| Your baby deserves the best. Would
you prefer to use commercial, chemically laden baby care products, or nature's
own pure and natural essential oils and pure carrier oils, powders, etc?
Much of the information on this page is based on the writings of Colleen K. Dodt,
Maggie Tisserand, and Valerie Worwood.
Baby's Aromatic Bath First of all, newborn
babies seldom get dirty. (This will definitely change in the future, but for
now, how much mud and dirt do they come in contact with?)
For most 'wash downs' I believe the best thing you can do to keep your little
darling clean and fresh is to use pure hydrosols, the steam distilled water
soluble extracts of healing and aromatic plants.
For my granddaughter, I suggested
Rose
Geranium,
Roman
Chamomile hydrosol or
Rose Hydrosol.
My daughter-in-law moistens a baby washcloth with one or the other and wipes
little Kaitlinn's face clean.
If the new mother does decide to that a "soap and water" bath is appropriate, I
will either use our liquid
Happy Baby Soap, or a pure handmade Castile.
There are many hand crafted soap makers online who take pride in their pure,
natural products. Please be careful to buy only a pure castile soap. If it is
scented, specify that only pure
Lavender essential oil be used in it.
The alternative to buying a special bar of soap for baby is to buy some Liquid
Castile. Dilute it with an equal amount of either Lavender Hydrosol or
Rose Hydrosol.
Voila! a gentle, pure liquid baby soap.
Diaper Changes
For her tiny bottom, more hydrosols, followed by a soothing dab of all natural
"non-Vaseline" Happy Baby Balm. Fractionated Coconut Oil, infused with healing
Calendula petals, with about 5 drops of
Lavender and one drop of
German Chamomile to help guard against inflammation. Heat together one cup
of the
Calendula infused oil and one scant ounce of grated
Beeswax. When the
Beeswax is totally
melted, remove from heat and beat until cool. You may add an ounce of
Shea Butter
for extra emollience. (A spoonful of Vit. E is a healing addition, and will help
preserve the balm.) As the balm cools, add the essential oils and beat until the
balm is creamy.
Baby Wipes
One option to commercial, chemical laden baby wipes is easily made at home. Take
a roll of Bounty towels, and cut the roll in half, to yield two half sized
rolls. Remove the center cardboard tube, and place the dry paper towel roll in
an empty plastic container. (The most convenient are empty commercial wipes
containers.) Saturate the roll of dry paper towels with a blend of four parts
hydrosol of your choice, and one part witch hazel extract. These are wonderfully
convenient for cleaning up after a messy diaper.
More Wipes
Another alternative are the large, round cotton pads available in beauty supply
stores. Moisten with your favorite hydrosol and use to freshen any part of
baby's skin. The hydrosol will leave baby clean, refreshed and relaxed, and can
help calm mother's frazzled nerves as well.
Aromatic Baby Oil
Most commercial baby oils are petroleum by products. When our babies need
massaging, or need baby oil for any reason, we use
Fractionated Coconut Oil, with 4 drops of
Lavender essential oil and one drop of
English Chamomile per ounce of carrier.
This is a wonderfully soothing blend for the days that baby just can't settle
down. Babies love massages, from the toes, massage her tiny feet, gently up her
legs, gently, clockwise around her tummy, and then, laying her on her tummy
(preferably across your lap) gentle strokes up her back. The soothing oils, and
the touch of your gentle hands should have her peacefully sleeping in no time.
Aromatic Baby Powder
For baby powder, you can easily make your own, out of a blend of cornstarch,
arrowroot powder, and white cosmetic clay. You may either add a few drops of
Lavender essential oil, or some finely pulverized dried lavender buds or
dried rose petals. If you choose to use the essential oils, sprinkle the few
drops it will take over the mixture of 'powders' and blend in with your finger
tips, then sift well.
If your baby has a red, angry diaper rash, it could very well be a yeast rash.
If so, please don't use the cornstarch or arrowroot, they can feed the yeast. A
powder made of white cosmetic clay, with a few drops of
Lavender essential oil blended in should sooth the sore bottom and help heal
the rash.
Sniffles and Sneezes
The only essential oils that I will use (highly diluted) on a baby's skin are
Lavender,
German Chamomile, and
Roman Chamomile. However, when baby has a stuffy nose, the gentle
Eucalyptus Smithii can be diffused in his or her room or added to the
humidifier. Please don't expose the baby to any neat essential oils, and please
don't massage your baby with a eucalyptus blend. Eucalyptus, too close to the
nose, can trigger a cough or choking response. Keep it diluted, and diffuse it
in baby's room, indirectly.
When there are colds or viruses in the family, adding some
Eucalyptus Smithii to water that you clean with, or diffusing it throughout
the whole house can help prevent the spread of germs.
Earaches
Occasionally baby's get earaches. To ease the pain, massage the area around her
jaw and beneath her ear with a blend of 2 drops of
Lavender and 2 drops of
Roman Chamomile added to two teaspoons of carrier oil.
Hope some of this info proves helpful! Teething
Jeanne Rose suggests spritzing
Roman Chamomile Hydrosol
into the mouth when the baby is feeling pain from teething. To read
about oils recommended during childbirth, please see our
Aromatic Child Birth page. |
