Can a newborn baby's belly button touch water? Can a newborn baby take a bath if his belly button hasn't fallen off?

Many mothers are at a loss as to how to care for the belly button of a newborn. The editor says that to take good care of a newborn baby, you need to master these knowledge:

Can a newborn's belly button touch water?

Generally speaking, the navel of a newborn baby should not touch water to avoid infection.

If the baby's umbilical cord has fallen off and the navel has grown, then the baby can touch the water. It takes about half a month for the baby's umbilical cord to fall off and the navel to grow.

In fact, when bathing a newborn baby, the navel will get some water on it no matter how careful you are. However, don't worry too much if it gets a little water on it. Just wipe off the accumulated water quickly, and then use a cotton ball dipped in 75% alcohol to wipe the navel in circles from the inside to the outside.

How to speed up the shedding of the umbilical cord of a newborn baby?

If the newborn's umbilical cord has not fallen off after 2 weeks, you should carefully observe the condition of the umbilical cord. As long as there is no sign of infection, such as no redness, swelling or suppuration, and no large amount of fluid oozing out of the umbilical fossa, there is no need to worry. In addition, you can use alcohol to wipe the baby's umbilical fossa to keep the umbilical cord stump dry, accelerate the shedding of the umbilical cord stump and the healing of the navel.

How to care for the umbilical cord of a newborn

1. Clean your belly button

When bathing the baby every day, you should also clean the baby's belly button. Some mothers are afraid that the baby's belly button wound has not healed and dare not clean it. This is wrong.

After cleaning, wipe the navel with a cotton swab dipped in 95% alcohol, starting from the base of the umbilical cord (or the depression) and wiping outwards until the skin stops. Check whether the navel is dry every time you change the diaper. If the navel is wet, repeat the above steps (wipe again with 95% alcohol).

2. Prevent urine from contaminating your navel

First, the diaper should not be too long to avoid contamination of the wound after being wetted by urine. Second, it is best to choose a diaper that can leave space for the navel. In order to prevent urine from contaminating the navel, take isolation measures. Third, observe the baby's bowel movements in time and change diapers frequently.

3. Keep dry

Keeping the area around the umbilical cord dry and clean is the top priority to help the baby heal. Once the umbilical cord is wet, it is easy to cause bacterial infection and even omphalitis. Therefore, keeping it dry is the first principle of care.

4. Let your belly button ventilate

While keeping it dry, you should also pay attention to the ventilation of the navel, and do not cover it too thickly to prevent moisture from forming; if you find that the navel is wet, you should immediately use cotton cloth to gently dry it. You should also choose soft and breathable clothes to reduce local friction.

How to bathe a newborn baby if the navel has not fallen off

Generally speaking, babies should be bathed 15 days after birth. Many people believe that newborns have a fast metabolism, so they should be bathed frequently. In fact, newborns are not that dirty. Before the umbilical cord falls off, it is best to bathe the baby with a sponge to avoid increasing the chance of umbilical cord infection.

Before giving your baby a bath, we need to prepare these things: a warm and ventilated bathroom, two towels, diapers, clean clothes, a hooded towel, cotton balls, 75% alcohol, mild soap and baby shampoo.

Once you have all these things ready, strip your baby naked except for the diaper and wrap him/her in a towel. You can hold your baby on your lap, or you can wrap your baby in a thick towel and place him/her on a sponge pad in an empty bathtub, then start bathing your baby.

Bathing steps:

1. Wash your baby's face with warm water, including behind the ears, the auricles, and the folds of the neck. You can use soap, but don't apply soap to the baby's face. In general, just wash with water.

2. The second step is to wash the baby's hair. Hold the baby in your arms in a football-holding position, then use a sponge to squeeze some warm water and drop it on the baby's hair, add a little shampoo, gently massage the baby's head, then rinse it with running water, dry it with a hooded towel, and then cover the head with a hooded towel.

3. Next, wash other parts. Unwrap the towel wrapped around the baby's body, take off the diaper, and start to use a sponge to scrub the baby's groin, knees, elbows and other parts where dirt is easily accumulated. Also use a cotton ball to scrub the area around the navel. After washing these, turn the baby over and clean the folds above the buttocks and the area covered by the diaper. If you are afraid of trouble, you can just lift the baby's legs without turning over, let the baby lie on his back in your arms, and then start to clean the buttocks and lower back.

4. Finally, wash the baby's genitals. Spread the baby's legs like a frog's legs. If it is a girl, use a cotton ball to gently clean the vulva, wiping from front to back. There is normal protein-like secretion between the labia minora and the vagina, which is normal and does not need to be removed. For boys, the folds under the scrotum, groin, buttocks, and the skin around the penis should be carefully cleaned, but do not pull the foreskin open forcefully to clean it. You can gently turn the foreskin open and clean it with warm water.

The above steps are for bathing your baby with a sponge before the baby's umbilical cord falls off. After the baby is clean, quickly put on a diaper and clothes to prevent the baby from catching a cold!

"No. 5 Parenting" (:yuer5h)