Severe nappy rash on 2 week old newborn, advised to air him without nappy as much as possible but he’s a boy and wriggled alot and weeing on himself. Is there any waterproof toilet training sheets I can place under him or any advice

[BoyMumToBe34]

Any advice on how to leave him nappy free that doesn’t create a lot of mess?

I’d echo the poster who said that I’d be looking out for allergies too in a baby this young. He must be feeding every few hours so you’re not really distinguishing between day & night when it comes to nappy changes so there can’t be an opportunity for him to spend a significant amount of time in a wet or dirty nappy. And he’ll spend so much time feeding or sleeping that there are only so many opportunities for nappy free time.

Just stick a flannel over his penis. And lie him on a towel.

What has caused it? It’s very uncommon for babies to get severe nappy rash for no reason. Sometimes being left in a dirty nappy a while (they all do the odd secret poo) can cause some irritation, but it usually resolves fairly quickly with nappy rash cream. If it’s persistent, then you need to start thinking about an allergy, either to the nappies or wipes (I’d swap straight to cotton Woolf or cloth wipes and water) or milk.

Another thing to consider if it’s not getting better is a fungal rash. If regular nappy rash cream isn’t helping, you can try canesten.

Put him on a folded bath towel.
The most cost-efficient way to get a waterproof cover for a large surface at this point is likely to be buying a machine-washable oilcloth tablecloth, which you'll be able to reuse shortly by spreading it under the highchair during weaning and then put underneath crafts for a long time after that!

I used to leave my son sleeping without a nappy, on his front on a changing mat (on the floor) and a terry nappy under him. His nappy rash soon cleared up. But that was 40 years ago and maybe people are advised not to put babies on their front any more? Advice changes so often it's hard to keep up!

They discontinued yellow metanium and the stuff sells for £££ second hand now. Sometimes there posts on here from mums desperately looking for some yellow metanium.

These are great. Feel like nice fabric and not plastic, and given their skin is sensitiive I think you should avoid disposable. They wash and dry well. They will serve you well now and for years through potty training, stomach bugs etc. Mine are 5 years olds and going strong.

And drape a cotton muslin on the front to catch projectile wees!

If you look on the Little Blue Cup Facebook page there are often SEN parents desperately looking for it as it is discontinued but great for stoma bags.

Yellow metanium is no longer available to buy but it worked wonders! I’ve found that sudosalve is a good alternative to it for bad nappy rash.

Large prefold cloth diaper underneath. If needed, use a preemie sized prefold as a blanket for both warmth and for avoiding fountains.

My aunty was a midwife. Her advice was to get a big bowl of warm water and use drenched cotton wool to wash the rash area with every nappy change. Then let baby wriggle around nappy free for a while. I put normal towels on top of the changing mat, then popped a muslin over the top to avoid a fountain situation.

Waitrose used to do an amazing gentle baby bottom butter for about £2.50 that was a loveoy barrier cream (to use once the rash has cleared up to prevent further recurrence). I dont know whether they still do as I last needed it a decade ago!

Poundland have massive waterproof toilet training sheet things.

Don’t use puppy pads!! There is a chemical in them that when it gets in human skin it makes out outbreaks so much worse

Oh no. I’m surprised they discontinued it- that stuff was amazing.

Get some metanium cream - fantastic stuff and works very quickly. Also charge nappies as often it’s the bleach and chemicals in them that causes the rashes. Once it gets wet then the nappy basically burns the babies delicate skin. Washable bamboo nappies are far better for baby and easy to wash and dry

Square ferry nappies underneath when airing him then use a fleece pad with Terry nappy. No chemicals to irritate skin.

My son had terrible nappy rash when he was in NICU as medical issues made him poo constantly. Instead of wipes we cleaned him with cotton wool pads and warm water with a tiny squirt of dermol 500 in it and aired it constantly. The nurses were all divided on whether bepabthen or metanium was best so if metanium is discontinued I’d go for bepanthen.

We use inco sheets at work to do this. But puppy pads are just as good. Cleaning with zero base works really well.

Can you get Caldesene powder in the uk? I always found that really good for nappy rash.
An old wives tale is egg white but I’ve never tried it.

Look up ‘dual allergen exposure hypothesis’ go why putting egg whites on nappy rash is a terrible idea.