How to Heal a Horrible Diaper Rash?

Lots of diaper free time can help, but it sounds like a trip to his Dr. is in order. It could be a yeast or bacterial infection that would need special care.

As for the constipation, you can give him some flaxmeal with his foods.

My son now 3 had the same problems. My pedi said to use women's yeast cream and it TOTALLy worked. I just bought the generic stuff and put it on at every diaper change and that helped! Good Luck

Anytime either of my kids have had that rough of a rash I have done a few things. I let them air out as long as I can. I put them on the floor with towels all over the place. It also helps to have a good carpet cleaner or shampooer. Also, I use a warm washcloth with water to clean them, no wipes. Also, a great help is Weleda Calendula oil. I rub the oil into their skin every chance I get. You can get that at New Seasons or other stores like that. Its the oil you want. It works wonders. You just have to be super vigilant about keeping up with it. It gets bad really fast!

Is it possible that he has a food allergy that is causing the rash? The first time we gave my daughter spicy Asian food, her bum broke out in a BRIGHT red rash the next diaper change. Best we can tell, the food was so spicy that it irritated her skin when eliminated since it's happened a couple more times after seriously spicy food.

You might also try reducing the amount of solids you're feeding him at each sitting or each day. If it's gumming up the works, give his system a chance to recover and get back to normal. He's still young enough that he doesn't NEED solids to be healthy. Yes, it's probably a good idea for him to start getting used to them, but if he needs to go back to just breastmilk or formula for a couple days, go for it. Even if you just reduce the solids, that might help him.

For cleaning his bum, you might try doing it in the sink, bathtub, or shower when you're at home. We've had to do that a couple times and what we've found to work well is strip them down from mid-chest down and then use a diaper wipe as your wash cloth. The water will be much gentler on him than just using a wipe, but the wipe is smooth and seems to be softer than using a washcloth to get the poop off. Does that make sense?

Hi A.,

I haven't read all the responses so my apologies if this is duplicate information. Get some Laid in Montana Emugency (comes in a spray or stick) from Montana Emu Ranch Company. It is sold in some small natural food stores and online but I haven't seen at the larger stores like Whole Foods. Emugency is a great all around natural first aid for wounds and cuts and the emu oil is sooo good for the skin. Use it at every diaper change and you should see major improvement in 24 hours and complete healing within a few days. I have a separate Emugency stick labeled specifically for diaper changes. I have only used the stick and not the spray but you might consider the spray since your little one's skin is so raw and the stick might not be so pleasant to apply at first. (Also, change his diaper as soon as possible after he poops. I am sure that you are already but just in case.)

Good Luck,
S.

I would say to at least call his doctor's office and talk to a nurse to see if they can help you over the phone or if they want to see him. My daughter has gotten some pretty bad diaper rashes. Especially when she has been on certain antibiotics. Since we get our wipes at Costco and have a lot of them, everytime I changed her diaper, I would rinse a few of them out and fill a bowl with warm water and wipe/rinse her bottom that way. I started using Burts Bees diaper cream and that REALLY helped to clear the rash up. I'm sorry to hear that your little guy is in pain. It is heartbreaking when you are trying to do something that is going to help but it's causing them to hurt! Good Luck!

A.,

I've heard that plain old corn starch works well for a bad rash. I haven't tried it, but I thought I would let you know in case it helps. Our doctor also recommended giving our daughter as much diaper-free time as possible. The air should help it heal.

Good luck.

K.

We had rash problems due to allergy. Here is what we did.

1.Clean bum with water and antiallergy soap. No wipes (we couldn't even do the washcloth, it still irritated it) air dry completely
2.wipe bum with breast milk & air dry completely
3.cover with bag balm (I had to use a huge amount so that i wasn't wiping it very much, and the disposable diapers absorbe it)
4.diaper
The worst part cleared up in 3 days, and he looked completely normal after a week. But i continued bag balm and no wipes for a few more weeks, for safe measure.
If you can let him hang out in the nude for a little while the air does some good also.

Remember breastmilk is a antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral all in one. If you are breastfeeding or can get some from a friend who is it's the best stuff to use(Preferably fresh). It's made for our bodies unlike most products out there.

Our problem was a dairy allergy, three bites of yogurt and he had a horrible rash for three weeks. So i would go back to breastmilk/ formula let the rash clear up and start over. it is completely healthy for babies to continue a liquid diet for up to 1 year providing they aren't loosing weight. my son didn't start solids until 9 months.

Good luck!

I've had this problem with both of my boys. In fact, my youngest still has scars on his bottom more than a year later. My pediatrician's office suggests "NW Pediatrics Butt Paste" which includes equal parts hydrocortisone cream, Desitin, Lotrimin and Bactroban (requires a prescription). On almost every occasion, that worked for my boys. Was his bottom carefully. We used wet wash cloth as opposed to wipes - they hurt less.

The one time the "butt paste" didn't work, our doctor prescribed Silvadene. It is typically for burns, but his bottom looked like it was burned. Solved the problem.

Also see if you can figure out what causes it to flair. With my older son, it was clearly tied to tomatoes (very acidic). When we cut that out, his problems cleared up almost entirely. (We tried them again when he was about 2 and he did just fine after that.)

Good luck! It's so hard to see your baby struggling and hurting.

C.

Our son developed a sensitivity to baby wipes (not exactly an allergic reaction), that made him EXTREMELY prone to diaper rashes. One was so bad, and came on so fast, that we had to take him in to the ER. But mostly, they were as you described.

What we did.

- Switched to wet/damp paper towels. *** This one cut the rash down to once every few weeks. It was one of those accidental things. We were out of wipes, and broke for 2 weeks, and his rash cleared up, stayed away, and IMMEDIATELY came back as soon as I got baby wipes at the store. Some experimenting led us to find that the more "hypoallergenic" the wipe, the worse his rash would be. It wasn't that he was allergic to them, just that something about them chemical wise, made his little bum soooooooo prone to yeast infections. So we stayed switched to wet paper towels. Cheaper too.
- Bare bottom boy, as much as possible.
- Anti-fungal cream.
- Avoided baby powder like the plague (it's not talcum anymore, it's cornstarch. Cornstarch is essentially pure sugar, and guess what yeast loves more then ANYTHING else? Yup. Sugar).
- Disposable diapers (they're better at wicking moisture)

Two things will help this - lots of fruit and veggies to make sure his stool is soft, and some naket time. I would just allow the little guy to be naked quite a bit to allow the bottom to heel. It's what we did with my sister when she was a little baby, and it worked wonders.

I agree with the visit to the doctor to make sure it's not a yeast infection...it looks the same as a regular diaper rash, so you can't really tell.

We also have had this happen on occasion where it was just a very bad diaper rash, possibly related to something one of my kids ate being eliminated. What worked for us was also a few different diaper rash ointments (one would work sometimes, another would work a different time...who knows why). Also, changing diapers a lot (more often than usual). Allowing him to be naked as much as possible - which is not really reasonable given the child's young age, but if you can be prepared ahead of time for some mess, this is a wonderful treatment. AND we gave bathed his bum-bum or gave baths instead of using wipes every time he went poo. This is probably the most healing thing out there, just keeping the area clean - and more comfortable than any wet wipe.

A.,

I didn't read all of your responses, so forgive me if youve heard this. First of all, stop using wipes until his rash is gone. Use instead wet baby washcloths or wash him off in the sink. Next put neosporin on him. Then over that put Desitin. Do this for every diaper change until that nasty rash is gone! This worked for my daughter who had a horrid rash like that! Hope it works for you.

N.

Definitely see a doctor. Also, when my son's diaper rash was chronic, I used a squirt bottle over a sink or tub every diaper change and never touched his bottom with any wipes or towlettes for a while. Use baking soda in baths. Dr. Sears recommends using a hair dryer (at a safe distance so it's not too hot) to dry out the bottom area after a diaper change, and it's worked for me. Also, Burt's Bees Diaper cream helps diaper rashes better than any other cream I've tried and my sister-in-law confirms this too with her experience.

Get a healing diaper rash cream. Put the cream thickly on the sores. This will protect the sores. If that doesn't work, talk to your doc and he will give you a more powerful one (yes, they have them). Clean the rash, put the cream on thickly, and change the diaper frequently. Let him "air dry" on occasion if you can manage it. (nothing heals like fresh air)

Hello. My girls had a TON of rashes...some very serious (open sores that bled through). We would always have to alternate treatments with every diaper. First we'd do nystatin cream for yeast and mupirocin for infection. The infection always seemed secondary to the yeast so it always helped to treat them together. Also, once things get a little more controllable, we used to always have triple paste diaper cream. It prevented rashes as well as treated dermatological problems that made our babies prone to rash and infection.

Also, always make sure that your baby is dry before putting on any cream/ointment and before strapping on the diaper. Oh, and one additional measure that helped to keep the moisture away from their skin was to put about a tablespoon of corn starch in the middle of each diaper (the same stuff you cook with). It REALLY helped to stop the moisture buildup.

Take him to your Doctor and make sure he doesn't have an infection. He also may be too clean, I know that sounds odd but, I had that problem with my oldest. If you can find Gold Bond Baby Powder it works wonders. I haven't been able to find it for some time but, maybe Babies R Us or regular Gold Bond could help.

I had two sons, one had a bottom that the doctor said was the best looking bum all day (no diaper rash) and he said he saw lots of bums. My other son was prone to diaper rashes. Until he got out of diapers, he had a nasty diaper rash. To save money, I used cloth diapers. If I had to do it all over again, I'd put my youngest in paper diapers. It draws the pee away from baby's skin. The best ointment I used was Desitin.

Also, my mother-in-law said my husband had bad diaper rashes, too, as a baby so I guessed he was like daddy. I didn't take him to the doctor thinking it was "normal" for him. What I found out later is that our baby had a yeast infection on his bum and it could've been treated and he wouldn't have had such a raw, oozing bottom for that year.

Good luck!

I would go to the Dr. he may have a yeast infection!

I'm so sorry to hear about your little guy's rash. My daughter had a nasty diaper rash. It was an open sore (never weeping, though). We tried lots of stuff including tons of naked time and baking soda baths. They would work temporarily, but with a messy bm, it would come back. We took her to the doctor to check it out and lo & behold, she had a staph infection! Antibiotics cleared it up and we also switched diaper covers. We use cloth diapers and moved to wool covers which allow her bottom to constantly breathe and aerate. We've also consulted a naturopath about diaper creams to apply as soon as we see the beginnings of a rash. I'm happy to say we've no rashes AT ALL for 2 months!
Good luck!

A.,

My 2 year old daughter still gets this sometimes. She'd get raw spots nearly the size of a dime on her butt.

The best thing we've found is the Desitin Creamy Night time formula. It's thick like regular Desitin, but not nearly as hard to apply. When her butt was bad we'd slather on the cream, probably way thicker than needed, but we'd coat her until all the sores were covered. In a week at most she'd be clear again.

Hope this helps,
Melissa

Reading another post just reminded me that we also switched to using the Pampers Sensitive Skin wipes. That really helped in preventing the sores from the beginning.

My second son had terrible rashes from the get go...HORRIBLE RASH.

The pediatrician can prescribe a cream which is really helpful. darn if I can remember what it was... the prescription was good for two years.. if need be e-mail me and I'll look it up...

However, in the meantime,.
Washing with only !! washcloths, hand baths and mild soap is best. NO DIAPER WIPES AT ALL. Even while away from home if it is bad as you mentioned. (I had to pack the washcloths with me along w/ ziploc's to keep-em)

You can use an pain reducing Antibotic oimentetc. or even if it is yeast - the althelic's foot thing for kids.. again.. i can look this up it's been a little while...

However.......!!!!! after you use those....You Apply
.... a very good Barrier cream.
You have alreadly cleaned everthing by the shower or wash (again no wipes) and get it so clean.
Apply the barrier. My Ped choice after several options failed = TRIPLE PASTE. It used to be at the Pharmacy, but I have now seen it at Target. not inexpensive, but well worth it.

All I can say is how I feel your pain when your baby is in pain. I had the sore and ripped raw butt experience with my little one.. sometimes only a little soak helped.

You have to not use Wipes AT ALL!!
I had to use the shower or sit in a bath,. only washclothes.. - it makes a difference..
luckily it is now April.. let him sit without a diaper as much as possible.

Hard for a 6 month old. I used to wash him as best I could, put all the cream on and ... then let him sit BUTT UP for his whole nap.. for the fresh air. .

You let him fall mostly asleep...then put him on the already prepared "area" you have with towels and such,.. I usually just had one open-ended diaper for the pee right underneath...

so been there A...
write me -- I'll check all the other stuff.

sounds like you have yeast growing in your diapers. Golden seal root powder is another item you can use on it. you can purchase it here.

http://www.dragonherbarium.com/#

You may want to strip your dipes before putting him back in them.

Hello A.,
My name is T. and I'm a mother of twin girls. I also had to deal with that with one of my girls. I immediately took her to the doctor. The doctor said to lather on heavily baby diaper rash ointment called Desitin. Then when you do diaper changes don't wipe it off completely. Just keep on adding more and more. The first 1 or 2 diaper changes will be hard because every time your finger touches the babies bottom it makes them cry. It's not the Desitin that is hurting them. It's soothing and gentle. It will start to work by the end of the day. The next day after doing this regiment. My daughter was almost completely healed.

get a blow dryer. keep it by the changing table and "dry" your baby's bottom every time you change his diaper, on low heat, obviously keeping your hand on his bottom to monitor the heat. don't want it too hot, right? It literally will clear up in 1-2 days. It dries the open rash right up. best advice I have ever gotten from my many sisters. use A&D on each change also, after drying. my pediatrician told me any diaper cream with zinc oxide is stingy and painful to babies, so only use petroleum base creams.

Sunlight is a wonderful healer, try to expose his little bum to it whenever possible. I know at this age going without a diaper means messes, but the vitamin D is very healing so even short exposures to direct sun, not through glass if you can. I like burts bees all natural diaper cream with zinc oxide too and use that whenever my daughter gets a rash, but she never had them as bad as yours sounds. And yes the vitamin D from sunshine will also fight yeast if it is a yeast infection.

If you are still breast feeding, I would cut off the solid food for now, and just go back to breast milk. He really doesn't need anything other than that until he is a year. But if he is formula fed, then he probably does. but his rashes my be due to some kind of allergy, so try keeping a record of what he eats and how it affects his rash. good luck

Both of my kids had the same problem. I was told to clean them after each diaper with a washcloth and warm water instead of using the wipes. and than my sister in law recommended "Triple Paste" you can find it at target, its super expensive but way worth every penny. Her daughter got them so bad she had prescription ointment and her docter flat told her that this was just as good as the prescription stuff. It seriously clears up a bad rash in a like 2 or 3 days and a minor one over night. You just have to let the area dry after you wash it off air dry or pat dry or it wont stick to the rash. Hope it helps.

Ive found that using vaseline at every change actually helps alot, better than most diaper creams.

Also i would probally take him into ped, if its bleeding and weeping.

Stop using wipes to clean him at diaper change and wash bottom in sink with mild soap only if poopy and pat dry, then put corn starch on him with diaper under him. That should make it look real good at next diaper change, contiue for two days it should be gone by then. If not make a doctors appointment it could be yeast infection. From an old Mother with five grand kids. M.

My daughter had these rashes, and usually, they were yeast infections.

Bag Balm (square green can found in most stores) is the best barrier I found. I found all other creams to just wash away when she peed.

Take the Bag Balm and put a little on a non-porous surface and mix in some probiotic powder. Then smear that on to the little ones bottom. Get a nice thick layer and make sure you get in the crevices.

Also, make sure he is nicely air-dried before putting any barrier on him. I like to use a diaper to fan the fanny to dry it off.

In the hospital, they used those soft paper towels for cleansing with plain water. Either get some of those (I found some at the lactation clinic at our hospital- St. Vincents in Pdx), or use a wet paper towel or washcloth. Do not use the wet wipes - the soap/chemicals sting the little bottom and leave a soap film on the bottom.

Plain yogurt can be put on the bum to reduce the yeast infection. Just smear a little on the bum with each diaper change for a day or two and see if that helps to clear it up. I say this because it can be used for the ladies on a tampon for our yeast infections, so might work for the wee one, too. Just keep it on the surface.

I like the advice you got about preparing the area underneath for a nap and letting the little one sleep butt up to air dry. Air is the best friend when they get diaper rashes that bad.

But, definitely, get some Bag Balm, it coats, relieves, and moisturizes better than anything else out there. It is a lanolin product and if pure lanolin is safe for baby to nurse with (prescribed when mom needs help with sore nipples from nursing), then it is safe for baby's bum. Adding a powdered probiotic helps bring the area back to a normal ph level and won't hurt baby. I gave my little guy probiotics from 2 weeks on, he had reflux and I finger fed it to him a little at a time and it helped with the reflux right away.

Oh yeah, and back off on the food more recently introduced for a few days, then introduce it again. If same results, back off. Stick to rice and oatmeal. Add a little sweet potato next. Any time you see a reaction like the diaper rash, back off and eliminate it for a few days and then reintroduce it. I had to do this with peaches. They drove my son's bum nuts. The first 4-5 times I introduced peaches (and I started late with solids and kept him on just rice or oatmeal for awhile before introducing other foods - reflux issues and family allergies led my way to take it very slowly), his bum looked awful. Once his system caught up and matured a little more, no problem with the peaches.

Oh, I just remembered the best healer of all, coat his little bum in some breast milk and let it dry (fan it with a diaper) before rediapering.

You might also switch to disposable while his bum is so raw if you aren't already. It will pull the moisture away a little better. I have also heard from a few moms that antibiotic ointment can lead to staff infections in the moist genital area, so probably not wise unless doctor says okay.

Good luck to you and your little one's behind.
D.

Poor baby! diaper rashes are so horrible, they make us moms hurt for our little babies. my son recently had a pretty bad one that was raw and cracked in one place. i let him run around naked as much as possible, and cleaned any messes necessary. also giving him little sitz bath worked well, i just put a few inches of water in the kitchen sink with some baking soda and let him splash for a little bit. a few times a day is ideal. also when he is diapered i use a diaper cream that high in zinc oxide, the one i found has 40%, its awesome and it's just the Safeway brand. another thing a friend suggested was using olive oil instead of any cream that would have any amount of alcohol in it. we did that for a few days too...so maybe the combination of it all is what healed his little bottom. good luck with your little one's bottom!

I would suggest going to your MD. We had a similar sounding rash which we fought and fought, and it turned out to be a staff infection. Antibiotic ointment cleared it up pretty nicely.

I would suggest a good zinc barrier cream like Weleda.

Good luck!

Hi A.,
I agree with all the other moms re making sure it's not a yeast infection and I also agree with ensuring his bum is rinsed gently with water after each poo.

My son used to have nasty diaper rashes but has not had them for ages and I noticed that it helped when I switched from Pampers to Huggies disposables. Also we started having a bath/splash in the water every day (sometimes twice a day). This also seemed to help.
Good luck

We just went through this this week and I called my doctor on Friday and she said to try bag balm. It was $8 at Walgreens. It worked WONDERFUL!!! There is almost nothing there today, Friday it was like what you described, and he was walking funny like his little tush hurt from just moving. poor baby. Anyhow I was at the point where I would have bought anything to make him feel better and this did the trick. Good luck!

A & D with zinc has worked well for us. Also, bathing every day in warm water (not soap every time) and then letting the bum air out a bit before putting them back in diapers. As in, letting them go without a diaper for 5 to 10 minutes. I used to put my child in the crib. Much easier to clean up if they have an accident during that time. I heard from a friend that a product called Bum Balm or something like that worked really good for them.

Hi A.,
You may want to take him into a pediatrician to make sure this is not a yeast infection. My daughter had a horrible rash on her bottom which I assumed was diaper rash so kept treating it at home. She finally broke out in a rash everywhere, with little bumps on her stomache, legs and trunk. Doctor said it was yeast a yeast infection and put her on anti biotics. She was healed up within a week.
Little boys can get them too

I am a consultant with Arbonne and we have a wonderful baby line (Arbonne Baby Care) that has a diaper rash cream with zinc oxide. It is a light water-repelling cream that provides great protection and it has no mineral oil or petrolium-based ingredients, parabens or animail by-products. You can go to my web-page at www.nursekerry.myarbonne.com for more information.

If bumps develop, definately take your son to the Dr. as this could be candida, which is a very common yeast infection that babies get.

My daughter had the constipation issue as well as a baby and we would give her prunes as one of her baby foods, usually every three days or so. She was almost to the point of requiring miralax or suppositories. That might be another reason to take your son to the Dr., to see if the constipation can be managed better.

Hi..just a quick suggestion...my daughter too would go through the same thing...so I would just give her pedialite throughout the day and for some reason every diaper rash would respond to a different diaper cream then the next one..so I currently use 3 different diaper creams. Still give him his bottles but give him pedialite too cause he could get dehydrated from going poo too much.

I haven't had time to read all of the other replies, so forgive me if this is a duplicate answer. But I would reccomend ILEX, it is a petroleum polymer. You do not need a prescription, but I have only found it over the internet. My daughter had surgury on her little bum when she was a newborn and it is what Children's hospital reccomended and we found it was the only thing that worked!