A friend looked at our registry and pointed out that we did not have any of this stuff on our list, just gear and swaddles, etc. I figured that like formula and diapers, each baby is different and may have good or bad reactions to certain cosmetics. But, I guess I should register for it, if for no other reason than to get the completion discount on it.
I have heard a lot of people say that Johnson & Johnson lotions are not good for babies (why is that?)
If you can reply with a definitive list of what all of the cosmetic items I need/you use are (diaper cream, powder, lotions, soaps, shampoo), and what brand you use, I would appreciate the suggestions! If there is a specific reason, add that too (for example, I only use Burt's Bees because it is made from the tear drops of virgin fawns).
Re: STMs - Lotions, soaps, shampoos, etc.
The J&J thing is mainly because they use (well, used, I believe they stopped) formaldehyde in their products. In the beginning we used Aveeno BUT they are made by the same company, so you need to make sure they don't have the same ingredients. For whatever reason, ours didn't. You can google what the actual scary ingredients are because I can't remember them. Even without those ingredients I'm not a fan of super perfumey stuff for babies, and DS has always had sensitive skin so I stay away from it anyway.
We've also used Burt's, Babyganics, etc. and all have been fine. Eventually we moved to Dr. Bronner's baby mild for soap/shampoo. I would use it on an infant, but probably not on their head/hair because it's not technically "tear free" even though it's mild. At this age obviously DS can close his eyes or move his head or whatever. I like it because it's very, very natural - no weird ingredients - and even though a bottle is expensive, it lasts FOREVER.
We use Aquafor a lot so I would suggest getting that. It's good for skin, if your baby has eczema and it's also good for diaper rashes. Rash cream we use varies depending on how the rash looks. You don't need powder for anything.
I didn't put any of that on my registry for #1, and I got a ton of Johnson and Johnson which made DD break out all over. DH also has really sensitive skin and uses Aveeno so we gave that a shot on DD and it worked for her. This time I put Aveeno lotion and baby wash on my registry and got a ton of Johnson and Johnson- it's what most people think of for babies. I sort of view toiletries like I view clothes on a registry- people will buy what they want and for the most part disregard the registry. They are more likely to buy gift sets than individual bottles though, from my experience.
I wouldn't stock up on stuff like that because you never know what works for your LO- if you can get by with using store brand by all means, save your money. If not, it will probably be a trial and error sort of scenario so look for sample/travel size bottles so at least if it does go to waste you aren't stuck with a lot mostly full bottles to get rid of.
The only response that I have for this is regarding the Johnson's lotions. I have heard and read that some of their ingredients can cause cancer. But my pedi said that they are a waste of money becasue they don't moisturize. I personally use Burt's Bees body wash and the Shea Moisture lotion. I like raw shea butter so that is why I use the Shea Moisture. It smells so good and I use it on myself also. Burt's Bees because it's good for the environment and doesn't cost much more.
Shampoo: Mixed Chicks; diaper cream: Desitin (but I rarely used that); I have Johnson's Lavender powder but I barely used that. I still have the container from when my first daughter was born and she's almost 3.
Not a fan of J & J products for reasons that pp have states (loads of cancer causing agents)
The website https://www.ewg.org/skindeep/ is a great resource
You can type in any product and it gives you a score/grade of how safe it is
I personally use Burts Bees, and california baby, both of which are avaliable at Target. Diaper cream can be ify... sometimes you just need a little chemical to clear up diaper rash if it's bad. I have had good luck with Boudreaux's Butt Paste, and it's indgrediants are ok (also avaliable in an organic version)
We originally used aquafor for a lot of needs, rubbed on butt after every change, put on face when cheeks are red, etc.
We also use diaper cream (Triple Paste is great. We never tried anything else but that worked great.
You'll need shampoo and body wash. A lot of people use one that's a combo at first, especially since most babies don't have a lot of hair.
I didn't like Johnson & Johnson and I read some articles about it having cancer-causing agents in it that are not listed on the label.
We started with Aveeno Baby products, as my sister is a dermotologist and gave them to us for free. They were a fail. The shampoo burned DD's eyes and the lotion made her skin red.
Then we tried Burt's Bees, but the shampoo wouldn't rinse out of DD's hair.
We now use Mustela, and it not only smells divine, but her eyes don't sting and her hair is clean. We use a sepearate wash and shampoo now but i don't think it's necessary until your kid has more hair.
We use the Mustela lotion as well. Babies' skin gets dry very easily and quickly and you kinda have to put lotion on them every night after their bath. DD still needs lotion almost every night in winter!
But FWIW, I'm not registering for any of that stuff
Also recommend that site. We use it to check sun protection each season, too.
We use Burt's Bees or Earth Baby Angel Baby.
DD2 8.22.13
MMC 1.4.17 at 16w
Expecting #3, EDD 1.29.18
I originally registered for BabyMagic unscented products but a friend bought me the scented stuff anyway. I returned it only to find the reason she probably bought me the scented stuff is a lot of stores (BRUs) didn't have the unscented in stock.
I ended up buying Babyganics foam n' fun soap/baby shampoo because it was the only thing I could find at BRU that day that was organic, no dyes or perfumes. It's always been something I've bought again but honestly I'm not a huge fan because guess what? Without dyes or perfumes, it doesn't have a nice smell! It doesn't smell bad per se but it's not one that I like. Just smells like the stuff in it--plants! It's tear free and DD likes the foaming part when I shoot it at her. It's also nontoxic to the point where if she drank a bottle she'd still be okay.
I also got her Say Yes to Carrots lotion. It's okay but kinda thin. (Again, organic with nothing extra.)
Down the line, DD developed bad cradle cap. I used a lot of different products as recommended by friends--coconut oil, olive oil, etc. No go. (My pediatrician wanted me to use regular dandruff shampoo but I was scared to get it in her eyes so I only tried it a few times and it didn't work anyway.) Finally a friend of a friend at a baby shower told me to try Original Sprout's line, as it specifically claimed to clear cradle cap. It wasn't cheap ($20/bottle) but it worked. And it's all natural, etc., so I don't worry about it on DD. However, I only use it when she has cradle cap (which is mostly gone but every so often--esp. this last winter when it was very dry and cold--it came back a little so I used it again.) That's only available on line and in some salons. (Our kid's stylist has it. Not any cheaper but a lot of times they'll throw in an extra gift, and no shipping.)
DD was born with a lot of hair and eventually she needed a separate conditioner. (Well, our stylist pushed it on us. I don't use it on her every bath, but it's nice.) We have both the Original Sprout one and also, we now use the Circle of Friends line of shampoos/conditioners. (Our stylist carried them, they're cheaper than O.S., and they smell great. We use the Pineapple ones.)
Diaper cream: We used Grovia MagicStick at first because we were going to cloth diaper. (Fail.) That was what we had to use to not void the warranty on the diapers. It was nice, smelled good, and easy--it's a stick (like a giant glue stick) so it didn't get on your hands. When we stopped C.D.ing we got Boudreaux's butt paste. That's good for rash and the smell is nice.
Toothpaste you won't need right away, but I stuck with organics/naturals also and got Kiss My Face for her (no fluoride yet). I also found Toms of Maine for kids (no fluoride) and we got that online. Just make sure it has no fluoride. I wanted something without dyes and neither of these have dyes, but use natural fruit flavors.
Lotion: coconut oil.Like, from the cooking aisle.
Baby wash: we're still using the original bottle nearly 2 years later, so spring for something good. Turns out DS's skin does much better if we only use it once a week or less. I did just grab a cheap bottle of J&J and kind of regret it.
Diaper Cream: I use cloth diapers, so I use mostly coconut oil. Live Clean Baby if there's a bad spot.
Powder: none, Soap: none
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I would register for small quantities or travel sdizes of a variety of brands. We loved Butt Paste but DS1 is allergic to it
I would register for shampoo, baby wash, lotion, sunscreen, rash cream, a leave in conditioner, and not cosmetic but I strongly suggest a gum cleaner for babies mouth. It makes transitioning to a toothbrush really easy.
Charlotte Ella 07.16.10
Emmeline Grace 03.27.13
I can't take any kind of fragrance so we used California baby unscented baby shampoo and lotions.
The Burt's Bees diaper cream is by far my favorite and has always taken care of DD when she had a bad one.
We normally CD and I use Grandma El's diaper rash cream on her normally unless she got really bad.
This is what we use:
Diaper cream-Desitin,got a ton from DS1's shower plus he's only had diaper rash 3 times the most. I hear Triple Paste is very good too!
Powder- we don't use this because it's unnecessary.
Lotion- California baby is our first choice. I have used Aveeno and Johnsons Natural on him though(shower gifts).
Soaps- ^^same as lotion
Shampoo-We use Baby Aquaphor for his hair but have also used California Baby.
We are a Burt's Bees family. I use Burt's Bees for myself and it has worked well for my son. We generally used Penatin for diaper rash, but my mom gave us Sudocrem that is more moisturizing and rubs in better.
J&J has all sorts of questionable chemicals in it and I'm not a fan of a lot of scent in baby products (or any products).
I never used powder. Talc based powders are a no-no, but even cornstarch based powders can be harmful if baby inhales it. So I just avoided it alltogether.
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This.
I'm not registering for much any of that either, I think I *may* have put 1 bottle of California Baby body wash on my list. I have eczema and am allergic to perfumes so I use all natural products as a rule - I intend to play around with products with LO until I find what works best. If people buy J&J then I'll just have to return it.
Edit - I also started using natural products to avoid all the nasty chemicals. I've been making my own shampoo from food-quality ingredients because it so hard to find anything that doesn't have sodium lauryl/laureth sulfate and all kinds of crap in it. Then when I got pregnant I made sure everything was natural - lip gloss, soap, lotion, because I was concerned about chemicals in my system. I would definitely avoid 99% of mass produced beauty products like the plague for baby too.
I'm a Burt's Bees, Live Clean, and Pert kinda gal We got some crazy Groupon deal on a load of J and J baby products a few months ago, so that's what I'd planned on using. Reading the other posts here has me worried though! There was a couple of bottles of their natural line of products included (foaming body wash and perhaps a shampoo?) so I figured I'd start with that.
Maybe I'd be better to donate the rest of the stuff. Hrm. Would you include that stuff with a food bank donation though? I know they're always asking for diapers and formula... Bath products are kind of along those same lines.
As an aside, I think my "Baby Shower Specialty" for shower gifts going forwards is going to be a bathtub filled with all-natural baby bath products, done up as a nice basket. It seems like the natural stuff is most preferred among new moms anyway.
Another thumbs up for this site. We use California Baby or Earth Baby Angel Baby. We also use a ton of Aquaphor.
ETA if we do need diaper rash cream, we use Flander's Buttocks Ointment, which was developed locally but is sold on Amazon. Swear by it. We don't really ever use it but keep cornstarch on hand, and we don't typically need lotion. Aquaphor takes care of any dry patches.
We use Burt's Bee's Shampoo, soap and lotion for DD because we like it and the smell is nice. Her skin is kind of sensitive and this was one of the ones that has not caused her a rash.
Dove bar soap is also great.
We never used powder because the doctor said not to. Basically the powder can get into baby's lungs and cause problems.
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