Nappy rash hub ☰

What causes nappy rash?

The most common cause of nappy rash is when your baby’s skin becomes inflamed after contact with the chemicals in urine or faeces.

Nappy rash is likely to occur if nappies are not changed often enough or if your baby has diarrhoea. However, if your baby has particularly sensitive skin, it can occur even when the nappy area is frequently cleaned.

Sometimes friction caused by the nappy rubbing against your baby’s delicate skin or washing detergents that have not been thoroughly rinsed out of terry nappies (reusable nappies) can also cause nappy rash to the develop.

 

When is nappy rash more likely to occur?

Nappy rash can affect your baby’s bottom at any time and the reasons can be unclear. Particularly as some babies naturally have more sensitive skin and may be more prone to the condition.
However, there are certain times when babies are especially susceptible to nappy rash, such as:

 

	During teething.
	Changing from breast to bottle feeding.
	When your baby feels unwell. (If your baby has a cold, their stools may be soft; meaning that nappy rash may be more likely to occur.)
	After antibiotics (Which can upset a baby’s digestive system causing diarrhoea.)
	Starting on solid foods.
	Sleeping a full night for the first time (Meaning that their nappy may be changed less often.)
	Drinking cow’s milk for the first time.