37 weeks and prepping hospital bag... do I need to wash clothes first?

[emmac3616]

Hi all, so sorry if this has already been covered but I can't see it anywhere recently. Quick question - I am 37 weeks and have just started packing my hospital bag for the baby. I have bought a starter pack of sleepsuits, bibs, hats etc. from M&S but a few people have told me to wash it before I pack it. Is that necessary? It hadn't occurred to me at all but I guess you need to be super careful with newborn skin. What do you think? Also, can I use my Fairy Non-Bio tablets or do I need something specific. I am so clueless!
All advice much appreciated!

I didn't wash any of my 3 newborns' clothes and they didn't suffer any ill effects. People will tell you that you 'have to' do all kinds of nonsense, you'll learn to nod politely and agree, and then completely ignore their 'advice'.

Good luck with the baby, I am v

What's the harm in bunging it in for a quick wash ( non bio)? If you smell the clothes straight out of the ackem , while they feel soft the amount of chemicals added to make them look pretty on the shelf is really obvious. I was in 2 minds too but realised I was just being lazy! Why take any risk?

Yes wash it as new clothes from the shops have chemicals added to make them crisp and new looking. Fairy non bio is perfect.

I would, new doesn't mean clean!

Having worked for several years I retail, I can tell you store rooms aren't that clean!

i washed all of ds clothes and blankets before he was born even know they where new also washed the babys car seat and bouncer chair

Thank you everyone!

I am mid washing everything (baby's clothes, blankets etc.) you have to remember that these things have come via a mass manufacture often abroad and they make them, pack them and ship them. The stuff then sits in a massive warehouse for months before been shipped to retailers. They don't wash them and all the dirt, mites and chemicals are still on the material.

Oh maybe I am way too paranoid

I didnt.

the midwife at our antenatal class said we didn't have to - the babies still have a protective layer on their skin when born.

having said that, i did wash mine, mainly to make them smell nice and also because it gave me a little project on maternity leave :) and they look so cute it's hard not to grin (and nearly have an nice emotional weep) when they are drying :)

I have washed all of baby's things, as janie has said, it has given me something to do during mat leave and looking at the teeny things drying

I've just done all the blankets too.

I love the smell of all the baby things washed in fairy non bio & comfort pure. I've washed my 'giving birth in' nightie in the same.

I didn't for either of mine, then we noticed a heat-rash type thing all over ds2's chest - it turns out he's sensitive to some preservative in some wipes (and other products), and something that seems to be on new clothes (they're fine after a wash - even in bio powder).

I would have thought it was crazy and just making work for yourself until DS2 - the effect on his skin is almost immediate so there's no mistaking what causes it

I didn't either. Such a pile of rubbish. Believe me you'll have plenty of real washing soon enough!

Wilting, from some honest accounts here and articles like this- alignlife.com/articles/toxicity/watch-out-for-toxic-chemicals-in-new clothes

its really hardly a "pile of rubbish". Only laziness would prevent one from washing, hardly that big a deal is it?

I wash everything brand new for the whole family before we wear it.

I'm 34 weeks and all baby stuff is being washed as I buy it so it's ready to go.

If you smell new clothes out of the packet they smell horrible!

Agree with Toby - new clothes stink, especially when they come out of packets. I still wash things like undies, and usually tops too (i.e. things that touch intimate areas as that's the last place you want to itch(!) and tops are too near my nose, so prefer not to smell new clothes!). TBH it just needs a quick wash - baby clothes don't really need ironing, so its only half the hassle

I washed it all, then it smells all nice and lovely too! Washed in fairy non bio

Hmm, I'm afraid I still call it rubbish jemimastar. The washing the clothes thing is one of those pieces of advice I've only ever read on the net. So there are chemicals on the clothes, so what? The washing powder also contains chemicals. As does the water you use and the cupboard or bag you store them in etc etc. My babies didn't eat their clothes and nor do I, iyam modern media is full of these completely needless scares. I call it harassment of already v busy women.

In any population some people are going to have reactions. I don't know anyone personally whose baby had issues arising from toxic chemicals in clothes. I just don't see it as a serious issue meriting all that extra laundry.

Who are align life anyway? Do you believe everything you read? Even when it flies in the face of all prior experience?

I mean absolutely go ahead and wash them. But imo you don't need to.

wilting, 'chemicals' aside, I take it you've never been in the stockroom of any given clothes shop? Nor in a factory manufacturing clothes?

Filthy, for the most part.

I didn't bother with DS's newborn stuff. It went in the hospital bag in the packet.

Good job really, he was too big for newborn stuff and filled 0-3. His hat wouldn't fit on his massive bonce.

The newborn stuff was ALL returned to the shops. Couldn't have done that had I washed it!!

Wilting I have been on factory site visits for everything from textile manufacturers through to clothing manufacturers. Personally I would not wear or sleep in anything without washing it having seen what happens myself. And I definetly wouldn't want my child to be wearing anything without washing it. If you are happy to put your children in unwashed clothes then go for it bt please try not to ridicule those women that want their children in freshly cleaned clothes.

I didn't although I have often wondered if I should have! I buy a lot of second hand clothing and wouldn't dream of not washing those though!

I didn't although I have often wondered if I should have! I buy a lot of second hand clothing and wouldn't dream of not washing those though!

I think I am entitled to express an opinion LittlePeaPod. I could equally say you shouldn't be alarming new mothers about something as harmless as new clothes? They have enough to do and worry about.

People should trust their own eyes and instincts.

I am a new mother to be myself and I am not alarmed. In fact it didnt take much effort to wash my babys things. Now what exactly did I say that would be alarming? Telling people I know not second hand or assuming facts, but first hand what happens in these sites (particularly in China) is sharing knowledge. For you to say that "it's rubbish" when you haven't been to a site is niave. Or maybe you have been to these sites and can share your knowledge with us. That would be really good.

These clothes are clearly clean LPP, whatever the state of the factory. Or the shop for that matter. I am saying I believe the evidence of my eyes to anecdotal alarms on the internet.

The child's cot is far more likely to be dirty if you think about it. Did you scrub that down too?

What about the mattress? The pushchair? The car seat? The bath?

I think it is alarmist to be saying people should worry about these things.