J&J baby washes not so good?

pawcall

I've heard this, so I'll probably avoid them at least at first.  What are some good alternatives?  I registered for an Aveeno gift basket because Aveeno has always been so great for MY sensitive skin - but apparently Aveeno is a J&J product too.  Wonder if that makes it a no no too...

What are you guys using?

honey740

I will be using the J&J ones, I love the lavender- even for myself.

houndbaby

We use California Baby products

jaejaevee

We never had any problems with the J&J stuff (we've also used Aveeno and Up & Up), but we also don't use soaps very often.  We use the lotion pretty much every day. 

I was told by the pedi that soap dries baby skin so to use it only when needed.  Otherwise, we just do warm water and a good scrub.

I'm not sure that's a helpful answer at all.

wmramsel

I'm going to see if she has an reactions first.  

pawcall

wmramsel:

I'm going to see if she has an reactions first.  

I think this is a wise tactic.  People can go a bit overboard with the OMGDON'TBUYTHIS stuff.  I'll get some of the aveeno and see how it works.  Someone also gave me a bottle of the J&J baby wash - I'm sure I'll use that too unless there's an issue.

Milo5181

I know it's expensive but I registered for a Mustela gift set at Buy Buy Baby. My mom is French, and since it is a French brand, it reminds me of my childhood. I just trust them implicitly... this is dumb. I'm going to go research now.

ETA: Seems like the main problem with Mustela is the price! Everyone raves about how great it is for sensitive skin. I am currently using the Mustela Stetch Mark prevention cream and although I doubt it will work, it smells fantastic. 

companion cube

I think this is like the dry max pampers thing. Some babies have had a reaction, but with babies people get easily worked up and it gets blown out of proportion. Every baby will have different sensitivities and allergies, you'll have to find what works right for you.

MichelleL1118

Aveeno is fine, even though its a J&J product.  Other highly recommended alternatives are California Baby & Burt's Bees.

DragonflyBelle

We have never used anything but J&J and I have never heard anything negative about their products. Regular baby wash/scent at first and now we use the Honey-Apple scent. We used the lavender briefly but some people in the fam were allergic to it, so we stopped.

One of my best friends used the Aveeno and never had any issues either, so I think it's really trial and error as far as what may irritate and what won't. I think a good indicator may be yours and your H's skin. If one or both of you is super-sensitive, you may want to look for an organic wash for sensitive skin like Angel Baby.

layersofmeaning

I'll be using Mustela baby products. I've used their lines before (maternity & some baby products - on myself) and I love them!

mommajen8

thats all we use. even when he was a newborn. why are they not so good??

a-beautiful-mess

houndbaby:

We use California Baby products

This is what I'm registered for.

If we get J&J products, no big deal. I'll try it and if it works for Pip, great; if not, I'll give it to one of my friends. 

darlene'smommy

J&j was very drying on my daughter. It caused her to have really bad eczema. We changed her lotion to aveeno but used no soap for the first year. I would use aveeno Shen at other peoples home or during the day. At bedtime we put Vaseline on her. We will use aveeno this time around again. Not sure if we will use body wash. My daughters pedi told us babies don't need body wash until they start walking and playing outside warm water and a wash cloth what she told us to do.

layersofmeaning

Milo5181:

I know it's expensive but I registered for a Mustela gift set at Buy Buy Baby. My mom is French, and since it is a French brand, it reminds me of my childhood. I just trust them implicitly... this is dumb. I'm going to go research now.

I'm using Mustela as well, I've used them before and love their products.

nurseJK

https://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/formaldehyde-47031201 The bad thing is these are not on the product labels. Reading the list sounds like our kids will all end up with cancer if we use these products. There is a lawsuit against J&J and walmart for selling the shampoos. Siiiigggghhh. Geeze. I have aveeno products on my registry and target brand. I will think about it... burts bees isn't on there at all so maybe it is okay. The issue is that they possibly have cancerous products though... not whether or not they will cause a reaction.

discovolante

I registered for Aveeno, but I'm not averse to using J&J if I receive some. I have sensitive skin though, so we'll see how LO ends up.

freeatlast2014

I'm going w/Baby Magic - not sure who makes it - but my mom used on all of us kids and the smell just reminds me of childhood.

pixieprincss

I don't get why J&J gets a worse rap than any other non-natural brand which all tend to contain all kinds of things that are less than optimal. The amount of icky stuff in pretty much any conventional bath or beauty product is shocking.   Even seemingly natural brands can be rife with greenwashing (for example JASON products always surprise me with the stuff they have in them that I don't think they should). This website is an excellent source for researching each product based on its own merits: https://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/ rather than brand-name generalizaions (either good or bad).

Mrs2DUCKSinLOVE

I think it depends on each baby. My friend loves Burt's Bee Baby. I love the smell of it and the natural ingredients are enticing, so I will try it.

wmramsel

nurseJK:

https://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/formaldehyde-47031201 The bad thing is these are not on the product labels. Reading the list sounds like our kids will all end up with cancer if we use these products. There is a lawsuit against J&J and walmart for selling the shampoos. Siiiigggghhh. Geeze. I have aveeno products on my registry and target brand. I will think about it... burts bees isn't on there at all so maybe it is okay. The issue is that they possibly have cancerous products though... not whether or not they will cause a reaction.

I'm not going to lie, when I hear someone say "this/that has a potentially cancer causing ingredient", I roll my eyes.  It may be true, it may not be true, but you hear it SO often that it seems EVERYTHING has some kind of cancer causing product in it.  I mean, J&J products have been around for how long?  Not to mention the above ingredients are found in OUR shampoos and conditioners and all that too, not just kids'.

MrsYam

I've always used J&J baby wash on DD. She's never had any kind of reaction to it. I don't really like their baby lotion though, so I use the Aveeno lavender one.

Honestly, those natural brands may be "better" for the skin, but they're expensive. With the cost of diapers, wipes and other expenses, I don't really find buying $12.00 baby wash necessary. 

The only reason I'd even consider buying anything other than J&J is if my child had sensitive skin, which DD does not. 

 

broccolitree

It all depends on your kid & your family.  One SIL is in love with the lavender-scented J&J baby washes because they made her son go to sleep in minutes.  Another SIL likes Aveeno because both her kids had eczema.  We have friends who just use some generic, and their kid's skin is just as baby soft as any other kid I know.

I'm going for Aveeno stuff because I use their adult products, and it's one of the few brands where the scent doesn't make my H's allergies go nuts.  Also, one of my aunts works for J&J and is letting us use her employee discount, so booya. heh.

wmramsel

broccolitree:

It all depends on your kid & your family.  One SIL is in love with the lavender-scented J&J baby washes because they made her son go to sleep in minutes.  Another SIL likes Aveeno because both her kids had eczema.  We have friends who just use some generic, and their kid's skin is just as baby soft as any other kid I know.

I'm going for Aveeno stuff because I use their adult products, and it's one of the few brands where the scent doesn't make my H's allergies go nuts.  Also, one of my aunts works for J&J and is letting us use her employee discount, so booya. heh.

**Jealous** I wish I had some connections in the baby department! 

tfarabians

Our Pedi had us use Cetaphil baby wash for the first 6 mo.  Its the most gentle and great for super sensitive skin.  After that we switched to j&j.  I love the smell of it and the vapor bath is wonderful for little ones with colds.  If ds had a diaper rash I would do the aveno oatmeal bath.  So I have used a little bit of everything.  Its really personal preference but I don't think any of the j & j products are harmful.

columbiamommy

We use Burt's Bees and have used Aveeno before.  I like them both, but Burt's Bees is my favorite. 

SBear12

We love Burt's Bees. That's been Lyla's "signature scent" since she was a newborn. I like Aveeno too, though.

cera.rn

I have registered for Mustela products

PeetiePie

houndbaby:

We use California Baby products

I've heard lots of great things about these products, but I have no experience using them.

cosmobella

We love Burt's Bees wash/shampoo but we use Aveeno lotion. 

izzourclue

I'm just going to use Dove unscented sensitive skin body wash or bar soap, whichever handles easier.  We use those and they work great for our sensitive skin and Baby Bargains recommended it rather than spending extra money on baby-specific products.  When her hair starts to grow a bit, I will probably use No More Tears baby shampoo.  For lotions, I'm sticking with Aveeno. 

kknapp25

wmramsel:

I'm going to see if she has an reactions first.  

we will probably be doing the same thing. if so, the back up is mustela or california baby. i also like burts bees products i just can't always find them by me.

dxiechicken41

I'm going to use the traditional yellow body/hair wash and pink lotion. Target brand, even! *gasp*

Oleg&Liz

Anyone read "Slow death by Rubber Duck"? It tells you all about the toxic chemicals in our environment including tolietries and J&J products are not any safer just because their geared for babies and children. Phthalates, parabens, and fragrance are items I have tried to stay away from since in the hair care, soaps, shampoo's, and all other tolietry items since I read this book.

I registered for and recently recieved a burt's bee's baby gift basket and method baby wash products from my shower. I'm also trying to stay away from bleached products and plan to use 7th generation diapers.

 Other toxic concerns are BFR's or fire retardents. Studies have shown that high levels in cord blood lead to lower IQ, memory and learning problems in these children. Formaldehyde, the glue in MDF, also shows brain damage in children exposed to high levels. I had to send back a PB crib because the mattress platform was composed of MDF and reeked of formaldehyde. Anyway, the list goes on and they are just recently realizing that this stuff really is not good for us. Most product manufacturers don't seem to care that stuff their selling may be harmful to people or the environment they're just trying to make money.