13 Best Diaper Rash Remedies

First-time parents are bound to get all jammed up regarding diaper rashes. After all, they’ll all encounter it at some point in their tots’ early years, so it’s important to know all about it. Diaper rashes are common and can be caused by any number of reasons. These range from not keeping the bum area dry to not changing the dirty/wet diapers on time. While diaper rashes aren’t serious skin conditions, you need the best diaper rash remedies and treatments, including ointments. Besides OTC medications, it takes a few simple steps at home to make them go away in a few days. While there’s no single thing that can cure diaper rashes, a combination of the following practices goes a long way.

Whether you’re looking for baby diaper creams or baby powders, diaper rash remedies are available in spades. To that end, here are the 11 best diaper rash remedies and treatments, including ointments.

Oatmeal Baths

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Research shows that giving oatmeal baths is one of the best diaper rash remedies there is. Colloidal oatmeal has been shown to reduce the irritation and inflammation that inflammatory skin conditions, atopic dermatitis, and even diaper rashes can cause. What’s more, while new parents can buy oatmeal bath treatments in drug stores, there are many amazing products available online as well, like the Mambino Organics Soothing Oatmeal Bath. This is available in packs of 1, 2, or 3 and is made from 100% natural ingredients. All new parents need to do is follow the directions on the package and pat their baby’s skin dry afterward.

Unscented Soaps

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Using unscented soaps is one of the best diaper rash treatments, as it avoids them altogether! Fragrances and scents in soaps contain certain skin irritants that tend to be responsible for many cases of diaper rashes. Other common culprits include certain bubble baths and some baby soaps, despite manufacturers claiming and promoting them as being child-friendly. Parents and babies will both love Dr. Bronner’s – Pure-Castile Bar Soap, which is made with organic oils. What’s more, this bar soap not only produces a rich lather but doesn’t dry out your skin, either. The best bit? The soap doesn’t have whiteners, dyes, or chelating agents.

Unscented Baby Wipes

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As essential as they are to keep the baby’s diaper area clean, baby wipes can cause diaper rashes and even irritate existing ones. But, if a situation without a baby wipe isn’t possible, then the best thing to do is to go for scent-free natural wipes, such as the Mama Bear Gentle Fragrance-Free Baby Wipes. This 8-pack of 100 hypoallergenic and dermatologically tested wipes is perfect for your baby’s sensitive skin. What’s more, they have 99% water and plant-based ingredients and are simply formulated with triple-filtered chamomile, aloe, vitamin E, and triple-filtered water. That’s why unscented baby wipes make for the best diaper rash remedies.

Diaper Creams and Ointments

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Diaper creams and ointments make for one of the commonest best diaper rash treatments. You’ll find many skin-soothing ointments and barrier creams available easily at pharmacies, grocery stores, and online. For instance, the Weleda Baby Calendula Diaper Cream has been formulated by midwives and has a zinc oxide base and organic calendula extract. Overall, look for creams and ointments that contain zinc oxide. Once you do, apply a thick layer of one of these creams to the baby’s affected skin, allowing the area to dry after that. Does your baby get rashes often? Apply these ointments, pastes, and creams during every diaper change, with zinc oxide and petroleum jelly soothing the diaper rashes.

Well-fitting Diapers

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Well-fitting diapers make for more than half of the best diaper rash remedies. There are a ton of problems that could occur with ill-fitting diapers. Firstly, diapers that are too tight could cause as well as irritate a diaper rash. So, parents and caregivers need to ensure that all the best newborn babies’ diapers fit correctly, investing in larger sizes so they can grow as your infant grows. What’s more, when your babies already have diaper rashes, you need to be even more vigilant about changing their diapers promptly. Allowing babies to remain in soiled/wet diapers during diaper rashes could worsen them. Finally, if you use cloth diapers, try disposables or vice versa. Sometimes, even changing types and brands of diapers could contribute to soothing a rash.

We recommend the Up & Up Overnight Diapers, which also happen to be one of the best overnight diapers.

Airing The Affected Area

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Sometimes, ditching the diapers and giving the bottom a time-out can be one of the best diaper rash treatments. After every change, ensure your tiny tot’s little butt is as dry as can be, but don’t rub – rather, pat dry gently. But, what’s better is letting your little one’s bottom air dry when it can, especially if they get rashes regularly. Instead, put them on waterproof pads and play with them while their bottom gets some much-needed air time. For instance, the Sunny zzzZZ 6 Pack Baby Waterproof Changing Pad Liners are waterproof, washable, and come in eight amazing colors. What’s more, they’re appropriately thick, ultra-soft, and made from absorbent fabric.

Baby-friendly Laundry Detergents

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Some laundry detergents could be harming your baby’s skin. That’s why baby-friendly laundry detergents, like the Babyganics 3X Baby Laundry Detergent, are one of the best diaper rash remedies. This detergent is free of dyes, plant-based, and dermatologist-tested. Also, if your baby suddenly develops diaper rashes frequently, their skin could be sensitive to specific laundry detergents, especially when it comes to cloth diapers. Hence, eliminating harsh scents and chemicals in terms of laundry detergents could go a long way in helping clear recurring or persistent rashes.

Baby Food

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Sometimes baby foods might also be a reason for diapers, so keeping track of their food is one of the best diaper rash treatments. When babies begin eating solid foods, their still content changes, thus increasing the likelihood of diaper rashes. Also, while introducing new baby foods is great, stuff such as tomatoes and citrus fruits could cause their feces and urine to become especially irritating and acidic. So, changes in your baby’s food could also increase the frequency of stools, thus leading to diaper rashes. Sometimes, breastfed babies could develop diaper rashes if the mother has eaten something different. Additionally, parents and caregivers should also be careful about introducing these foods in small quantities so that they can monitor new diaper rashes.

Feeding babies starchy and easily digestible foods is a great way to counter diaper rashes. While reliable options include crackers, rice, bread, and pasta, we recommend Gerber Baby Cereal 2nd Foods Whole-Wheat Cereal. This bulks up your baby’s stool and wards off diarrhea, one of the commonest causes of diaper rashes. It also happens to be one of the best cereals for babies.

Natural Products

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All-natural remedies make for the best diaper rash remedies. For instance, baking soda (a highly alkaline version of salt) neutralizes the acidity and bacteria in diaper rashes that are caused by poopy diapers. Another solution is aloe vera juice, a cooling, alkalizing, and healing ointment used to help relieve painful rashes. Petroleum jelly can also be used to treat diaper rashes, as can cornstarch, chamomile tea & honey, tea tree oil, and yogurt.

Experts, pediatricians, and other new parents highly recommend Vaseline Healing Jelly Petroleum Jelly for diaper rashes.

Alternative Medicine

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There’s some evidence that a few alternative treatments could reduce diaper rashes and are the best diaper rash treatments. Some of them include shampoo clay (bentonite), calendula, human breast milk, and witch hazel. Witch hazel relieves everything from discomfort, minor pain, and itching to bleeding and swelling caused by diaper rashes. However, before using witch hazel, check with your doctor for more details. Dealmed Witch Hazel has high scores on Amazon and is affordable too.

Over-the-counter Baby Lotions

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Some OTC baby lotions containing zinc oxide make for one of the best diaper rash remedies. Their products are specifically designed for babies’ diaper rashes and provide much-needed nourishment. For instance, the Neutrogena Pure & Free Baby Sunscreen is one of the best as it protects the little one’s skin from harmful UVA and UVB rays. Since it doesn’t use chemicals, the safe and effective use of zinc oxide and titanium is gentle on your baby’s skin. Even the National Eczema Association has completely approved of using this lotion on babies, so it won’t irritate your little one’s skin and instead alleviate any rash troubles they have.

Apple Cider Vinegar

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Apple cider vinegar is one of the best natural diaper rash treatments. Since poopy diapers tend to result in excessively acidic skin, babies sitting too long in wet diapers could cause the skin to get too alkaline. And skin that’s excessively alkaline is dry and thus becomes easily irritated. The Vitacost Organic Apple Cider Vinegar is the fermented juice of fresh-pressed 100% organic apples. The presence of natural apple cider vinegar and no added colors, flavors, or sugar ensures that this will not harm your baby’s skin. However, consult your doctors before you use this application on your baby’s skin and give directions on how to use it.

Coconut Oil

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Coconut oil is one of the best diaper rash remedies, as it has many health benefits. Firstly, it’s antibacterial and antifungal, making it perfect for treating diaper rashes. The Coconut Essentials Store Coconut Baby Oil is perfect to easy to apply to your baby’s bum after each diaper change. What’s more, it makes a minimal mess and is extra-virgin and unrefined, which means it’s very gentle on the baby’s skin. And since it doesn’t have chemicals or additives, it helps protect the baby’s skin.

How To Choose The Best Diaper Rash Remedies?

Symptoms

List your baby’s signs and symptoms and how long they’ve had them. If the symptoms have just begun, then they might be mild and could go away with natural remedies such as yogurt, coconut oil, etc. If it’s been a good while and natural remedies haven’t worked, then you should probably try ointments or lotions. And if the rash is too severe, then it’s probably best to see a doctor.

Additionally, list key information about your baby’s food intake and medical conditions. For instance, has your baby’s diet changed? Or has your baby been given medications for any recent illnesses or diseases recently? Also, note the changes in the mother’s diet, such as increased tomato-based foods.

Finally, list all the products that have come into contact with your baby’s skin, including oils, powders, soaps, detergents, diapers, and wipes. If you suspect one or more of these products might be causing the diaper rash, then let your healthcare provider know.

When to see a doctor?

When it comes to new parents, you can never pinpoint when you need to see the doctor. While some parents might feel the need to rush to the doctor at the slightest symptom, others might want to try a few home remedies before rushing to the doctor. Either way, it’s time to see the doctor when the symptoms worsen and don’t go down, even with home remedies or ointments. He could prescribe stronger medicines or prescription lotions and creams that will immensely help with the inflammation and rashes.

Additionally, list all the questions you want to ask your healthcare provider or doctor. Creating a list of questions in advance can ease the anxiety and help parents make the most of their time with the doctor.

Complications

Finally, note complications that arise regarding the diaper rashes, such as changes in skin color or if there’s any infection. For instance, in babies with black and brown skin, diaper rashes might cause post-inflammatory hyper-pigmentation, i.e., the affected area lightens. In fact, many cases might take months or years to return to the usual skin color.

How do you stop diaper rash overnight?

Clean and dry the affected area, apply diaper rash ointment and use an overnight diaper that’s not too tight. Repeat this to prevent diaper rashes.

What naturally cures diaper rash?

Nothing cures diaper rashes like plain yogurt (with no added cornstarch or sugar), as it’s a great natural skin moisturizer.

What causes sudden severe diaper rash?

Diaper rashes could be caused by many reasons, including leaving on soiled or wet diapers for too long.