Bathing Routine for 3 Month Old?

My son is 2 years old and I still dont give him a bath everyday because he gets real dry skin if I do. I give him one every other day. So unless they are jumping in mud I wouldnt do that.

Bathing everyday can cause dry skin, but if you use a lotion after the bath every time then that will help it, BUT what can make a 3 month old get that dirty? I mean it's not like he's going outside to play in the mud or eating spaghetti. Every other day is just fine, but do the lotion everyday it helps relax baby before sleep & keeps the skin moist. As the baby gets older & dirtier then add more baths as needed.

Bathing every day can dry out their skin. I bathed my little girl every other day unless we did something outside. My doctor even suggested this.

LOL. you are right, they dont really get dirty yet, unless they spit up or have a big poop of course then an extra bath is needed. they are too young and need less baths also bc of sensitive skin....how to get him to know you are right, ask the dr. and he will agree, or have his mom tell him (if he will listen to her)....be sure that she is on your side first of course as that is usually a task in it self. LOL

My son is almost 2 and we still don't bathe him that often unless he's been playing outside and has gotten especially messy. we really only bathe him 2-3 times per week during the winter. Bathing too often can lead to dry skin.

Honestly, I think you are bathing him too much;-) Babies don't get that dirty. Sure, if they have an explosive diaper they get dirty.

This is from the Mayo Clinic website

How often does my newborn need a bath?

There's no need to give your newborn a bath every day. In fact, bathing your baby more than several times a week may dry out his or her skin. If you're quick with clean diapers and fresh burp cloths, you're already cleaning the parts that really need attention — the face, neck and diaper area.

Every other day is just fine. Babies don't "need" baths everyday although many folks (including myself) choose to do it. But it wasn't a hard and fast rule in my house -- if baby had a particularly messy day then a bath was a must. But there were plenty of days I skipped because it just didn't seem necessary. My youngest is now 3 and I still live by that guideline -- usually every day, but on those days (mostly in winter) when we've just been in the house not doing much . . . what's the point?

Its fine.
Many Doctors say its fine.
A baby's skin can get dried out...
I didn't bathe my kids every night when they were babies either.
Our Doctor NEVER criticized that.

I bathe my 3 month old every day just for routine and because she loves bath time. The ped said to do it every day to avoid staff infection in her little creases. I use dove bar soap so that her skin does not dry out. She knows that after bath time is time to go nighty night!

I bathe my one year old son everyday (when we are home for his bedtime) and have since he was older enough to get baths but that is only because he loves his bath time so much and we do it in the evening when it is generally his crabbiest time of the day so it helps break it up a bit and makes him really happy. All that to say, I don't think it is necessary to bathe them every day just when they need it unless you do it for other reasons like I do. Sorry that does not really give you an answer to tell your husband but just to reassure you that it is ok if you don't. If your husband still really feels strongly about it try and compromise with him. Maybe you could do it one night and your husband do it the next that way you are only giving him a bath every other day but your baby is still getting his bath every day like your husband would like. Just a suggestion.

Bathing a baby every day is a big NO. Even every other day can be too much. It's dangerous. Your body has natural oils that help protect the skin, bathing everyday strips these oils.

If your baby is dirty you can just use a wet cloth and a little soap and wipe him off.

To convince hubby, take him to the peditrians office on the next visit and discuss it with the doctor.

Daily baths can be very drying to a baby's sensitive skin. The bath can wash away protective skin oils. A bath every 2 to 3 days is more than enough, if you are cleansing the diaper area well with your wet wipes or a wet cloth. Remember, babies don't play outside or generally get sweaty like older kids.

Mom, you are completely right. You should not give a baby a bath every day because it will strip away the needed oils in their skin. Every other day is perfect. Get yourself the book "What to Expect The First 5 Years" or get your Pediatrician to back you up. Perhaps if he sees it i PRINT he will accept it.

Mom of 3 (20, 19, and 6)

My daughter has bathed every other day since birth, and she and her skin are healthy!

They don't need a bath every day. I did give my son a bath every night though starting at 4 weeks to get him on a routine (bath, bottle, bed) to get him to go to sleep easy every night which worked so I will be doing this again with my next baby.

Babies this age only need a bath about twice a week unless he gets sweaty then I would do 3 times a week. His skin will get dry if you bathe him everyday.

I wouldn't bathe a young baby more than every couple of days, maybe even once a week - it is too tough on their sensitive skin. And how dirty do they really get? You wipe their bottoms all day, and constantly clean away spitup and sticky fingers. I know several kindergartners, at least, who still have "bath day" every other day (calm girls, not active boys, mind you!)

I only bathe my 2 month old every couple of days. They really don't need it more than that unless they are somehow getting dirty. I don't know too many people who let infants play in the mud, but hey anything is possible.
That said you're fine to do it everyday, just be careful of dry skin. Use a good moisturizer and you should be alright.

I used to bathe my now two year old every other 3 days. She would get very dry irritated skin if I did it more. I would just wipe her down with a wet cloth in between in the stinky areas like under the neck (ewwww). Now that she is a toddler she requires a bath every day.

We bathed our baby every other day. But I don't think there is anything wrong with bathing them every day. If you want to establish some baby-cred with your decisions, you can cite some well-known resources like What to Expect, Babywise and some others in the bookstore.

Do whatever you guys feel comfortable with. I have bathed my child almost every day of her life. For us we did it every night to establish a good bedtime routine. It was the same routine every night. I thought she got confused when I didn't do it every night and wouldn't settle well for bed. If you do it every night just make sure you apply a good lotion so he/she's skin does not dry out.

Baby's skin could be fragile and dry. If he doesn't sweat too much, I think a bath every other day is fine. Just make sure that his bottom is clean!

Updated

Baby's skin could be fragile and dry. If he doesn't sweat too much, I think a bath every other day is fine. Just make sure that his bottom is clean!

Every other day is fine.A baby does not need one everyday and in fact it will dry out their skin.However some parents tend to only bathe babies 1-2 times a week claiming they don't get dirty.Well they don't go play in the backyard but they do sweat,and soil their diapers!If I am unsure of something or my Husband "knows best," I just ask the ped. the next time I am in =)

I am surprised by the responses, but to me every day is what we do for both our girls... from the get go.
Mostly because of keeping up a routine!
Our youngest is 6 months and her baths are nothing more than a few minutes long. She goes in the water, scrub the main parts and do her hair, rinse and done. She knows this means bed time is right around the corner. When we dry her off she is already sucking her thumb and rubbing her eyes. It is just her sign to wind down! This has gone on for months and months now.
Both our girls have had issues with eczema and our doc suggested the warm baths nightly to get the skin moist and warm and then tons of good lotion right after to seal it in. It has done wonders for their skin!
Anyhow I don't think it is bad every other night, but out girls love every night for sure.

We bathe my son every day and have since he was born. It's part of our bedtime routine. Bath time with Daddy followed by a nice relaxing baby lotion massage followed by bedtime! Works great for us. We've never had a problem with his skin getting dry. I don't think babies need to be bathed everyday. But I know how good a nice bath or shower feels to me, so I think it feels the same way for him.

In my opinion, a 3 month old baby probably never really needs a full immersion bath. You are wiping his tush every 3 hours, and a wet washcloth will do the trick on the rest. Of course there are strategic spots like behind the ears and in the fat folds that count a lot, but babies don't perspire like adults and a 3 month old is not crawling anywhere yet. Baths are more for relaxation and entertainment than anything else, and soap is the enemy of natural defenses and emoillients in the skin. Perfumes and other chemicals can cause rashes too. A bath every other day is more than enough!

google infant bathing and print 5 article by experts that say you only need to do a full bath every couple days or when they're dirty enough to need it.

A bath every day can dry and irritate a baby's skin.

No way! Not even every other day is needed! My ped agreed, once a week is plenty. Sounds like it wouldn't be enough but I'd rinse his diaper area after bad bm's to avoid diaper rash and he has sensitive skin like most babies. So, the less he was exposed to water/ soap the less likely he gets excema. He is one now and I still only give him one maybe 3x a week unless he gets extra dirty at daycare. It's not being lazy, I just don't want to dry out his precious skin. It has never affected our bedtime routine, there are numerous other cues we use, like reading a book and brushing teeth. You can choose what you like to take place of the bath, maybe a song. Whenever my hubby and I disagreed, we'd usually ask the ped what he recommended just to avoid argument.

every other day is fine. i bathed my daughter everyday and that was how i did it. some bathe their babies one or two days a week. i think every other day is perfectly fine.

Your husband would hate me, I gave my kids a bath once or twice a week until they were crawling and getting dirty. Now if they spit up bad or had a bad diaper, then more often, or if they started stinking. But I think even for older kids, every other day is fine, unless they are outside getting dirty.

At this age unless he has a really messy diaper he doesn't "need" a bath every day, or even every other day for that matter. Modern day Americans bathe more than most of the rest of he world, and a lot more than Americans did 50 years ago. Those folks seem to have turned out fine :) My daughter has very sensitive skin, so this would not have been an option for her. Now that she is almost 2 & very active she needs baths much more frequently-- often every day. If your hubby wants your little man to have a bath every day and your baby's skin isn't dry or sensitive, let HIM do it on the days you don't. Otherwise, pull out a few books & let him read up on baby hygiene so he can see that you are doing a great job! Good luck new mommy!

When my teenager was a baby the doctor actually got on to me for giving her a bath every night. He said I was drying her skin out and it would lead to eczema and other skin problems. He told me that once a week is plenty until they are toddlers.

Every other day is good unless your baby has a bunch of BMs then a bath everday to soak her bottom is always nice. just be sure to use a good moisterizer like aveno. to keep her skin from drying out.

I still bath my kids every other day and they are 2 & 5 yrs old. You don't want to over-dry their skin since it is sensitive at this age. Every other day is fine. :)

I have a 3 month old boy and the only reason I bathe him every night is for routine. He knows when we start to take off his clothes that it's bath time and he loves it. I just find at this age doing the same thing every time helps him know what's coming next, the all important bed time! Is it necessary...not at all. If he's doing well with the routine of every other night, it's no problem at all. Whatever works for you guys is what's right.

You're both right, neither one of you is wrong. I usually bathed my boys daily, but it was primarily to get them in a bedtime routine- not because they were really that dirty. Unless the baby gets particularly dirty (playing on a dirty floor), simply washing off the hands and the face with a washcloth is more than sufficient (because everything goes in the mouth, especially the hands at this age). Until your baby is 6-9 months old and is crawling around more and getting into more stuff, daily bathing is not really necessary. I just did it because I liked setting up the routine at bedtime. Also, both my boys had TONS of hair, and it got really greasy if I didn't wash it frequently, so I liked to keep clean hair for them. You're doing just fine mom!

hi, my daughter is 11 months old, and until the weather gets to be 100 degrees, we still give her a bath every other day. some people like to give one everyday for routine, but i think you can have other routines, like reading him a book, etc.

HI T.,

I actually had a dermatologist tell me one time that no one needs to wash anything everyday, except the stinky places, unless they have "gotten" dirty. The chemicals in the city water, chlorine and fluoride specifically, are both caustic and can cause irritation. If you're on well water or you filter your water then it's okay. Tell Hubby to relax and I ditto Amalthea with the "expert" opinions!

Congratulations on your little one!

M.

I have never bathed my son daily, and he is over 2 now. Our doctor said if they aren't dirty then only bathe them every few days because it can dry out their skin. My son also didnt do well with a bath before bedtime as part of a routine, because baths have always made him perk up. If you need it for a soothing bedtime routine, then I guess that is fine, especially if you just use water and skip the soap everyday, but I just developed a different routine. I did baths pretty much only as needed for poop fiascos at that age. Now that it is getting warm and I have a grubby 2 yr old, I will probably have to increase his baths, but I will still try not to do it daily. I agree that printing out articles might help convince him. And I would check on the American Academy of Pediatrics website first. I am pretty sure that in a book I have done by them, it said bathe babies every few days only. Can't argue with the top experts. :)

I have a 3 month old and he gets a bath about once a week(sometimes twice). Everyday, or even every other day is too harsh on babies skin. They don't do anything to get dirty, besides poop and pee, and you can clean their butts every day, with a wipe, or soap and washcloth. I just don't see the need for baths that often when they are babies, it dries their skin out. So, I think you both are wrong. :) :)