1 month olds skin- what to do?

Hi,

Lachlan had beautiful skin when he was born, not a mark on it. He was a week overdue.
After the first week, the skin on his tummy , legs and arms became dry and peeled, we used a baby lotion on him and masssaged him and it cleared up after a few days.

But now Lachlans face is covered in spots, i know about milk spots but his little face is absoultley covered in red spots, his forehead is also quite dry. These spots are only on his face.He is breastfed.
I am wondering are these just milk spots and what can i do to help them clear up. Is it something to do with my milk or just a common thing.
I have put a bit of reastmilk on his forehead today as this seems to be the worst area.
Does anyone have any ideas on what to do?

Isabelle went through a phase where her skin was terrible :( It looked so nasty and spotty but I really don't think it bothered her at all. She was breastfed and I checked with my MCHN and on here of course and the common response was that is is completely normal, as bubs get used to their new environment plus after birth lots of hormones etc are still coming out from their bodies. It should pass soon hun, from memory Izzy's lasted about a month or less and hasn't ever come back. Good luck.

Nope, I just let my girls face clear up on their own. As you did today and used your milk its probably the only thing I would use if it gets really bad. If it seems to be annoying him then I'd probably see a Dr, otherwise there's not really any point in doing anything.

Cheers,

Beck

Yeah, I think it might be hormonal too. I look back a some of the babies pictures and at an early stage they both seemed a bit spotty (so bad for the photos :() but it cleared up pretty soon.

Both my girls had it and at first I was told it was hormonal and it would clear, with Jovie's it never seemed to clear and we found out later that it was due to her milk allergy and because I was having milk. I think the best thing is to use your breastmilk on the skin as there are special properties to protect the skin. For moisture plain sorbolene cream is best, because even the Johnson's products have additives and preservatives that your baby might be reacting too. My good friends children reacted to parabens and sodium laurel sulphate used in most lotions and moisturisors. She only found out by trial and error.

So while its completely normal for them to get hormonal rashes as your body changes post baby, its also something to be wary of and keep your eyes on. If you try natural products without additives, you may find they are super sensitive this early on, and this too should settle as your baby gets bigger.

Goodluck!

Same as others - Mackenzie was covered inthem too - she looked like a teenager with really bad acne!! Poor thing. We just left them and they went away after 2-3 weeks.

Brock has them too but they appear to be getting better (as his cradle cap gets worse). I was told by the health nurse to expect them and that there wasn't anything you could do to clear them.

I don't think it has to do with your milk? I'm pretty sure the 'milk' spots term is a bit outdated and not really accurate these days...
Natty had spots for about 6-8 weeks. I remember thinking when she was about 3 months old, 'oh wow, her skin's lovely!' LOL, I hadn't noticed the spots gradually disappearing. I think you just need to wait it out, unless it is bothering him (as a PP has already said).
Also, I second Christy's comments re J&J products: if you find your bub has sensitive skin, the fragrances in these products tend to make things worse.

Yeah i think they go away by themselves... interesting though N used to get a few spots on his chin and my nurse told me to make sure i wipe my milk off his chin after a feed as this may be causing them.. so maybe rubbing your milk in is not necessaruily the wtg for everyone (they did go away when i washed his face after a feed with a soft damp cloth) just an idea...