Is it okay to bathe babies twice a day in summer?

It is very hot in summer but we can use air conditioning, so we don’t take a bath as many times a day as before. The same goes for babies. It is too hot in summer, so babies spend less time outdoors and sweat less, so the number of baths does not change. However, some babies are active and sweat a lot, so their clothes are always wet, so the number of baths will increase. So is it okay to bathe babies twice a day in summer?

Since the beginning of summer, the weather has been hot and rainy, which is prone to induce skin diseases. In order to protect their babies from common summer baby skin diseases such as eczema, candidal dermatitis, and diaper dermatitis, some young parents bathe their babies frequently, but they do not realize that doing so may backfire. Studies have shown that compared with adults, the skin of newborn babies has seven major characteristics and also requires moisturizing and sun protection. Frequent bathing or excessive sun exposure are taboos in baby skin care.

These seven characteristics include low sebum secretion, thin and easily injured skin, weak ability of the skin to maintain pH balance, more prone to dry skin, poor resistance to UV rays, and newborns do not have a "blink reflex" protection mechanism, making them prone to "red buttocks". Studies show that babies should get moderate amounts of sun exposure to promote bone growth, especially the synthesis of vitamin D. But parents should be especially careful because the melanin function of babies' skin is much lower than that of adults, and they cannot effectively block ultraviolet rays, so they are easily sunburned.

Baby skin is very delicate, mainly because the junction area between the epidermis and dermis is incompletely developed. The structure responsible for connecting the epidermis and dermis together is called "hemidesmosomes". The adhesion between layers is weak, the epidermis is easily peeled off, and defects are easily formed under the action of external forces. Therefore, external irritants, scratching, and even the slightest touch can damage the skin. Newborn babies have a natural protective layer - vernix caseosa. The results show that the total sebum content of newborns is quite close to that of adults, but the secretion of sebaceous glands decreases rapidly after birth. This is related to the fact that the infants' apocrine sweat glands are smaller and there are no sebum secretion particles in their cells. By one month after birth, sebum secretion has dropped to 20% of its original level. It does not start to recover until the age of 8, and stabilizes at a higher level at the age of 12. Sebum is essential for forming a protective acid mantle on the skin's surface.

Experts say that the pH value of a newborn's skin is close to neutral, which is 7. Within one week after birth, the skin gradually becomes acidic due to the phospholipase A2 produced by the stratum corneum cells, and the pH value of the skin drops to the adult level of 5.5-5.9, or even lower. However, the normal acidification of the skin surface depends on the integrity of the stratum corneum and the retention of sebum. Therefore, baby skin is not as capable of neutralizing external alkaline substances as adult skin and is more fragile.

The moisture content of baby skin is higher than that of adult skin. The moisture content of newborn skin is 74.5%, that of infant skin is 69.4%, while that of adult skin is only 64%. However, although baby skin has a strong ability to absorb external moisture, due to the imperfect barrier function, moisture evaporates quickly, making it more prone to dryness. Therefore, it is best to bathe the baby once a day in summer. If you want to bathe twice, it is also possible, but the interval must be increased and bath products cannot be used.

Is it okay to bathe babies twice a day in summer? This article explains the skin condition of babies, so you can bathe them twice a day in summer, preferably once in the morning and once in the evening. Observe the health of the baby's skin after bathing. Some parenting experts recommend using baby skin care products after bathing. In fact, the baby's skin is very tender and it is not recommended to use skin care products. Just keep the skin clean after bathing. In summer, babies' anus should be cleaned after defecation and diapers should be used less frequently, as this will affect the health of their buttocks and body skin.