Your baby's skin is very delicate and we all want to do the best for our newborn. We spoke to Lindsey Miller from Mahi Naturals, about her top tips for keeping your little one's skin as clear as day.
Lindsey has had over 6 years of hands-on practitioner experience as well as 6 years working in the natural products industry. Below she talks about how to look after your children’s skin during the winter months especially if they suffer from Eczema, Psoriasis, Dermatitis or dry itchy skin conditions.
Protect exposed skin areas: It’s easy to forget, after you’ve wrapped your little ones up in eight layers, that the delicate skin on their face is still exposed. Make sure it’s protected against wind chill by using the necessary hats, scarfs and gloves. Using Hopes Relief Dry Skin Intensive rescue on any red areas will help to repair sore, damaged skin. Try to make sure you dress them in natural materials such as cotton close to your skin, to minimise irritation. Cotton allows the skin to breathe, whereas synthetic fabrics and wool can irritate.
Be careful what products you use in the bath: Avoid bubble baths, perfumes and harsh surfactants. Typical culprits include sodium laureth sulfate (SLS), or sodium lauryl ether sulfate (SLES). These are found in many body washes and shampoos as a cheap foaming agent and can strip the skin of natural oils.
Overwashing can dry the skin: Some experts suggest it is better to bath children every other day or even only once or twice a week instead of every day if the skin is very dry. You can still ‘top and tail’ the rest of the time, (ie. clean bottoms, faces and hands as needed). Use plain warm water and a small amount of soap-free cleansing bar if needed. (Don’t be tempted to have baths too hot to warm up!). Hopes Relief Soap-Free cleansing bar is gentle enough to use on the face and bodies of babies, infants, children and is balanced to pH 5.5 the same as skin to help maintain moisture and the skins natural oils.
Bin your toxic baby wipes: Look at the packaging of your wipes and you will find that many contain harmful ingredients ie; alcohol and perfume! If you have to use them when out and about pick those that are non-chlorine bleached, unscented and alcohol-free offering a more natural alternative or simply use a cotton or muslin wash cloth and soap-free cleansing bar.
Try to limit children from scratching. Easier said than done, especially at night when this can sometimes get worse. Scratching damages the skin further resulting in exacerbation and further skin trauma. The hands are one of the worst vectors of bacteria so touching and scratching can introduce bacteria into vulnerable skin! Using a natural cotton babygrow and hand mittens or a cotton ‘onesie’ for older children, as well as keeping nails clean and short may be useful.
Identify any food triggers In about 10% of cases, food is the main trigger of eczema in children, yet food may be one of the causes or exacerbating factors in about 30% of children with eczema. Common food triggers to look out for include: Dairy - cow’s milk, cheese, eggs, soya, wheat, fish, nuts. Solanceae or deadly nightshade family - potatoes, aubergines, cucumbers, tomatoes and peppers. I have often found orange juice can also make skin conditions worse! It is important for children to have a healthy balanced diet, if a food is suspected contact your Doctor or seek professional advice before beginning an elimination diet.
Lindsey recommends Hope's Relief range which includes : Intensive Dry Skin Rescue Cream, Shampoo, Conditioner, Soap-Free Cleansing Bar, Moisturising Lotion, Goats Milk Body Wash and Goats Milk Soap.
Does your little one suffer with their skin during the winter months? Let us know below if you have any questions.....
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