To not expect to have to do this at baby group?

[Hands124496]

I've been taking my son to a few sensory sessions. He's 8 months old.

Adults are asked to gel their hands with alcohol gel obviously that's fine and understandable. But they keep asking me to do my baby son's as well

To be honest I've just pretended to do it a couple of times but I'm just wondering if I'm unreasonable for feeling uncomfortable doing that and thinking it's an odd request.

The first thing my son does is put anything and everything in his mouth! I've no doubt if I rubbed gel in his hands he'd want to taste them! It also dries out my own hands having to do it everywhere nevermind a babies skin.

AIBU to think it's not reasonable to expect parents to gel their babies hands before a group?

I understand I don't have to go to that group, I'm just curious if others would find it weird.

I would just use a wipe.

There's no way I'd sanitise my baby's hands. When the dust has settles on this pandemic there will be a lot of people looking back at their bonkers actions and wondering what they were thinking. Poor babies!

It’s bizarre as Covid is an airborne virus it’s a bit mad. I absolutely wouldn’t be doing it.

I would not be putting alcohol gel on a baby’s skin

I wouldn't do that either. It sounds mad and likely to trigger excema.

I had the same issue at DS’ playgroup.
I refused too, to use alcohol gel too on a baby that will put their hands in their mouth in no time afterwards. It’s a ridiculous, merely virtual signaling measure.
As an alternative, I washed his hands with water and soap in the nearby toilet.

It doesn't evaporate it dries onto your hands

And how do you propose it ‘dries’ if not through evaporation @JugglingJanuary ?

Most sanitisers state that they shouldn’t be used on children under 2. Whether they shouldn’t be used is not exactly clear. Milton now have one which is a foam that can be used on babies from 3 months old so have been using that. I think a few others exist as well for babies/toddlers. I used to take some warm water and soap out before I could get the Milton because I didn’t like the idea of him putting his hands in his mouth with gel residue as it tastes disgusting. Now we use the Milton foam if we can’t get to a sink to use soap and water.

Use wipes or buy baby friendly gel, that's what I do at playgroup.

Really don't understand the need to make a pointless thread about it when all you need to do is get a wipe and wipe his hands and let them know that is what you have done.
Bizarre.

The baby class I go to use a child friend foam

I've been to lots of baby groups and never been asked to put it on my baby. She was born in May 2020, so everyone was very cautious when we first went.
She actually had a reaction on her face to what I assume was the gel on my hands, so I certainly wouldn't be putting it on her hands.

I would keep pretending if I were you. I heard about a baby/small child who got alcohol poisoning because the mum was continually sanitising the hands.. So when the babys hands go in the mouth they were sanitised again and so on.

Sounds a bit far fetched but I can see how it could happen if you don't appreciate the alcohol content.

Even before covid I would use a bit of sanitiser on my kids when they were babies, especially after being on the tube after they had touched the seats/railings etc. But it does seem a bit overkill asking parents to do this at a baby group! I would just continue pretending to do it OP.

You can get this in a smaller spray bottle which is great
Safe for babies/high chairs/licking

"but it isn't unreasonable to ask for them to be cleaned."

The reason we sanitise our hands is because we are using them to open doors, hold rails etc, babies are doing anything to cross contaminate. There isn't a clinical reason to do this. Unless the gel is tested for indigestion of infants under 1, no early years provider should be OKing its use, hand sanitiser lowers blood sugar levels in children.

50ml one
https://www.boots.com/vital-baby-hygiene-aquaint-sanitising-water--50ml-10287480

You can use it on anything from piercings that flare up to toys. I don't have DC and use it all the time on sore bits/spots etc

@Toinfinityandbeyond3

Really don't understand the need to make a pointless thread about it when all you need to do is get a wipe and wipe his hands and let them know that is what you have done. Bizarre.

Are you confused? You don't need to reply to every single thread. If you think a thread is pointless then feel free not to reply Bizarre.

Tat should have been babies aren't doing anything with their hands to cross contaminate. Pediatricians were expressing concerns about the effect on babies immune systems at the start of the pandemic and have continued to do so because of the sanitising.

No chance I’d put hand sanitizer on my baby’s hands. Almost every single one I’ve used would leave a taste on their hands. I’d take wipes for their hands, as a compromise but I wouldn’t use hand sanitizer on a baby ffs!

Perhaps, they are using the opportunity to begin to learn a new skill/ texture/ action?

Get some Milton wipes and wipe their hands.

I vividly remember watching my nine month old nephew licking the wheels of my DS pram and wondering why the hell anyone bothered sterilising beyond six months.

It depends what the purpose is. Given the state of play of Omicron it seems likely that one of the babies in a large group will have Covid and if they're sharing toys while sticking their hands in their mouths then it's an obvious infection vector. However they're going to be breathing all over each other anyway, and unless you're going to keep their hands out of their mouths throughout the session I think that alcohol gel at the beginning will do no earthly good.

Agreed. Also had the same ridiculous rule at baby sensory and didn’t follow it for the same reason.

I think it's odd, the stuff tastes vile and they put their hands straight in their mouth so it's pointless.

I'm the same as you, if anywhere says everyone has to do it, I do my own but not my sons.