fungal nappy rash- questions for those who have been there done that

[UniS]

got HV to tale look at boys recuring nappy rash, she thinks it may be fungal as not obviosly from rubbing and recuring, also from "spotty" appearnece. So I now have anti fungal cream for the boy.
We use cloth nappies- should I be giving them all a hot wash while we're treating this, how about wash cloths , towels etc. should I be being more carefull about towels and who uses which one. HV surgested a boil wash of the nappies! Npt sure thats going to do bumbles elastic any good. towels and flannels I normally do on a 40 in with clothes for whole family.
don;t paticualry want to spend two weeks with boy in dissys. they don;t hold enough overnight.

The Real Nappy Association recommends washing at 60 degrees, to steralise them thoroughly. You dont need to boil them.

Here is the link for more information on washing nappies:

www.thenappylady.co.uk/public/articledetails.aspx?id=45

btw, when my ds had this it didn't really go away with anti-fungal cream, but Neem oil (I ordered it from the chemist) worked a treat.

DD had this a while ago, I didn't change the way I washed her nappies but I do soak in nappy soak before I wash them them anyway. It didn't go away with just thrush-type cream, we were given Trimovate by the doctor - it treats fungal and bacterial nasties.

I would do the nappies, flannels and wipes at 60 if the nappies can be washed at 60 (there are a few that can't - not sure about bumbles as haven't used them), and would use an in wash sanitiser too if you usually don't (or soak with sanitiser if you prefer). I put flannels in with nappies anyway and then top up machine with towels if there is room. If DD has a bit of nappy rash I tend to stick to paper liners until it has cleared up - I usually use a combination of fleece or paper. Do this partly to protect nappies from any creams.

Hope your little boy gets rid of his rash soon. Mine have been prone to this when teething etc, and it can quickly go from mild rash to a v sore one.

If you can, it will also help to hang the nappies on the line outside in direct sunlight - the light helps to kill any fungus. Good luck on finding any actual direct sunlight though..

Lavender has been proven to be very effective in destroying fungal cells so soaking in Lavender would help too. I wouldn't recommend prolonged use of lavender if you have a Boy though but for a short while it should be fine.

BigBadMouse - what is it in lavender that os not good for boys? Have heard this before but wasn't sure. I usually put a few drops of this or tea tree in the rinse drawer of machine for all washes, not just nappies, instead of softener. Should I stop?

Sorry to hijack thread!

Lavender and Tea Tree oil are a source of phytoestrogens (along with many other plant derived substances). There has been a lot of talk about the use of the oils for males. In short, there has been research to prove that they can have an effect on males but how much of an effect is still open to a lot of debate (last time I checked).

There are a lot of articles out there with widely differing info, some say don't use on pre-pubescent males at all, others say it is fine unless you are subjecting them to huge amounts of the stuff.

I'll have a look and see if I can find the proper research abstract for you to have a look at - problem is there are about 5000 scare-mongering articles to get through before I can find the factual one.

In answer to your Q - I don't know, and I'm not sure anyone does yet. btw white vinegar is a good softener too (it doesn't make your clothes smell of chips - honest)

'New Scientist' article related to this piece of research

enjoy!

my son had a bad nappy rash which was exacerbated by excema. Was told to ditch the cloth nappies and use disposable and doc gave me different creams for 7 weeks to try and eventually found ones to suit and clear it all up.

White vinegar increases the acidity which fungal spores don't like.

We had direct sunlight for a few hours today

use vinigar and line dry already but will up the temp to 60 for time being. only day 2 of cream so not expecting any improvemnet yet. Hes looking better if I can keep him bare bummed so suspect we may be doing that more while at home. I don't think hes far off potty training so no plans to ditch teh cloth nappies in a hurry. I really dont; like the chemical smell of throw away nappies. sunlight is one thing we do have down here in devon. while teh rest of you were sitting in snow drifts on monday I had a line full of nappies gently blowing and bleaching in teh sun.

UniS - I'm not convinced it is much to do with the cloth nappies anyway. A friend of mine moved over to fleece lined cloth to clear up her DCs nappy rash - she found the breathablilty helped.

btw - that was Cornish sunshine you had there on Monday! A bit must have slipped across the border while the guards were changing shifts .

Cornish sunshine?? might have been I didn't look to see where the crimp was, everyone knows we invented sunshine in devon..... just like pasties.

will be down your way on holiday later in the year so best not say toooo much or they might not let me in.

Boys backside looking a lot better after a weekend of not much nappy and lots of bare bum or pants, he only weed in pants twice in 2 days. Thinking I might go for it with potty training next week ( school hols so less need to go out and about).