Child's Skin Irritation

Updated on April 08, 2009
A.N. asks from Lees Summit, MO
11 answers

My daughter is just potty trained (yeah!!) and has been wearing underwear exclusivly (except at night) for 2 weeks. The last several days her booty has been red and chapped looking where her underwear are. I was wondering if she could have a sensitivity to our laundry detergent just in that area? This isn't happening in the front or anywhere else, just on her lower back and cheeks where her underwear rest. Any ideas or suggestions???

What can I do next?

  • Add yourAnswer own comment
  • Ask your own question Add Question
  • Join the Mamapedia community Mamapedia
  • as inappropriate
  • this with your friends

Featured Answers

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

R.Y.

answers from Wichita on

We are allergic to latex, and have had problems with underwear. It is really hard to find out if the stretchy is latex or not. just a thought that hadn't been mentioned, A&D worked to create a barrier.

More Answers

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

J.B.

answers from St. Louis on

They laundry detergent could be irritating her or even your dryer sheets/fabric softner. I recommend the dreft deteregent and I also use the bounce free dryer sheets. Another thing could her underwear be to tight, maybe she needs to go up a size.

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

K.B.

answers from Wichita on

Good Morning A., I am going to copy & paste what I wrote on another Mama's request (diapers)this morning. I added a few more things.
Zane 17 months had horrible sores in the same areas, nothing the Dr prescribed helped At all. He told us everyone has bacteria on the skin and maybe he would out grow it, we even had tests done on the pus that came out.
He got boil like places on his body, when they opened they left holes and scars on him.

Last time he was cutting eye teeth and got diarrhea so bad (2 wks worth) his little hinny and Mr. Winkie were so red and swollen he could hardly walk, screamed at every diaper change we just put him in the bath, rinsed him off with the shower head(he won't sit in the Bath at all)

Genné called the Nurse and she had her pick up A & D ointment and Maalox. Don't laugh or wrinkle your pretty forehead it works. Put a pretty nice sized pile of A&D in a like a fruit cup container with a lid, then add maybe a TBS of Maalox in it and stir it up. Hint Takes a while to blend it up so keep stirring.
Zane didn't scream or cry when she put it on him and in 2 days He was completely cleared up. He looked so much better even after the first application. WISH we had been given this recipe a very Long time ago, it works wonderfully. If he gets just a tad bit red we use it and it's gone quickly.
Gen was concerned about the peppermint flavor/scent maybe burning the skin so she put some on a cut on her finger, didn't burn at all.

God Bless
K. Nana of 5
PS Zane has eczema also and we put it on his wrists, ankles back etc it helps along with a humidifier in his room.

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

J.T.

answers from St. Louis on

Have you tried a free & clear laundry detergent? Maybe also try not using any fabric softener, liquid or dryer sheets for a few weeks. (It takes a little while for all the fabric softener to come off your clothes.) Also, maybe try to use Dove soap to bathe her in & use an unscented lotion after bathing to see if her skin is irritated from her soap &/or dryness.

I hope you find a solution!
J.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

J.D.

answers from St. Louis on

My daughter had the same problem. I used St. Ives collagen lotion and let her soak in an oatmeal bath and it cleared up.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

L.B.

answers from Columbia on

You might have already thought of this, but if there are tags on the underwear, they might be irritating her skin.

OR, when my son went from diapers to underwear, he got the cheeky redness, too. It turned out to be 2 things:

1) the underwear that I got him had characters on the butt that would glow in the dark. What ever they use to make the underwear glow was causing his skin to rash in those exact places. Needless to say, I got rid of those underwear.

2) there was still a bit of a redness/rash-like problem after doing away with the glowing underwear...the pull ups at night is what was the culprit. The cool alert kind don't absorb like diapers, so the urine was against his skin all night, thus making it irritated. Took us a while to figure that one out...poor kid. Maybe try something more absorbent at night or applying diaper rash cream to prevent the chapping.

In the meantime, I have found that a bath with a little baking soda helps.

Good luck!
lb

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

B.M.

answers from Springfield on

Hi,
My name is B.. You might try double rinsing her clothes or just her panties, since that is the problem area. Hope you find the answer!

Later.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

C.V.

answers from Kansas City on

My Daughter had the same problem.Hers was from the pull-ups at night.Since pull-ups don't hold the moisture off of them as well as a diaper.Anyway the Doctor told me to put vaseline on the area at night when I put the pull-up on her for bed.This created a barrier between her skin and the wetness and worked well.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

K.C.

answers from Wichita on

My youngest son has been potty trained for 6 months & for the first few months of wearing underware his bottom was red & chapped too. Every morning & every night I put Cetaphil or Aquaphor on his bottom, especially after a bath. It does make there underware stick to their bottom, but it seemed to help. We also use a free & clear detergent & vinegar instead of fabric softener. You could also try the thick Gerber underware - they are nice & soft.
He doesn't have the chapped problem any more, so I'm guessing that it is just a transition that their skin has to get used to being more dry then in a warm moist diaper.
If you are concerned then check with her dr.

God bless!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

C.W.

answers from Kansas City on

My middle son hardly ever had a rash with diapers or anything else until we put him in underwear. Then the underwear rash started and it was the only area that he every had problems with. I just went to washing his underwear in Dreft and to make a decent size load added the rest of the family's stuff too.... The rest of the laundry I kept using the other soaps, as they were not causing any other problems.

This did the trick for him and was much easier than creams and med's on the booty!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

K.B.

answers from Kansas City on

It could be the detergent or the elastic in the underwear.Or the chemicals the use in the final process when they make them.
I would wash ALL her underwear in just water and vinegar in the machine and nothing else.

After that use a free detergent, I've had good luck with the All brand, add vinegar to the rinse cycle and softner.

For Updates and Special Promotions
Follow Us

Related Questions

Related Searches