Cloth Diapering in the Summer - Diaper Rash

Now that it's gotten a little warmer out and your kids are sitting in wet bathing suits for half the weekend, are you battling diaper rash more often? The warm weather combined with sweat, chlorine, salt water, sand, and less-than-breathable diaper covers can make your little one break out in a rash. Your go-to remedy might not work as well during the summer either.Why? Well, all the stuff I mentioned above provides a moist environment where bacteria can grow. The heat makes it grow faster, and stuff like sand and chlorine is extra irritating. Here are some tips for battling diaper rash in the summer months:

Use Natural Fibers

If your favorite diapers are Bum Genius pockets or Flip Diapers stuffed with a microfiber insert, you might need to find a second-in-command for the summer. Even though microfiber wicks moisture away from baby's skin better than cotton, all of that synthetic material creates a barrier that prevents air from getting to your baby's behind. Covers made of PUL make the problem worse by trapping all the heat and bacteria next to the skin. Switching to cotton prefolds or inserts covered by wool soakers will help air circulate, keeping your baby's butt cooler and keeping the diaper rash at bay. (This is the only thing that worked on my baby's sweaty butt last summer).

Change Up Your Diaper Cream

If you're used to slathering on thick diaper creams (with liners, of course), you might need to lighten up over the summer. Thick creams may provide a barrier to moisture, but they also prevent the skin from breathing, making it feel hotter and giving bacteria a breeding ground. CJ's BUTTer makes diaper rash treatments that are safe for cloth diapers and perfect for the diaper bag.

• CJ's Butter Spritz O'BUTTer - This fine mist spray is light, mess-free, and won't melt in your diaper bag. (It also works great as a leave-in conditioner to smooth out frizzy hair.)
• CJ's Butter Squeeze Tube - This diaper cream is more like a lotion and is a little thicker than the CJ's Butter Spritz. You can use it to treat chapped lips and dry hands as well as using it as diaper cream.

What About Your Diaper Liner?

Do you use flushable diaper liners? Those are convenient for quickly flushing older babies' poop or when you're using a thick diaper cream, but they also stick to baby's skin in the summer, which could make diaper rash worse. Switching to a fleece diaper liner can help your baby's skin breathe while still protecting your diapers from the grosser poops. If you use a fleece diaper liner, make sure to use a breathable cover, like wool, so you don't trap moisture next to your baby's skin.

Put on Baby's Birthday Suit  

When your little one is just running around the backyard or playing in the sprinkler, just take it all off. Exposing baby's skin to the fresh air and giving it a chance to breathe can be the best remedy for diaper rash.

Diaper Cream and Cloth Diapers - How to Treat Diaper Rash

Diaper rash can be frustrating for parents and painful for baby. Many babies get diaper rash from harsh chemicals found in disposable diapers, and the diaper rash often goes away when they switch to cloth. But that’s not always the case. Babies can get diaper rash in cloth.

Believe me, I’ve dealt with horrible diaper rash on Baby T ever since he started eating solids. He has sensitive skin, so I had to play around with detergents when I was washing my own diapers. And I had to make sure I did several rinses or he would get diaper rash. I even went without any detergent for a while.

But the diaper rash wasn’t really caused by the cloth diapers or the detergents. They were caused by Baby T’s acidic poop. That’s right. For a while, he was pretty much only eating fruit. If he pooped and it wasn’t changed immediately, he would get diaper rash. The detergents and the wetness of the cloth would then exacerbate the diaper rash, and I had to load him up with diaper cream.

What kind of diaper cream can you use with cloth diapers?

CJ’s makes BUTTer that can be used to treat diaper rash on cloth-diapered babies. It comes in a stick or cream form and is all-natural. It can also be used to protect skin against windburn, to moisturize your cuticles, and to treat eczema, so it’s a real multi-tasker.

How can I protect my cloth diapers from diaper cream buildup?

If you use a product like CJ’s, you shouldn’t have any trouble with buildup. But if you’re using another product or want extra protection, use a liner in between your baby’s bottom and the cloth diaper. You can cut up an old fleece sweatshirt or buy Bummis Bio-Soft Liners. Then you can slather on the diaper cream!

What if the diaper rash is not going away?

Diaper rash can be caused by a number of things. It’s hard to figure out what causes it, but the treatment is usually dependent on the cause.

Diaper rash that is not caused by yeast can be effectively treated with breastmilk, but breastmilk can make a yeast rash worse.

Can diaper rash be caused by heat?

Yes. The diaper rash could be an aggravated heat rash. If that’s the case, adding diaper cream and a waterproof diaper cover could hold in the heat and make it worse. It’s best to air out a heat rash. When around the house, let baby loose without a diaper or with just a fitted or prefold. When you feel that it’s wet, change it immediately. Using breathable diaper covers, like wool soakers, can help the air circulate and prevent moisture from being trapped near baby’s sweaty skin. (Yes, you can even use wool soakers in the summer. In fact, this was the only way I recently was able to get rid of my son’s heat/diaper rash).

If diaper rash is caused by acidic foods, use Mylanta as a diaper cream.

You heard right. Mixing Mylanta or another acid-reducer with some olive oil and using it as a diaper cream can combat a diaper rash caused by acidic foods.

Some Tips:

If you're using any kind of scented wipe solution or disposable pre-moistened wipes, try switching to a washcloth with water. If you're only been using a washcloth with water during diaper changes, try switching to a gentle wipe solution, like Baby Bits.

When Little M recently had a diaper rash that was caused by heat, I tried to keep the wet diaper from pressing against his skin. Instead of folding the diaper in the front, I folded it in the back so there was less bulk in front (where the rash was). I also avoided using a snappi. I just folded the diaper and laid it in the cover so nothing was pressing against his skin.

Finally, Little M started crawling. And his diaper rash went away. It was Liz’s creative thinking that led me to believe maybe Little M’s diaper/heat rash was exacerbated by his army crawl, when he was dragging his body around on the floor. If that’s what is causing your baby’s diaper rash, maybe you can try to entice baby to crawl by dangling a rattle in front of his face. That may be the only thing that makes the rash disappear.