Usually after your baby shower, you have A LOT of baby products.
All the lotions, the oils, the baby wash...
they all say gentle and fragrance-free.
But why is that?
Why is it so important to take such special care of a baby’s skin?
When babies are first born, oh, they look very special,
sometimes even gooey.
Just...what is that on their skin?
So when the baby is born, there's a layer of vernix—or that kind of greasy, yellowish, or whitish covering over the skin.
It's thought that the vernix is a protective barrier for the baby in the uterus.
And also it's thought to be protective when the baby is born.
I didn't have them wipe it off, I was like, we're gonna rub it in.
Everything that is supposed to do for your skin I want your skin to have.
Once the vernix is gone, that baby's skin is super delicate—that’s because it's all so fresh!
The structure, function, and composition of a baby’s skin is still very much a work-in-progress!
So there are multiple layers to the skin.
The topmost layer is the stratum corneum. And it's actually just made of dead skin cells that shed.
And so your top most layers of skin act like the seal that keeps exterior pathogens and irritants out,
and also keeps everything that's healthy inside including water.
Babies are actually often born lighter and skin tone than they will eventually become.
You can typically see how dark or light your child is going to be when they're first born
by looking at the skin right beneath the cuticle, or the tip of their ears.
And all of my kids are different shades.
So I was able to see this will be my browner baby, or this will be my lighter baby.
It's just a little...a little secret that we all knew growing up.
When a baby's born, it has all the cells that it's supposed to have on the skin,
including the cells that make your skin color, they're called melanocytes and there are billions of them on your skin.
Initially when a baby's born, even though they have the right number of melanocytes they may not be working very well
or making as much melanin, which is the pigment that makes your skin tone, as it will ultimately when it matures.
Baby skin also doesn't have the same levels of healthy protective bacteria as adults have.
The first introduction to flora is when the baby is being delivered.
The mom's flora within the vaginal canal gets deposited onto the baby's skin.
But it takes years actually for this flora to mature and develop to have that really wonderful balance
of normal and healthy microorganisms.
That said, certain organisms like yeast can very quickly find a home on a baby's skin.
All of their adorable neck and skin folds give them plenty of places to thrive.
In general, yeasts and other fungi love dark, moist areas.
And so there often is some sort of component of yeast when you see that redness or scaling in the creases.
Sometimes that'll just settle out and improve on its own or there's a component of more like eczema
or what we call seborrheic dermatitis, which is an inflammatory skin condition that happens in the creases.
And let me tell you the yeaster bunny was hopping all over my babies.
My oldest son definitely got a case of eczema on the creases of his legs,
and all of them had rashes on their butts.
My kids also had a condition called cradle cap—cute name, not such a cute look.
So with cradle cap, you get that kind of yellowish, sometimes greasy scale on the top of the head.
Sometimes it's a little red or itchy.
It often gets better on its own or will improve with just more frequent shampooing.
Sometimes we do use an antifungal shampoo if it's really extensive.
Birthmarks are also super common in newborns, and they come in all shapes and colors.
One of which my baby's had which is….oh doc, take it away.
Dermal melanocytosis—those are the grayish-blue spots that are most common on the lower back.
They're present at birth.
They also fade over time, and they're not associated with anything dangerous either.
They do tend to happen more often in those with darker skin tones, including those who identify as Black, Hispanic, and Asian.
Also, we can't forget about the sun, especially since there's a big difference in sunscreens.
If you're less than six months, I typically recommend avoiding chemical sunscreen.
There's a difference between chemical and physical sunscreens in there are basically only two ingredients
that make up physical sunscreens and that’s zinc oxide and titanium dioxide.
And those are inert, meaning they don't get absorbed.
They sit kind of on your skin and protect your skin from ultraviolet radiation.
And that would be safe for a baby.
But in general, for all patients actually I recommend physical blockers because they work right away.
There are lots of other ways to make sure your baby's skin is cared for.
And with all those products it can honestly be hard to keep up sometimes.
I like to keep to gentle and fragrance-free soaps, lotions, and washing liquids.
There’s actually a research study looking at how often you should bathe the baby.
And that was more in relation to how dry your skin might get with bathing.
And this study found that there was no difference in the moisture retention of your skin based on how often you bathe.
What was more important was that you moisturize right away.
My babies typically got a bath every day because their poop was foul.
I know if I were sitting in poop like they were I would want someone to wash me,
so I felt as though I was doing them a favor by washing their little butts,
at least hosing them off—something!
So I generally recommend for patients to bathe no more than once a day.
And when bathing, no more than 10 minutes at a time.
And when you use a soap, not one that bubbles or suds–
those soaps tend to strip your skin of its natural oils.
Identifying skin conditions isn't always an easy thing to do.
And if you do notice something that looks off, reach out to your doctor or dermatologist.
Thank you for watching Seeker Baby!
I'm Angel Laketa Moore and I hope you're learning as much about babies as I am!
Is there a baby topic you'd like us to cover? Leave us a comment and keep coming back to Seeker for more on babies.
See you next time!