Smelly Sweat

[Mummamel]

Sax sweats quite a bit in his sleep and as a result his sheets and pillow smells, I do wash the pillow but was wondering if there was anything I can do to stop it smelling?
This heat hasnt helped either.
I am sick of him waking up smelling!!
He has a shower with me in the mornings, a bath normally 2-3pm then a shower before bed as he normally strips off and jumps in with DP (uninvited lol).
Its not the sweat itself that bothers me, but the smell.
Any ideas?

[Saffi]

Mel

DS is exactly the same! His room is constantly airconditioned at around 23 - 25 degrees and still his wrap, singlet and sheets are damp when he wakes.

DH is also a sweaty sleeper, so I'm thinking that maybe it is a genetic thing. MIL says that DH always felt hot as a bub when he slept.

Thanks for posting and I look forward to reading everyone's posts.

[Liz185]

Sorry, I have no idea how to help the smell- just letting you know that my DS sweats like CRAZY even before he goes to bed. My sister in law says it's normal, but yeah the smell in his hair is a bit yucky. My sheets don't smell so I don't have to worry about that.

[Arimeh]

I have the same problem here!!! My DS's hair stinks sooo much when he wakes up, he is just a smelly little boy!!! (Makes it worse with an ear infection and you can just smell the sickness coming off him). I was talking to my MIL about it, and apparently DH was exactly the same.. so perhaps it is a genetic thing?? I was just going to try the baby powder treatment in the morning because we don't actually have enough time for a quick bath before leaving the house. So thought if I whacked on some baby powder it might mask the smell.. someone needs to invent baby deodorant.. haha!! Watching this thread for any suggestions..

[Mummamel]

I shaved Saxy's head a while ago coz of the smell. He used to have beautiful hair! But he does like it better shaved lol

[Bathsheba]

Bad smell is usually caused by infection or bacteria or toxins. The first thing I would do would be to offer more water especially early in the day. Are there enough wet nappies?

Are their rooms too hot? 18'C is actually a comfortable temperature to sleep in even for a baby.

Could it be something in their food/formula?

Maybe try a steamy shower instead of a bath? Showers are a cleaner way of removing oils/sweat etc from the body. I tend to shower with my children, especially babies. My DH carries them out afterwards to dress. Families do have "family smells" but it shouldn't be unpleasant.

I think offering more water during the day will be of most help. Even young babies can have cooled boiled water.

[Mummamel]

Hi, thanks for your reply.
Saxon will be 2 at the end of march and all he has to drink is only water and milk for sleeps (but that is very watered down too).
Will see how much he sweats tonight as it is alot cooler today than the past week!

[Bathsheba]

Sweating is a good thing. It's a means of toxin elimination just like urination. Infact wee and sweat are very similar substances. Sweating also helps to regulate temperature but I don't think that is the issue here (you can sweat heavily but not smell bad IYKWIM just as long as you don't stew in it 'cos bacteria love sweat)... it's more what is in the sweat. Does he have a high protein diet? (eat a lot of meat) Red meat eaters tend to have strong smelling sweat. Because eating animals at the end of the food chain can mean more complex things to eliminate via sweat. I stopped eating red meat at the age of 18 and I noticed that people smelled differently. It's not necessarily a "bad" smell, just stronger.
Does his wee smell strongly too, is it dark? That could indicate that a good flushing out is needed. I try to wee "clear" once a week. Not always easy to do LOL but very good for the system.

[Willow]

Doesn't all sweat smell??

My baby boy is very sweaty, as is his sister and his Dad! He has a load of hair (dark and curly so I am never shaving it!) and his hair often smells on a hot, sweaty day. Not sure there's a lot you can do about it, especially in an exclusively breastfed baby?

[Bathsheba]

Yep, all sweat pretty much smells, but it's usually different from one person to another according to things like diet and overall health, how long it's been on the body and hydration levels (diluted sweat of a big water drinker isn't as strong as concentrated sweat of a dehydrated person who had a big feed of garlic the day before!) I was just thinking the other day that i reckon i could tell which family member i was smelling if I had to smell them blindfolded. With an exclusively BF baby even the mum's diet would influence it's smell.

[ShootingStar]

Jesse's a very sweaty boy too.. always has been since a bub.. and his sheets smell after a couple of days i have to change them. Not much you can do that i know of, except just change the sheets more often during summer, maybe not so many layers on. Sounds like a boy thing though!!

[Bathsheba]

I just posted an article I found on sweat and why people smell different/stronger in the general health forum.

[Saffi]

Good luck trying to cool a room down to 18 degrees in summer. It is impossible - I know I have tried. I don't know who developed those temperature guidelines but up here in Qld it is impossible to do. 24 degrees is what's recommended as ideal for cooling to be both energy efficient and comfortable.