Help! Nappy rash

[Browniee]

My daughter is 5 weeks old and since about 2 weeks she’s had on and off nappy rash. Can anyone offer any tips to help it?

We use reusable nappies (Little lambs cotton two piece mainly but a few Alva / Little Blooms in the day time) and reusable Cheeky wipes. I change her before every feed which at the moment is 2-3 hours but if I hear or feel a poo happening the nappy is straight off.

So far I’ve tried Metanium and Sudocrem and letting my breast milk dry on the patches of rash, also nappy off time on a towel occasionally.

Metanium is good for really bad rashes. I think it's supposed to be a very thin layer though - check the directions. Bepanthen is good when it's not quite so bad. I used very soft reusable wipes / cotton wool dipped in cooled chamomile tea when the rash was at it's worst with as much nappy free time as possible. No cream until the nappy goes on.

General hygiene, boil washing cloths in-between uses, washing and ensuring babies bum is very dry, only using water, no soaps or detergents. Sounds like you've tried all this, I agree bepanthen is the best for nappy rash, sudocreme is far to oily and can damage the skin when washed off. If after all these things tried and failed it's worth considering whether there is some fungal involvement such as thrush that requires treatment to clear up. Is she otherwise happy in herself?x

I second as much time without the nappy as possible I always found it the quickest way to clear up nappy rash. I use sudocrem
Do you use fleece liner in the nappy to act as a moisture barrier?

Sudocrem is very painful, I have personally used it (on myself) it was agony, I can't believe I ever put that on a child.

I found a smear of Bepanthen every time worked wonders for my son. Don't apply to much though, it's just to create a barrier. Make sure the area is clean and definitely dry before putting the cream and nappy on.

@TheDuckySaysMoo thanks for the suggestions. I will make some chamomile up tonight for tomorrow’s nappies and lots more nappy off time tomorrow.

@Newyearnewunicorn And yes we always use a fleecy liner in our 2 parts, or a disposable one in the pocket nappies.

@SIB09 Do the nappies wash as well without any detergent? The little lambs advise using a liquid bio or non bio but I might try without anything if it brings them up as clean as possible could be a reaction to what I’m washing them with.
She’s pretty happy in herself but really doesn’t like nappy changes (don’t know if that’s linked?!).

Which Metanium are you using. It has to be the yellow one and a thin layer. Lots of air time too.

We found the yellow metanium much more effective that the white one. You only need use a little bit. Hope it clears up soon for your dd

We’re using the yellow metanium. I think maybe I need to put it on even thinner then! My sister said it worked like magic for her DS when he was a baby so still holding out hope!

Metanium mixed with canesten or daktarin worked wonders for us - recommended by another mum at nct and we havent looked back!

Get yourself over to cleanclothnappies.com

They are an Aussie based group all about washing cloth. They have a Facebook group too. Their advice is fantastic and evidence based. My LO had a persistent rash which turned out to be fungal. I only managed to get on top of it eventually because of advice on CCN

@Withington sounds like a great tip! was the canesten you used the normal /adult one? Or is there a baby version?

Just the normal one - you dont need the branded canesten - I think its drug name is clormitrozole or something similar? Both it and daktarin/athletes foot type will work as anti fungal. We do it equal parts.

We have also found that both the motherease bamboo liners (available on nappylady) and a Scandinavian brand (cant remember name!) Essentially thin paper nappy liners best for avoiding rash.

Make sure that bum is dry before putting stuff on - we usually keep a stack of dry cheeky wipes to do this. Otherwise its just about perfect conditions for fungal infections and general rashes to take hold!

If you're using the yellow metanium, make sure you let it dry then cover it with a layer of vaseline. The metanium should help the rash but needs the vaseline over the top as a barrier.

At that age the best thing for my DS was Child's Farm Nappy Cream. AFAIK most babies go through the hating being changed phase so possibly not linked to the rash. Good luck!

The weleda nappy cream is great and cloth friendly. Apparently egg white helps too! I found my boy reacted to the fleece in cloth nappies though so we had to use cotton ones and no liners

I put them in a bucket of detergent to soak then at the end of the day wash them through the washer with just water and it's worked for me but have a look at the website suggested sounds like there's good info there. I would get her seen by a professional though, your HV should be able to see her as you don't want to use antifungals if it's just nappy rash.

We have her 6 week GP appointment on Tuesday so hopefully he can help but I will ring my HV, she’s the who suggested breast milk as being great although I’m not sure how much she’ll have come across cloth nappies and nappy rash so the above tips are really useful!

A few drops of lavender essential oil mixed in with any nappy cream (Or even with aqueous cream) worked absolute miracles for my DS.

I found Weleda to be the best. We use flats and every couple of washes I wash on 60. Did the trick
Had nappy rash for the first week and that's been it so far.

Have you been drying babies bum after wiping? Moisture is the enemy with nappy rash so drying her bottom off with cotton wool before applying the barrier cream will help. I would try and change her as frequently as possible too 2-3 hours might be leaving her too long while she’s sore. I found Sudocrem best when my DS had a nappy rash at a similar age and I’ve switched to it permanently. GP advised me to put it on really thickly when he was sore too.
I would also suggest asking the pharmacist or GP to have a look as they may give you a thrush cream to try which should also help.

Could it be your wash routine? I would recommend reading the nappy lady's website for wash advice, my LO was getting awful rashes, nothing was helping except changing to disposables for a few days. But I changed my was routine and haven't had a problem since!

@sweatpea211 yes I’m thinking it could be the washing. I’ve basically gone with the instructions that came with the Little Lamb nappies since we’ve used them (dry pail, wash at 60 with a small amount of liquid detergent) but maybe changing this could make a difference. I’ve just had a look at the Nappy Lady website and can’t find anything on washing though - do you have a link I could follow?

@Luzina I use a few drops of lavender when I make up the cheeky wipes but I’ll try this - thanks!

@ChillyB I’m really careful with drying her off, and I’ve tried making the cheeky wipes up a little bit “dryer” too so there isn’t as much liquid in the first place. I use the corner of a muslin cloth or dry cotton wool to make sure she’s very dry afterwards. I think tomorrow daytime is going to be nappy off as much as possible and then changing her more frequently too like you suggest!! The last nappy I did her bum does actually look less sore but this has happened before where it almost clears up and then is back again the following day ☹️

www.thenappylady.co.uk/news/washing-drying-nappies.html

Maybe there's still detergent left on the nappy? Are there bubbles left during the rinse cycle?

TNL advises using non bio powder as bio can degrade bamboo fabric and liquid can build up in the fibres.

Mines had awful nappy rash recently but Sudocreme cleared it up quite quickly (its always fixed the first few spots in hours) others swear by yellow metanium but you'll need a fleece liner with this as it stains. If it doesn't go away soon then ask the gp about thrush/fungal infection I think.

at that age i'd make her comfy on her changing mat with a towel etc and let her chill with her bum out as much as possible. metanium is excellent but only use it when she's already got a red bum. otherwise the other metanium, the white one, was the best i have found. also i would clean her with water and a flannel not a wipe. and make sure her bum is really bone dry before you put a nappy on.