How to care for the newborn's belly button

After the baby is born, the nurse will tell the mother that she needs to clean and care for the baby's umbilical cord every day. But I believe that many parents don't know how to clean the baby's belly button when they see the baby's belly button. They are afraid of hurting the baby or accidentally touching the wound of the umbilical cord. New parents don't need to be nervous. Come and learn from the head nurse how to clean the baby's umbilical cord and what to pay attention to!

Umbilical inflammation is a common infection for newborns, so mothers should pay special attention to the care of the umbilical cord. The umbilical cord of a newborn will fall off in about two weeks. Before it falls off, the umbilical cord should be cared for after the baby takes a bath.

Prepare items: clean cotton swab, 95% alcohol, 75% alcohol

First, use 75% alcohol to disinfect the base of the umbilical cord in a circular pattern. Do not repeat the same area.

Next, use 95% alcohol to dry the repeated areas.

When changing your baby's diaper before the belly button falls off, you can fold the diaper over to expose the belly button, which can promote drying and shedding.

Generally speaking, the belly button will fall off in about two weeks. If the baby's belly button is relatively thin, it may fall off in about a week; on the contrary, if it is relatively thick, it may take more than two weeks.

Basically, if the baby is within three weeks, it is normal and mothers do not need to worry too much. As long as the navel is not inflamed, it does not matter if it falls out early or late. However, if it is more than three weeks, it is recommended to take the baby to a pediatrician for a checkup.

I would also like to remind mothers that even if the belly button falls off, they still need to check whether there is redness or swelling of the skin around the belly button or secretions after taking a bath every day. If there is secretion, they still need to disinfect it with 75% and then 95% alcohol.

A normal belly button will actually have a small amount of red blood or light yellow secretions. These are all normal. Mothers do not need to worry too much. Just continue to do umbilical cord care every day.

While doing umbilical cord care, you should also observe the skin around the umbilical cord to see if there is redness or swelling, and whether the secretion is light yellow or yellow-green thick. If it is yellow-green thick with a foul odor and the skin is red and swollen, it means that the belly button is inflamed and you must take it home to see a pediatrician!

Conclusion: Don’t be nervous when cleaning your baby’s belly button for the first time! After reading this article, the head nurse shares the secrets and practice a few times, you will definitely be able to get started smoothly!