It can be overwhelming when you have a baby, and there may seem a lot that you need to take in. A new baby brings a huge lifestyle change, but it also fills your life with love and laughter.
During your baby’s first week, it is important to spend time bonding with your baby. This can include lots of skin-to-skin contact, along with establishing feeding and good skincare, so they don’t suffer from any discomforts.
Your baby’s umbilical cord
When your baby was born, their umbilical cord would have been clamped and cut by your midwife or whoever was attending your birth. As there are no nerves in the umbilical cord, this doesn’t cause any discomfort to your baby, but you must take care of the stump until it naturally falls off. This usually happens around five to fifteen days after the birth of your baby. If you are worried about your baby’s umbilical cord stump or it seems to be taking a long time to fall off, ask your doctor or midwife for advice.
Until this time, it is important to take good care of the area. To do this, all you need to do is keep the area clean and dry. You might like to do this when you are changing their nappy.
GAIA Natural Baby Cotton Pads are perfect for cleaning your baby during their first week. They are gentle yet strong, so you know that your new baby is being exposed to minimal ingredients.
While you are cleaning their umbilical stump, it is a good time to check for any signs of infection. This could present itself in the form of yellow discharge or redness to the skin. If you notice anything unusual, call your doctor or midwife.
Cleaning your baby’s nappy area
It may be surprising how much your baby seems to need changing in the first week, and the meconium (a substance formed in your baby’s intestines during pregnancy) that is produced is often sticky. You need to regularly change your baby and clean them well to prevent them from getting a nappy rash. Our Bamboo Baby Wipes are well suited to this task. Bamboo is super soft, and they contain aloe vera extracts and chamomile to soothe your baby’s skin, leaving them fresh and clean.
Cleaning their skin folds
Many newborn babies are born with skin folds, and this is all part of their charm. It is important to regularly clean between their skin folds. If you don’t, you may start to experience unpleasant smells coming from their skin folds.
Gently use our organic cotton cleansing pads to give their skin folds a clean and help them to feel fresh. Make sure to dry the area properly.
Natural skincare from GAIA Skin Naturals
At GAIA Skin Naturals, our products have been developed by parents, biochemists and aromatherapists to bring your baby products that are gentle enough to be used on the most delicate skin even from the first day.
You may need a belly band to help you through your pregnancy and postpartum recovery. We recommend Belly Bandit who have a variety of functional, comfortable, and beautiful belly bands for you to choose from. Try one for yourself and discover why thousands of expectant and new mothers couldn’t be without belly bands.
You can explore our range online today and find the best products for your new bundle of joy.