My seven week old daughter started breaking out with some pimples all over her ears about a week ago. Over the next few days, the pimples spread to her cheeks. At first I thought she was getting baby acne, but the pimples are really red at times. Now her skin has become very course as well. Her forehead and nose are still completely clear, but there are a few pimples on her neck and scalp. Her eyelids are now a little red and slightly flaky.
I have had small amounts of eczema before, and I can't tell if my daughter has it as well. Nothing on her face is oozing, and only her eyelids seem a little flaky. She does grab at her ears a lot, and I don't think she could have an ear infection as she's never had a cold or any illness. Perhaps her ears itch. It seems like she may try to rub her face as well, but it's hard to tell with a baby so young. Her entire face seems to turn red when she rubs it.
Also, I do have an oversupply of milk that is making her gassy, and I heard that oversupply can cause a rash. I am currently working to resolve the oversupply issue. Is this an oversupply rash?
I took my daughter to the pediatrician today, and the rash is eczema. Right now I am just changing her clothing detergent and putting olive oil on her face. If it doesn't get better or gets worse I will talk to the pediatrician about hydrocortizone. After that, I will try the elimination diet.
About the oversupply, I have already donated 250 ounces to another mother. I may contact the local milk bank as well.
I also suggest using cortisone cream. It helps to clear up inflammation and will help with the pimples as well as eczema if that's what she has.
Do be careful to not get the cortisone cream in the eyes. Do not use it on the eyelids.
It sounds like good ol' fashioned baby acne to me. My middle daughter had it (and cradle cap) pretty bad for about 2 months, starting around week 4. Now, at almost 3 years old, she's got the softest, most perfect complexion.
As for your 'oversupply', why not pump the 'extra' and freeze it?
it would not hurt to consult with your ped about food you eat that could cause this through the milk.
My pedi told me to apply a small amount of cortizone cream to the dry patches a few times per day. This should take care of the dryness, but it won't do anything for the pimples. This is a normal reaction to the circulating hormones in your baby's body. I know hos distressing this is. My little girl also had a terrible case when she was about 4 weeks old, and I panicked! I ran right into the pedi, and she reassured me that everything was fine. I'm sure your little one is, too. It will clear up soon enough. :D As far as the oversupply, I have no ideas on that one. Sorry.
it sounds like you are eating something that may be an allergen for her. cut out one thing at a time and figure it out. it seems like eczema. lotion her morning noon and night and after a bath.
my daughters eczema only flares up on her booty and cheeks.
it could still be eczema because eczama comes in different forms I had it growing up and both of my daughters have it but it looks differently
This sounds like normal newborn behavior to me -- rubbing makes her sensitive skin turn red (I remember my pediatrician joking and telling me with my first, that you could use it as a party trick -- "write" with your finger on her tummy and watch the message appear); and she may just be getting extra "baby acne" or still be processing extra hormones from pregnancy (that may be very similar to ones that teenagers get when going through puberty and getting acne).
Try putting breastmilk on it. That helps eczema and baby acne both. Especially since you seem to have plenty, you could pump off some and give her a milk bath if you wanted! ;-) [Sort of joking, but not really.]
With the oversupply, there are two things you could do: one is, just nurse her on one side only for a set bloc of time (say, 2 hours) -- if she gets hungry and/or wants to nurse and she just nursed 90 minutes ago, put her back on the same breast. [That's what my LLL leader suggested when my first was gassy and had green poops from too much foremilk, and it worked like a charm.] This allows her to get more of the fatty and nutrient-rich hindmilk, which will help reduce the gas, and help keep her satisfied for longer.
The other thing you can do, is pump the extra and donate it. Human milk banks are always in need of milk, and "newborn" milk will be best since most of their milk goes to preemies and small babies, and the composition of the milk changes as the baby ages. If you don't want to go through the screening process, or if you can't donate milk before you've completed the testing (i.e., if the milk you pump today won't be accepted by the milk bank because it was pumped prior to testing -- not sure if that's the case, but it's possibly the case -- I've never donated to a milk bank, so not sure of the details), you can always donate it through "Eats on Feets" and give it directly to another mother who for whatever reason wants breastmilk for her baby and can't produce (enough of) her own. Just go to facebook and type in the search bar for the phrase "Eats on Feets" and your state's name and it should take you right there. Some states have more than one (divided into different geographic regions, so moms can more easily match up), and if you live close enough to a neighboring state, you can look for milk requests on that state's page as well.
Sounds familiar!! I had to eliminate dairy from my diet and later found out that my son was also allergic to eggs and peanuts. Wheat is also a culprit for eczema. It was very hard to do while I was nursing , but it made a big difference. You can google the list of the most common allergens in babies and do your best to eliminate them from your diet. You will probably see a significant improvment in your babies skin and digestive system. Good luck
Baby pimples are very common. Just leave her little face alone or ask your pediatrician if you can put anything on them - I doubt it. Just make sure you are wiping her face with a clean washcloth regularly to keep the dirt/oils at bay.
You are one of the lucky ones with an oversupply of milk. Be happy that you have more than enough milk for your daughter! And I've never heard of oversupply causing a rash. That can be answered by your pediatrician. Please please get a pump and freeze what you are not using. Do not throw it away - it is liquid gold!
I was an oversupplier with my first and had to buy a deep freeze to store all the extra that I was producing. Then the freezer started overflowing (yes - I produced THAT much!!!) so I started donating milk to the 'Mother's Milk Bank'. I was in SoCal so they overnighted a big cooler and I sent it back full of frozen milk. Of course I had to have a series of blood tests, etc. but to be able to help Moms with sick babies that needed real breastmilk made it all worth while. Clearly you want to save yours for your baby first, but if you find you have more than she needs after a couple months, look into a milk bank. Your milk will stay frozen safely (get the little freezer bags specifically for this) for 3 months in your kitchen freezer, and up to 6 months in a deep freezer.
I also want to congratulate you on your oversupply issue.... I'm sure it doesn't seem like a blessing, but there are a lot of us out there who had a hard time making enough to keep our babies satisfied.
As for the rash, I agree that it could be a food allergy. My DD would get eczema whenever I ate wheat/gluten, and she'd get barfy/gassy every time I had dairy. It only took a day or two of me eliminating those things from my diet before I saw a change in her, so it's definitely something you could try for a few days, just to see if it makes a difference. Best wishes!
I would see the pediatrician. It sounds like either baby acne or eczema, but with the ear grabbing that definitely sounds like an ear infection already. Whether you're nursing or bottle feeding, it IS completely possible this early. Most babies have food sensitivities you need to eliminate from your own diet if you're nursing (as I'm sure you know), but some do have food allergies this early - I'm the expert on children with food allergies as we have several and I have them myself. Find a ped that believes in them and can help you navigate if yours doesn't and you end up feeling that might be what's going on.
A fun new allergy we just discovered was a protein allergy to human breastmilk. Before my infant started exhibiting late symptoms (intestinal and stomach bleeding, blood in stool and vomiting blood), I never considered it as a possibility. Once it was diagnosed it seemed obvious - and I found it was a lot more common than one might think and increasingly so. Our dd's symptoms started with severe eczema and then went to ear infections.
So again, get to your Pediatrician for diagnosis or help with an elimination diet as well as to check on that ear! :D Good luck!
Hi, didnu ever figure out what it was and what worked? Mine seems to hace the same thing.
