flaky cheeks
November 6, 2014Sponsored Post
When we first got back from our holiday in London, rubbing Daniel’s cheeks and forcing good night kisses on him wasn’t as fulfilling anymore. I used to go MMMMMM GERAM that I feel like biting him with love. But at that time I went HMMMMM your skin is soooo dry, baby!!
London weather is obviously cold and dehydrating so I know to stuff him with more milk and more water to keep him hydrated. But somehow that wasn’t enough as his cheeks were mildly flaking.
Then I read Kimberly’s blog about the Doktor Budak “Are You Caring For His Skin The Right Way?” event that she attended last September, and panicked at this statement.
“Did you know that baby skin is 30% thinner than adult skin, and loses water more quickly during the first 12 months of his life? No, I didn’t!”
Daniel’s 15 months but still, I would imagine his skin is still super thin and can lose water easily.
MY POOR CHILD, MOMMY IS SORRYYYYY!
*hugs so tight*
I felt so bad that I did not restock Daniel’s lotion when I ran out of it, so immediately I went out to get Johnson’s baby lotion for him and slathered like mad. This is why:
1) Baby’s skin is super sensitive to dryness, irritation and infection
2) Water alone is not sufficient to keep babies from all the sensitive reactions mentioned above
3) Because babies can’t take care of their skin themselves so we as parents should take extra care!
4) Right baby-specific skincare is critical in the first months of a baby’s life – harsh shop that we adults use are a no-no for them because it can damage their skin barrier.
We seriously need to tell other moms this because if they’re anything like me, they wouldn’t know this either! It’s really good that Johnson’s organized this event for the public so we can all learn from the workshop. Babies are different, they need different products than us; products that are safer, milder and gentle. Now that I am having my second baby, I am even more determined to choose only the best for my children’s skin. And so far, for me Johnson’s, with their over 100 years experience in skincare, is the trusted brand I go to.
The key to the right baby skincare is 3:
1) Safe – scientifically tested for levels of safety from the content right to the ink used for packaging!
2) Mild – products don’t cause redness, stinging and irritation on baby.
3) Effective – with proven benefits and efficacy to care for baby’s skin needs.
In addition to that, I’ve also learned some other tips from Kimberly’s blogpost:
1) Choose the right skincare which is gentle for babies. After bath, seal the moisture in baby’s skin with lotion or massage oil.
2) Must always check folds of the skin such as neck, inner part of elbows and behind knees where things are hidden. Must always try to keep these areas as dry as possible.
3) Wash new clothes and sheets before use.
4) Massage your baby before his bedtime. It reduces colic, encourages better growth and improves sleep. All good things for their skin!
It’s so so important to care for your baby’s skin, especially in weather changes and travel and the long plane rides. Children don’t know how to do it themselves so they rely on us, the parents, to care for them. If we ourselves don’t care, no one will! And my baby’s cheeks will keep on flaking. (I exaggerate but you know what I mean…)
After rubbing Daniel’s cheeks with baby lotion and singing happily to him, I even got a cheeky smile out of him. He probably feels a lot better now and is trying to say “I love you, Mommy.”
I love you too, my child, flaky cheeks and all.
*harsh soap viviyyyy..
Oh no *vivy
Vivy I remember you wrote about putting on Hi-5 during the flight to London to keep Daniel quiet. This is probably a silly question but did you save the shows on your phone or is there wifi on Business class? (coz I only travel economy so no clue lol). I’m traveling soon and I need Hi-5 to calm my kid down too!
Tara, you can save the videos to your phone or ipad. There’s an app where you can actually download videos (from youtube or those sorts) straight to your phone/ipad. An alternative though much harder way is you can use add on tools from your browser (or search for websites giving this free service) to download straight from youtube or the likes and just transfer it to your phone/ipad.
It is good that you write about this issue Vivy. I encountered a mother who brought her almost 2 year old boy to my clinic. It was his skin problem. It was dry, wrinkling, flaky and looks a little bit painful. He has a sensitive skin thus a simple moisturiser would do. But the thing was, the mother has never applied lotion to him. She thought it was unnecessary. At first I was shocked, then I understand some first time mother can be a tad bit uninformed so I asked her ‘Is this your first child,maam?’ To my second surprise, it was her second. Anyway, it is true that baby has super thin skin that is why only a certain kind of cream, less chemical and less toxic can be applied. The skin provides very little protection against harsh air thus a thick barrier or cream can help to supply more protection.
Tried really hard not to judge her as it was my job to stay professional and I did plus supplied her with a whole lot of information and encouragement to read a little or ask around. The thing was eventhough she didn’t know about how thin a baby’s skin is, she should have common sense to get a cream immediately after seeing how dry, wrinkling the skin was. She shouldn’t have waited for it to become dermatitis to see a doctor. That makes a doctor a little bit sad for a child. Like you said, a child can’t take care of his skin so a parent should. Hopefully, many parents will benefit from your article:)
What you put on your skin gets absorbed into your bloodstream. Have you looked at the ingredients on the bottle? Johnsons and Johnsons may not be as baby friendly as they advertise themselves.
Great advice on skin care though! 🙂
siannya Daniel. tu lah baby skin nipis sgt kan.
kadang2 kita yang adult pon kulit cepat sgt kering.
Thanks for the advice Vivy
No V not J&J!! Just look at the ingredients! Kita yg dah dewasa ni boleh la since all of our organs can process all the sampah sarap… but not babies!
dr mummy u sound very judgemental n its a tad bit unprofessional of u to even daresay that you tried really hard not to judge her. some people are just uniformed and some people don’t exactly practice it so for u to say that is a bit frustrating. to vivy thanks for this piece of info.
I agree J&J doesn’t use the best ingredients for baby, especially one with sensitive skin. Moms, if your baby has dry skin like mine, i strongly advise you to get aquous cream and to bathe baby using cetaphil. Aquous cream is cheap and super effective, trust me!
I was a big fan of J&J.. but ever since i learned that it is a product from Israel. I stop purchasing right away. Though they have produced great products with great information that we cant say no or deny their ‘truth’, i still believe that there is no harm to leave their products and change for a more Muslim-friendly product. Instead of using chemical products as such, why dont we start using organic and sunnah products such as olive oil and habbatussauda. It is much much better than J&J. and for this change that we make, may Allah protect our brothers and sisters and all the Muslims around the world who have been blinded with all these lies.