To not bath my kids every day?

[Roxetta]

I have a 2 year old and an almost 5 year old. DH works away a lot and I'm finding the whole daily schedule so tough on my own. I bath them both every day at the moment, but I'm wondering, would it be wrong of me to skip the odd bath now & then? DD1 is an exceptionally clean kid, DD2 not so much. But DD2 gets baby wiped within an inch of her life after every meal because of all the mess she makes.

How often do you bath your kids? Would not bathing them daily be wrong of me?

More in summer etc.

Bit of muck doesn't hurt

Mine are 2 and 6 3 baths a week Sundays Tuesdays and Fridays. The eldest also has swimming Saturdays so gets a chlorine bleach. Obviously if weve been doing a really mucky activity I would otherwise its the above.

Up until the age of 5 it was daily. From then it went to every other day or 3 at a stretch if in winter. Now as teens I insist on a daily shower Monday to Friday because they would stink otherwise. On weekends I leave the mingers to it.

I do a quickie: stand them in bath and pour water over them, scrub them with soap & flannel, rinse off properly and drag them out, dry off and into pj’s. Takes 2 minutes. Proper bath & hair is 3-4 times a week. They do a lot of sports/activities and need a proper clean.

Well DD is 11 weeks old and no way does she get a bath everyday. Midwife actually told me that it's bad for the skin and 3 times a week is plenty whilst she's a baby.

The whole bed routine thing doesn't make one dot of difference to her at night so we do it in a morning.

With all 4 of mine I just got into a routine of a bath before they went to bed, I was born in the 70s and I was bathed nightly too. I also do clean nightwear for the my youngest 2 every night too

This time of year it's every other day for my almost 6yo and almost 4yo.

Oddly enough I've been advised to bath the baby daily as she has eczema, but we have a special emollient for the bath.

If children have eczema, daily bathing is better... hcps used to say the opposite, but have found it clears the dead skin cells and decreases the growth of bacteria. Just use an emollient instead of soap. @Kindnessplease

7&5 year old - shower (bath when younger) every other day unless they have been swimming.

Twice a week in winter
every other day in summer
That's plenty for any kid unless they have got really dirty playing outside etc.
Save yourself loads of time and energy OP and try and relax a bit and not run yourself ragged!

I always used aqueous cream for washing instead of soap,(mild shampoo for hair) with a cap full of Oilatum in the bath, for DS's moderate excema as advised with daily bathing/showering. I found he used to itch more if I tried less than bathing.

He's 16 now. It cleared by age 9/10.

I bath mine daily because they seem to get grubby and enjoy the bath. If they didn’t enjoy the bath, I’d not bother. That’s what baby wipes are for.

DD is 4 and gets bathed every 2-3 days. Always has done. She's a gorgeous little blonde thing with Mediterranean skin and is always getting compliments on her hair and how well presented she is. People really can't tell and most people with a bit of sense really don't care or think it's an issue.

Me? I don't shower/bathe daily either. I shower the evening before or the morning of a shift and the evening after it. My role requires it for infection control. That can mean that for parts of the week I'm showering or bathing daily. If I have no shifts booked in, I'm on about the same schedule as DD. My hair doesn't cope well with daily washing.

There's a significant body of evidence building that suggests over cleanliness is having detrimental effects to our immunity and can be a factor in several diseases.

And besides, DD likes to spend more than an hour in the bath and needs a good detangle after. Fuck doing that shit daily.

Twice a week minimum, but DS goes through periods of hating baths and showers and having forced him once (he did really need one) I'd rather not again as it was horrendous, and does nothing to create a relaxing bedtime. He's usually ok with them in the summer and goes off them in the winter.

He does get wiped down with a flannel and warm water sometimes as well.

I always wondered why some people have poor hygiene and of course it’s what their parents have taught them....

That's bullshit Bringonspring. As a young child I was not bathed daily. Then as I reached puberty, and needed to bath daily I was strongly encouraged to (and did). I'll do the same with DS but until then I'll only bathe him when necessary and instead protect his delicate and sensitive skin.

I am feeling sick and tired (pregnant) and I felt so bad that I didn't give my DD a bath tonight before bed. It's part of her routine and it's nice for her I think to be clean and fresh.

My daughter has a bath/shower 2 or 3 times a week and tbh just once every now and then. She isn't smelly and it's something that is pretty stressful for her if I'm honest so I just don't worry about it too much.

@Bringonspring

Well that's rude! Also bullshit as someone else said. Sure you feel better for it though

Unless they have eczema where regular bathing is now recommended then no not everyday.

I aim for daily but every now and then I just can't be arsed. Nothing terrible has happened as a result.

As they get older, and too big to share the bath. I found bathing them on different days helps, save time and water. Only one bath per night. Also not washing hair every bathtime, saves on shampoo and conditioner.

Every other day in our house. A bath before bed has never relaxed DD, quite the opposite actually. She doesn't get filthy dirty (just about to turn 2) and the bits that matter are cleaned throughout the day. She has her face washed and her teeth cleaned twice a day.

I've even been known to stretch a pair of pj's out to two nights if they aren't that mucky.

Twice a week and more if need be. They are both healthy and don't smell.

That's interesting about bathing more/less resistance to germs etc.

Baths don't seem to relax my children and water ends up everywhere so I wouldn't want to have to do it daily as it always ends in tears from someone!