Do I bathe my child enough?

[Mel2023]

How often do you bath your toddlers?

My DS is 2.5. We’ve always had a routine where we’ve bathed him twice during the week (usually Tues and Thurs) and once on the weekend (usually a Sunday). This is a full body and hair wash. That being said, in the summer it was a lot more often due to wearing sun cream most days, and if he comes home from nursery particularly mucky or has a messy tea time we’ll bath him regardless.

I’ve recently noticed he’s developed cradle cap again (he had it when he was a baby) and it’s quite bad. Everything I’ve looked into online says it’s not unusual for toddlers his age to have it, especially if they had it as a baby. I mentioned it to a family member and she’s said it’s because we don’t bath him enough and she’s always thought this? Do we not? AIBU to think that a bath 3 times a week plus extra if needed is ok?

Cradle cap is caused by overactive oil glands, maybe try washing the hair with cradle cap shampoo every night until it's gone but the just bath every night and wash the hair every other day.

Before 2 months old (as someone mentioned doctor advice for baby) we also didn’t bathe too often. Since then bath has been a part of the night time routine and is daily.

Every other day so like you this works out as Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Obviously would wash between these days if necessary but they’re 4 and almost 6 now so they don’t tend to get that filthy.

Mine gets a bath or shower everyday, but she’s always filthy and has stuff in her hair (goodness knows what). I really don’t think 3 times a week and when he’s dirty is bad tbh.

Well a lot of them didn’t survive did they @BurntBroccoli, in the 1500s only 1 in 10 got to the age of 40. Not that I think it’s probably got a lot to do with washing but I’d not necessarily use that as an argument…!

Personally I bath the kids every day as they’re pretty active and get mucky BUT I don’t really use products at all as I don’t find I need them and I think it’s bad for skin. Re cradle cap I really don’t think that’s got much to do with washing through. I highly recommend baby oil! A bit on their head about half an hour before bath and I found it would just fall off with a gentle rub in the bath.

When mine were baby's every other day, with top and tail in between, then every day, cos they always needed it.

Good lord - I thought everyone (certainly everyone I know) baths/showers daily - I was brought up abroad, is this a British thing?

@Lucy25 lol

I've always bathed my now 3 year old every evening and on the odd occasion, might miss one day out if she's particularly tired on a Friday evening and isn't too mucky from nursery. But I dislike missing that one day out.

You can all keep tagging one rare comment about dry skin to make yourselves feel better. I bathed mine everyday. No dry skin, he was not being scrubbed with caustic soda and brillo pad?.

It has made me realise why my son was constantly sick. He was at school with people who were literally not washed. You can say you 'WIPE' your children - whatever that means, thats great for your kid. But if i had a bit of shit on my leg or arm, wiping it wouldnt suffice personally 😂 so you can all keep not bathing or 'wiping' every 3/4 days and ill keep being cleaner than that.

My toddlers get bathed 3 times a week and flannel washed about a million times a day. They are clean.

Cradle cap has nothing to do with washing. And 3 times a week is fine despite the large numbers of people with germophobia who think they need more.

What a strange conclusion to make. 'My child was constantly sick, that must be because I am a better parent than everyone around me' 🤣 My DC are very rarely sick.

Actually I think you'll find evidence shows children who live in a highly sanitised environment get ill more often than children whose immune systems have had a chance to encounter normal germs and deal with them. My kids have always been ridiculously healthy. By your standards we're filthy as only ever bathed or showered 3 times a week. Nobody stinks or looks dirty. There's no need for the obsessive and competitive cleanliness exhibited on Mumsnet.

2/3 times a week. Anymore is bad for skin. (As an aside it’s also bad for adult skin but we need to balance more hygiene needs haha)

Most people manage not to get shit all over themselves when they go to the toilet, if you try to master that skill you won’t need to have a bath every five minutes. good luck.

You can say you 'WIPE' your children - whatever that means, thats great for your kid.

Do you not understand what ‘wipe your children’ means? How are you teaching them good, full hygiene practices? Do you just leave them in filth/unwashed hands/soiled until bath time? I think you’re self explaining their health issues…

At that age - every night. Children get very mucky. Plus bath time is a time to wind down and sets up a routine for bedtime.

I put porridge oats in a hanky and hung under the tap when the water was running. Didn’t use bubble bath. Stopped my dds dry skin very quickly.

DD has eczema so always twice a week for her or else her eczema would get worse.

We do every other day. More often if they're dirty or very sweaty, or sometimes we push an extra day if they're not. Hands, faces and bums of the little ones get a good wiping multiple times a day, so it's not like they're filthy.

Nizoral shampoo and a nitty gritty comb will clear the cradle cap!

My DC have always had a bath/shower every day and both had cradle cap. They had really thick hair too. The above method is the only way I could clear it!

Don't be ridiculous!
Being clean does not have to involve a shower or bath everyday. You can still wash hands and face and bits multiple times a day, especially for children.

What do you think you would 'catch' out of interest?

@Zapx

"Well a lot of them didn’t survive did they @BurntBroccoli, in the 1500s only 1 in 10 got to the age of 40. Not that I think it’s probably got a lot to do with washing but I’d not necessarily use that as an argument…!

Personally I bath the kids every day as they’re pretty active and get mucky BUT I don’t really use products at all as I don’t find I need them and I think it’s bad for skin. Re cradle cap I really don’t think that’s got much to do with washing through. I highly recommend baby oil! A bit on their head about half an hour before bath and I found it would just fall off with a gentle rub in the bath."

High mortality would have had more to do with plagues, famines and war conflict in the past (as today).

@BurntBroccoli I agree on the causes, it’s just not a strong argument to ask “Do you think that humans throughout the millennia had baths and showers every single day? Did they survive?” … when a lot of them didn’t.