Crystals in Diaper

Hi L. - I too use Seventh Generation diapers, and although it has been very infrequent, I have experienced the "crystals" in the diapers. I found that it was actually from the diaper, that the "crystals" leaked from the diaper and that they are part of the inner lining of the diapers that contain moisture-absorbing crystals.

I did find on the internet though, that some crystals are more common when kids are dehydrated, but are also common in healthy, well-fed babies. Urate crystals are not painful to babies. If your pediatrician suspects these are a different type of crystal, the material can be tested at the lab. Urate crystals are most common in the first few months of life.

Hope this helps!

I am sure others have typed this in, but its from the diapers. Lots of urine makes them come out from the padding.

Hi L.,

The longer urine sits with time, the more crystillization of solutes occurs. some crystals will form into long spheres or group into starburst shapes. I would think you would be able to tell urine crystals from diaper medium, but I dont know. I never saw "crystals" in my kids diapers although I did see diaper medium, which would come from the inside of the diaper when it maxed out on absorption. See if you can find pictures on the web of urine crystals to see if you can match up what you see.

You need to ask your doctor what different things can cause crystals in the urine, and then come home and look them up. When you look at the symptoms of different diseases you can usually see some or many, if not all of the symptoms manefesting in your child if he or she does indeed have that problem or disease.

Maybe he was asking if her urine was dark because that is a sign of a urinary tract infection. Usually babies will have other symptoms with a uti as well. An odor to the diaper that doesn't seem "right"... might be your first clue. Lack of interest in food, diahhrea, squirming and irritability are more clues. Fever is certainly a clue (by the time they get the fever, the uti has now spread up to the kidneys. Sometimes, this will be the ONLY clue in infants.)

Other problems that might manefest with urine crystals and are more rare are congenital cystinuria, kidney problems, liver disease or impairment, tyrosinosis, problems with metabolization, or maple syrup urine disease, (And possibly diabetes?)Not sure about the last one.

So although it could be nothing, if you really feel uncomfortable, follow your mom's inuition. Maybe they can somehow get a urine sample and check it under scope.

this is likely the material in the diaper

The crystals that are used in diapers are pretty much the same as the "water crystals" that people use in gardening. When you use them for gardening, you soak them with water put them in the dirt with the plant and they slowly release the water. I have used them to make "scarves" for hot days. You put them inside a tube (maybe 1/3 full) ans sew it up. Then you soak the scarves in cool water and tie them around your neck to keep cool when it is hot out. OSHA defines them as non-hazardous. If you are still uncomfortable with them, others have suggested alternatives that don't use them. Do what works for you :-).

Are you using Swaddler diapers? I found that if I didnt change my son frequent enough that would happen with those diapers. Its the stuff that absorbs the urine in the diaper.

This is normal. I've had that with all my kids (4). It is mainly from the diapers. When the diapers are too wet from urine, it creates this little crystals. It is not from your daughter's urine. As long as it doesn't smell bad, dark color nor she is in pain. If any of those you're describing, should you make the call to the ped to have your daughter to have looked at. Otherwise, it is from the diaper. I wouldn't worry too much about it. Take care!

I'm pretty sure it the material in the diaper. I use 7th generation too, and I always assumed the crystals were the absorbent material.

Please don't worry. The crystals are what's left behind of the urine when the desiccant (think of the little packets of crystals you get in electronic products to keep away moisture) in the diapers has sucked the water out of the urine. The crystals are not the stuff in the diapers. This happened to me when I used Kirkland (Costco) diapers, but doesn't happen with my Pampers Swaddlers. Either way, it doesn't hurt baby! Just wipe the crystals gently away.

I have only seen this a couple of times but I use cloth which is much better in my opinion. Tiny tots do a great service.I think they are coming from the diaper. I would try cloth for a month or so. Just imagine what the crystals are doing to her.

good luck.

P.

You have to change the diaper more frequently. The crystals come from the diaper and the more the urine sits. This means that the baby is sitting in urine longer. I was told this when my son was a baby and I changed him more frequently and it never happened again. If you arent going to change him/her as often switch to Huggies. The have a longer absorbancy-hence the cost. Good luck!

I use the same diapers and have for years. I have three boys. It is just some of the absorbant crystals that are in the diaper. They are totally harmless. I have contacted the company about it. Don't worry. They are not coming from your baby, it's from inside the diaper.

Hi L.,

Same answer as most others but just wanted to add something the Dr. told me and I'm not sure if someone has already replied this to you(too long to read) but the Dr. told me that it is from the diapers and to not worry unless they're red meaning it could be blood. So you can relax...=) I was freaked out too the first couple of times that I saw that on my baby =)
~H.

We get little bits of the gel that absorb the urine in the diaper sometimes. They are soft, though, not hard. If they are hard I'd be inclined to think they are crystals in the urine.

For me, the "crystals" from the urine reacting to the disposable weren't so much crystals as they were just a pinkish color on the diaper. So, it sounds like the crystals are from the disposable diapers. My neighbor uses disposables and wasn't comfortable with this coming into contact with her daughter's skin so she switched to Tushies - which is the ONLY disposable completely free of chemicals, etc (she was using Seventh Generation when she ran into the crystal problem). You might want to do your own research online as to whether these crystals are harmful as I, personally, wouldn't trust the maker of the crystals to tell me they were harmless (they have a motivation, afterall, to tell you otherwise). I experienced these crystals in the first 2 months that I used disposables but was planning to switch (and did) to cloth anyway so it wasn't a long-running concern for me.

You should be changing her more frequently - the "crystals" are what are in the diaper that absorbs the liquid. When they become full to capacity and can no longer hold any more liquid, they will "come to the surface" of the inside of the diaper and you can see them when you change her. They are NOT coming out of her body, or else you would have a very, very ill little baby.
All of us mommies that used disposable diapers experience this at some point - it may be time for you to move up to the next size diaper, as the ones you are currently using might not be absorbent enough for her increased milk intake and output.
Change her more often so that the diaper is not waterlogged - if you use the cheap disposables, you might want to think about going up to a better brand for awhile.

The crystals are from the diaper being too full. Change the diaper more often and the crystals will disappear. My daughter and son both had them in their diapers when the diaper was too full. It is a product of the diaper, not your child.

Looks like you got a ton of responses but I wanted to add my two cents as well! I experienced this early on and it scared the @#$% out of me!!! We now use Nature BabyCare diapers (you can get them online at www.diapers.com or at Elephant Pharmacy) and have never seen them since! They are THE BEST diapers ever! They absorb more than any we've ever tried and have turned so many people onto them. Aside from being the best quality diaper we've experienced they happen to be totally biodegradable, even the packaging, as are the wipes. So... you get the best quality and you minimize your carbon footprint. Good luck to you and congrats on your little girl!

It's the plastic absorbent crystals in the diaper leaking out. You can diaper change more frequently, switch to cloth diapers, or use Tushies whose absorbent material is wood pulp rather than the polymer crystal.

Hi L., you are not alone! My daughter is almost 11 months old, and is breastfed, and she still gets these fairly frequently. Anxious to hear what others have to say! I know she's not dehydrated so I've stopped worrying about them...

My pediatrician told me this is caused by a reaction btwn the urine and disposable diaper material. She said it's of no concern. My son is 6months old and has it all the time. We use Huggies. I don't think brand matters.

I've also noticed these crystals when the diaper becomes really wet. I believe it's the breakdown of whatever is used in disposable diapers to absorb the urine.

Hi L., did find solution for cristals in diaper.
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