You might be looking at me kind of funny if your baby has ever gotten a rash from wearing cloth diapers. It’s certainly possible, especially if their delicate skin is very sensitive to wetness or certain fibers. But it’s worth exploring other options since there are so many fabric choices now on the cloth diaper market. If baby is reacting to wetness, try stay-dry liners. If you suspect it’s detergent, do a thorough stripping or switch brands and make sure you add extra rinses. If synthetics are the culprit, switch to cotton or hemp – or one of my favorites: bamboo.
I saw this story at Lil Helper diapers the other day and had to share it with you. Not only are they an amazing company with amazing diapers, but their customer service goes above and beyond anything I’ve heard of in the cloth diapering world. Don’t believe me? Read on…..
“I got a call on my cell at 9.30 pm on Thursday from a mom whose 1 month-old was suffering from a nasty diaper rash that wouldn’t go away. She had never used cloth diapers before so I explained to her how it would all work. After which she asked us for a LilHelper.ca Charcoal Bamboo Diaper. We told her it will be hand delivered on the next day. To which she said something only a parent in distress would say, “What do I do for tonight?” So her hubby drove to our warehouse, where Nader met him and gave him the diapers at 10.30 pm so that mommy can start healing the baby’s rash immediately. Next time, you have a favor or special request to ask from us – demand it. We will, almost, do anything to make sure our customers are well taken care of. On a side note, mommy called back and reported that the Charcoal Bamboos are healing the rash better than any ointments she has used.” – Mohammed at Lil Helper Diapers
I love success stories like this! Even better, I love family-owned enterprises that deliver personal and heartfelt service.
What are your thoughts about cloth diapering and rashes? Is it seldom a problem? Or have you found something that is kind to your little one’s bottom? Or did you feel compelled to give up altogether when nothing worked?
Tell me in a comment below!
How do you tell if the rash is from a wetness problem or a detergent, or fabric problem? We had 3 months of no problems, and now 4 months of constantly battling rashes. I put her in disposables for a while when nothing was working to get rid of the rash using cloth. Now i’m using cloth part time and still battling a bit of rash.
It might be difficult to tell at first because contact dermatitis looks about the same regardless of what is irritating the skin (wetness, chemicals, fabric). So using the process of elimination usually gets to the bottom of it. If disposables help, then it might be the “stay dry” effect that’s beneficial (and there are lots of different stay dry cloth options to try). Or it could be that moms tend to use more rash cream with disposables than with cloth for fear of messing up the diapers. If it’s detergent, then thoroughly stripping your diapers and switching to a hypoallergenic brand (like Nellie’s All Natural) would solve the problem. And an easy way to see which fabrics your baby can tolerate is to buy inserts of different types (bamboo, hemp, cotton, stay dry) and try them with your current system. Inserts are usually just a few bucks apiece, so you won’t be out a lot. ~Anne
We got blisters with minky right next to his skin, but happy to say no trouble ever since! I love knowing exactly what I’m butting on baby’s bottom, so when there is a problem, I know there is something I can do about it, as opposed to disposables, where it could be any number of the chemicals irritating him.
I’ve also heard a couple of mothers say they had issues with either minky or velour. Maybe those fabrics are processed differently? Anyway, I’m glad you found something that works! ~Anne
Wow! What a fabulous company!
I have found that my kids rash issues were due to teething (because of well, you know the acidic #2) and detergent residue. The rashes were so bad that I switched to chlorine-free biodegradeable diapers or the gPants with the flushable inserts, but the problem still existed.
I also live in an area with extremely hard water, so the detergent was not washing out as well (also switched to non-scented cloth friendly detergent), but problem was solved by adding a little Calgon water softener to the wash.
The story above is EXACTLY what I love about the cloth diapering community. Amazing customer service, and an absolute willingness to help. My son gets a rash from cloth at nighttime, so we’ve had to use disposables at night. I may, however, try cloth again, maybe with bamboo…
You can use really thin disposable liners from Kushies that basically look like a dryer sheet. I’ve found that this protects the diaper from Desitin pretty well.
What a great idea, thanks for sharing, Joanna! ~Anne
Love this post! I know my little guy does so much better in cloth diapers then disposables. He hardly ever gets a rash! I love the story so sweet. I’ve been there done that….11 o’clock walmart trips because my baby needed it now. : )