Toddlers face - red/sore mainly after nursery

[Jellybum2019]

Hi

my little boy suffers from flare ups on his cheeks/mouth area which seem to be mainly after a day at nursery.

We can get his skin pretty much clear over a weekend with constantly adding moisturiser and a barrier cream, but come Tuesday when he’s back at nursery he comes home looking like the attached picture.

I took him doctors who just said it’s probably down to being outside and prescribed some cream (I can’t remember the name) for when it’s bad to use sparingly.

it goes quite dry on the top of his cheeks when it’s bad and looks sore.

just to add, he dribbles a lot at the minute, I could easily change his top 3 or 4 times from being drenched.

does anyone have any suggestions as to what it might be (if different to what the doctor has said)?

thanks

Are they using wipes?

Aww is it sore for him or just redness?? Are you sure its not an allergy. Have you given any instructions to nursery on applying the cream regularly etc. I would start there and insist they stick to it. Give them a few days and if they aren’t on the ball I’d speak to the manager and explain it’s necessary every 2 3 hours etc. Does he have anything he can dry his face on if he is dribbly, a blankie or anything like that? Nursery should step up imo. Could he apply a lipsalve to it himself also that might help? They are good barrier creams and fit in a pocket. But really I think nursery should be able to manage applying cream for him. Xxx

Good point about wipes- could be sensitive to that. Maybe try some from home or insist on just water see if that helps xx

My mum suggested an allergy, perhaps something he is playing with and then touching his mouth with after.

I will leave some cream with them tomorrow to apply. I tried leaving some of the Vaseline type barrier cream with them but they won’t apply it as it hasn’t been prescribed so I’m sticking that on him as we walk out the door in the morning.

He doesn’t say it’s sore, but obviously it doesn’t look nice at all and can’t be nice having it like that for half the week.

at home we are trying to get him to stop wiping his mouth on his sleeve and dab it with a tissue. It doesn’t help that when he gets why he sticks his tongue out a lot which increases the dribble!

will ask them if they are using wipes on his face often. He doesn’t seem to have had a reaction to them at home.

I think part of it is the going inside and outside on cold days, but it really does look so red and angry sometimes I’m convinced there’s another factor.

Does he have a soft toy that he plays with a lot there? Dd1 could not take a woolly mammoth to bed as the material flared up her face. Or it could be something one of his keyworkers uses like a fabric softer if he rubs his face against anyone while having a hug etc.

He’s not really into soft toys he prefers blocks/cars type toys so I don’t think it’s anything he’s snuggling.

good idea about perhaps if he is cuddling his key worker, he is the type to sit on their laps and look for reassurance so that’s a potential.

Just realised a typo, when he gets shy, not when he gets why.

he’s quite reserved at nursery so I can imagine he plays alot with his tongue out causing the dribble and then possibly wipes it around his face on his sleeve.
just looks so sore if it is just simply dribble

Wet wipes they're using I bet

My kid had something similar at the same age from pineapple (both at nursery and at home). Could be a contact dermatitis type allergy to some fruit as they do tend to wipe it all over their faces at that age!

Thanks all - will ask about wipes tomorrow and see how often they are wiping him/what they are using. Never noticed a link between the wipes we use and it before so I will explore that with them

How hot is it at the nursery, ours used to keep it at roughly the temperature of the sun, whilst we lean towards a cooler house, heat could cause sweating which could irritate.

What does he do for lunch there?

We had similar and it turns out it was due to tomato ketchup round his mouth after lunch.

Even though nursery were wiping his face after he'd eaten, it was still enough to cause this rash. Sometimes even when he'd eaten it and not smeared it over his cheeks too.

Thank you that’s helpful.

He is a pretty fussy Eater, has the pretty much the same food at home each week, yet at nursery would be exposed to more via snacks and lunches. I have their menus so could look to see what he’s eating there that he wouldn’t have at home that could potentially be causing it. Thanks

He doesn’t eat ketchup. Meals at nursery are hot lunches like hotpot/spag lol/curry/chilli but all similar to what he would eat at home. But will look at their menus properly to see if anything stands out as a potential

Milk intolerance can cause issues like that but that doesn't explain why it's worse at nursery

Bless him. My son gets really red cheeks in the winter and we use a 'Face the day' stick. It honestly works wonders.

I realise this doesn't solve what may be causing the problem but it may give your little one a bit of relief in the meantime.

amzn.eu/d/gopvffg

I have that and use it on him as much as possible between nursery! Does seem to help the dryness and keeps it from drying out! Thanks

My little girl gets flare ups of asthma after nursery days. She’s very sensitive to different washing powders and they use flannels that have been washed at nursery to wash faces after meals. Since noticing the flare up they’ve started using disposable dry wipes with water and she’s been much better. I expect it might be something similar for your son, especially as it’s mainly around his mouth. I hope it heals up quickly for him, it looks so sore 😞