the time.

 

[Shelsi]

I don't care if ds drinks the bathwater, which he does very every night the entire time. He usually pees in it too. Urine is sterile so I don't see the big deal about drinking super duper diluted urine. Sure, it's not something I would personally do (unless trapped somewhere and that was my only way to survive) but it's not going to hurt him so I just don't care.

I used to think the ear crust was breastmilk or formula. However we're well past those stages and he STILL has the crust. I have no clue what it is.

 

[mcamy]

The crust behind the ears is a form of dermatitis, like cradle cap. The ped told us about it once. He said dandruff shampoo would get rid of it, but we just left it alone.

 

[mendocino]

YES! He ALWAYS pees...the instant I put him in. (I actually think that part is adorable.)

*To the PP who asked about rotavirus - it's a particularly nasty virus that almost all kids get to varying degrees. It's spread only through contact with poop - and very negligible amounts are able to get kids very sick. The virus lives on DRY surfaces for up to 10 days! Only alcohol based germ killers kill it - so I now keep a bottle of Purel by the changing station and use it after EVERY diaper change. DS got it from another baby who got it from a b-day party (all within 6 days). All the mothers got it, too. My son had it the worst - barfing and had diarrhea for 11 days. Read Dr.Sears website about it - helped me alot!

So knowing that, you can see how drinking the bath water of a child who is carrying rotavirus is very, very, very bad.

ANYWAY! That has nothing to do with my post, it just adds to the gross-factor when I see my bub drinking bathwater!

Finally, I think you all might be right about the cradle cap. DS doesn't leak much BM, and he sleeps on his tummy, so when he drools it's usually on the mattress. And he does still have cradle cap under all his gorgeous baby hair. Guess I'll stop torturing him by trying to get it clean!

Thanks all for the cameraderie in yuck-ville!

 

[Cardinal]

My DS has had rotavirus twice... got it once and then 6 weeks later.

: Awful.

He also drinks bathwater, but I try to make a face when he does it so that he stops... I make the "ICK" face.

What grosses me out about DS in the tub is this -- I got him one of those toothbrushes with the batteries that moves/spins. He sucks on it and then puts it on his crotch. Then, later, as if that isn't wonderful enough, he sucks on it.

:

 

[Pandora114]

My DD is 3 and she drinks the bathwater. I want her to stop so she can eventually stay dry at night.

I try so hard to enforce the no liquids after supper..but she still drinks out of the tub, it's gross....She gets really grungy during the day too...

 

[octobermom]

I personalluy cannot stomache my DD soaking in water filled with all her mud and gunk from the day, so I ussually do a quick shower then we let her splash in the tub makes me cringe less when she drinks the water.

 

[tsfairy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by faithnj tsfairy-- did you know you could put filters on your bathroom water supplies? I don't know about the faucet in the tub-- but they have one for the showerhead to reduce chlorine. I'm sure there are ways to filter the tub faucet as well, if you want to. Otherwise, you could just live with it. Hopefully, he's not drinking too much tub water! LOL! Faith

Yep we have the filter on our showerhead, but I haven't been able to find one for the bathtub faucet. I asked at Home Depot, and was told that such a thing doesn't exist. AFAIK our only option is to get a whole-house filter and unfortunately we can't quite afford that right now.

But no he really doesn't drink too much, just a few sips during each bath usually so I'm not THAT worried.

Quote:

Originally Posted by octobermom I personalluy cannot stomache my DD soaking in water filled with all her mud and gunk from the day, so I ussually do a quick shower then we let her splash in the tub makes me cringe less when she drinks the water.

I usually put DS in the dry tub and then turn on the water. He likes to play with the running water, and I can get his gunk rinsed off (dinner or dirt or whatever he's covered in at the time) and he can pee, and then after I let the water run for a minute to rinse out the tub, I close the drain and let it fill up so the water is fairly clean for his bathtime play.

 

[Imogen]

Quote:

Originally Posted by faithnj My dd insists on drinking her bath water also. I just make sure her butt is clean and the tub is washed well before I give her a bath. Yes, it skeeves me out....but what can we do? Sigh. She tries to drink pool water too. And when I bathe her in the sink? She always dips her tooth brush in the water and then sucks the water off of the tooth brush. Yuk. I'm glad she likes water.....but not that much! LOL! Faith

Just like my son. Bless their little hearts