Monika
To all the mommies who prioritize the health of their babies, here is an exclusive informative article about the importance of pH in baby products to help you choose the best Baby products. My newborn baby’s skin had a soft and sensitive texture that needed extra care. So, I promised myself that I will treat her skin with only mild skin products.
I learned about the pH of the skin from my pediatrician who enlightened me about selecting the right products with optimum pH in baby products. I found that the maturation process of the baby’s skin starts after the birth time. She will adapt to the dry environment surroundings compared to the in vitro conditions slowly. This adaptation needs utmost care from the parents who share the responsibility to select the best baby clothes and best baby grooming products.
Defining skin’s pH in simple words
If you are confused about the meaning of the term pH, I have simplified the meaning as the power of hydrogen. The chemicals or organic substances, all have a pH that defines their acidity and basicity. The pH scale has 14 segments where the pH 7 falls just in between the whole scale. It may be considered ” neutral pH” as that of water. Either side of neutral pH is acidic or basic.
Suppose you want to know the pH of a definite chemical or any organic compound. In that case, it can be measured using pH strips available in a chemistry lab equipment supplies wholesaler. These strips are designed to tell the exact pH of material and they indicate the same using color indicator charts. It is known as the “Litmus Paper Test For pH Detection”.
The basicity or acidity of any chemical that is used in the manufacturing of the baby product is responsible for making the product safe or harmful to the babies’ skin. The pH in baby products as indicated on the labels is mostly in the safe zone and thus the products are safe to be applied to the baby.
What Are The Characteristics of Baby’s Skin?
Babies have a wrinkly type of skin that has a protective covering that is called “vernix”. It naturally peels off during the first few days after the baby’s birth. And it is most important to let this skin peel off itself and there is no need to rub or remove it by force. It may harm the baby’s skin if products with unmatching pH are directly applied.
Characteristics of baby’s skin:
- The prenatal skin is covered in the fluid inside the uterus. After birth, the baby needs to adapt to the dry environment conditions with the same skin.
- The Baby has dermal cells that are three times thinner than in adults. Hence the baby’s skin is three times thinner and more prone to harsh environmental dry air.
- The baby’s skin has more hair follicles so as to long for the whole lifetime. Hence a baby’s skin has 5 million hair glands. So, the hair glands present on the baby’s skin have more absorption power than adult skin.
- The lipid film or layer present on the baby’s skin that consists of sweat, sebum, and water is also three times thinner in babies than in adults. The function of this hydrolipid film is to protect the skin against bacterial infection. The presence of a thinner hydrolipidic layer that has to act as a barrier makes the baby’s skin more sensitive.
- Rashes will happen to the baby’s skin even after taking all the measures about the baby products or the precautions for their skin cleansing. So, don’t be a worried parent, the rashes will be gone in a few days. For prolonged skin conditions and reddening, one must visit a doctor.
Baby skin and hair are very delicate, so it is recommended to use only organic skin care products and organic hair brushes to take care of teh baby’s mane. Click here and buy The Best Organic Hair Brush for your newborn.
What is the Importance Of pH in Baby Products?
It is well known that products that are used directly on a baby’s skin must have a pH of 5.5 only. But Why?
The baby skin is less acidic than the adult skin. The adult skin is neutral skin that can survive the attack of pathogens and bacteria because of its immunity. So, the adults can use different cleansing soaps that have varied pH. But when it comes to a baby’s skin, many problems may arise if the pH is less or more than an acceptable level of 5.5. The sensitive skin of babies needs extra attention when it needs the selection of baby products.
The baby’s skin is replenished in a regular manner due to the enzymes present on the skin. These enzymes are highly capable of thinning out the old baby skin and helping in the growth of new skin. These enzymes are known to be pH sensitive. So, the enzymes may malfunction if the baby products have different pH than the baby’s skin. Also, the higher pH may be responsible for thinning the baby’s skin even more which would increase the causes of skin rashes, irritation, or eczema.
The parents must be aware of the harms of using plastic toys. Read Soft Toys vs Plastic Toys here and get ample information regarding the safety of your baby and choosing the good toys.
How To Choose The Ideal Product For Baby Care?
Finding the appropriate pH in Baby Products that can be used from the first day is not a difficult job for the parents of the 21st century as there are a series of products available in the market with the same range of pH in baby products. When you search the supermarket shelf or online products, there is a swarming up of baby products that are full of promises for healthy baby skin. Just the important task for a parent is to be a little aware of the name of “chemicals” which are harmful agents. Also, the pH in Baby products must be of accurate level as suggested by doctors.
Here are the tips to pick an ideal grooming product by looking at the pH in baby products:
1. Best Baby Product pH Is 5.5
While taking a pick at the best baby product, the pH level of the product for baby grooming and skin care must be 5.5 i.e slightly acidic only. It is the ideal value as it doesn’t harm the protective barrier of the baby’s skin. Many soaps and body wash manufactured for adults have a pH of 7 to 9. It is harmful to use any of those on the baby’s skin even by mistake. Baby creams with pH 5.5 have contents that are absorbed by the skin easily and do not alter their own body pH. The Sebamed baby wash or Jhonson’s wash has 5.5 pH in baby products.
2. Patch Test
A patch test is a secure way to select the best baby product for your little one who saw the sunlight for the first time. The sensitive skin can not be treated with the baby product without checking the side effects on the back of the wrist or the thigh area for 24 hours. If the skin develops any type of rashes that are different from the usual ones, please consult your doctor and stop the use of that product immediately.
3. Alkali-Free Baby Products
The baby has delicate skin that is prone to rashes and spots. Diaper rashes and Eczema ( extreme itchy and dry skin) are common problems faced by parents when dealing with skin diseases for babies. Frequent usage of alkaline cleansers is not good for them. So, it is ideal to select an alkali-free soap or baby lotions for the baby. It is advised by the doctors that it is good to only wash the newborn baby in a gap of 24 hours to 48 hours. Babies do not need frequent bathing as it may interfere with their skin pH.
4. Soap-Free Baby Products
Select soap-free baby products only. Soap-free is a term that means that the product is alkaline-free. So, if the product is soapless it is free from fats and also doesn’t have an alkaline pH. It not only cleans effectively but soothes diaper rashes also.
5. Dermatologically Tested and Clinically Safe
A clinically tested product is sure to maintain and promote a healthy skin pH in Baby products. The Dermatological test certification is a symbol that the product is agreed upon by a qualified dermatologist and it has the right and safe ingredients as mentioned on the back label of the baby product.
6. Ingredient List Analysis
The ingredient list must mention that it is alkali-free or Paraben-free. Look at the ingredient list, and be sure that it’s free from aluminum and parabens. Also look for different natural ingredients like coconut oil, olive oil, vitamin E oil, or Jojoba oil. The presence of Allantoin which is a natural ingredient attained from plants in a product will make a baby’s skin softer.
Babies have very thin skin and have extremely low immunity. It’s good to take care of them from mosquito bites by using baby nets. Read about Methods to Prevent the Babies from mosquito bites naturally here. Also, click the link to buy the best baby nets from Baby Bed with Nets to protect against any harm due to mosquito bites.
Conclusion
Looking for pH in baby products is a parent’s responsibility toward its child as it is crucial to use only the best baby products on the baby’s delicate skin for their well-being. All products that are for sale in the market are not as useful as the manufacturers promise. So, a smart parent has to select only those baby care products that preserve the skin’s protective layer covering without harming the delicate skin. We request you to share your experience with the baby products in the comment section below.
