Chapsticks are not recommended for children below 2 years. The commercial lip balms are also not good for your child. You need to use other natural remedies to cure your baby’s chapped lips.
There are many organic products which you can use for your child. This will prevent your child from licking any harmful chemicals from the balms. Also baby lips are sensitive to the chemicals found in chapsticks and common lip balms. Instead you should follow some very common home remedies to prevent dry lips or chapped lips for your child. The home remedies involve keeping your child hydrated and keeping the room environment moist. You should also limit your infant’s exposure to the outside atmosphere, because his/her skin is too tender.
Why do chapped lips happen?
Chapped lips happen due to dryness. In case of babies it can crack and start bleeding. According to Paller & Mancini (2015) there can be several reasons for children to suffer from chapped lips.
Firstly, it depends on the air in the atmosphere. If the air is dry then your child’s skin will become drier much quickly. The winter season is the most challenging time. The weather will be dry and it can affect your child’s tender lips.
Secondly, if you take your infant too much into the sun, then also the risk of chapped lips arises. Dehydration is another reason causing chapped lips for children. You can detect dehydration amongst infants when you will find that their noses are blocked with snot. They will be breathing with their mouth open.
The internal dryness of the body also affects the tender skin of your child. The overall moisture content diminishes. Finally, some kids constantly lick their lips. This also causes the overall dryness and flakiness of the lips.
Moreover, if your baby is teething then there will be an endless stream of saliva coming out from the mouth. That dries the lips pretty quickly. That is why you need to take special care for your child’s chapped lips.
Chapped lips are very irritating for adults. But babies it is extra challenging. That is because it makes feeding very difficult. Also if their lip skin breaks and they start to bleed then the situation worsen.
Are Chapsticks okay to us?
The answer, as mentioned before, is unfortunately a no. You cannot use chapsticks if your child is below 2 years old. Commercial lip balms tend to have other chemicals which can numb your child’s lips.
Also they can cause sore lips. Neither of the cases is helpful for a child. If you are using chapsticks, then you cannot stop your child from licking some of it from his/her lips. Flavored lip balms have a certain taste to them. Your child might enjoy gulping them up.
This will eventually cause severe stomach upset and indigestion. Moreover, the balm on the lips will also dry out completely, due to the licking. Hence there is no point using chapsticks or lip balms to cure the dry flaky lips of your child.
What can be used instead?
If your child is suffering from chapped lips then you must use some other products in order to prevent it. Lanolin products can come to be very handy. Lanolin is organic. Many mothers use lanolin to cure cracked nipples during breastfeeding.
Just gently dab a little amount of lanolin, on your child lips. Keep them moisturized throughout the day. There is no way you can stop your child from licking the moisturizer from his/her lips. That is why try and apply lanolin when he/she falls asleep. Night time is very good time for applying lanolin.
Breastfeeding moms can also leave some milk on her child’s lips. Breast milk has natural anti-bacterial properties. This prevents your child’s lip from getting chapped or catches infection after being cracked.
Lips are very tender skin. A child’s lips are even tenderer than an adult. You must do your best to ensure that his/her lips are well protected.
How to prevent chapped lips?
Prevention is better than cure. That is why you must do your best to make sure that your child does not suffer from chapped lips. Follow the steps and ensure that your child does not get their lips chapped or flaky:
Keep your Child Hydrated:
Dry skin and chapped lips mostly occurs due to the lack of water in the body. Dehydration is one of the main causes of chapped lips. That is why it is important that you keep your child hydrated all the time. Feed him/her with plenty of water and fluid so that their skins and bodies are always well nourished.
Limit the external exposure:
Direct exposure to the sun and the dry winter wind will quickly squeeze the moisture from your child’s body. It will leave your little one all dry and thirsty. That is why try and keep your infant indoors, unless it is absolutely necessary for you to take him/her out of the house.
Moisturize the Room:
If you are staying in a dry climate then you should humidify your room. Infants and young children do not have moisture retention capacity like we adults do. Moreover, no matter how much fluid you have them have, their frequency of urination is much higher. That leaves them vulnerable to dehydration. A humidified room will make sure that your child’s bodily fluid is not robbed from him/her.
Precautions & Considerations:
Apart from all the above mentioned tips, you can feed your child with Vitamin E and C rich fruits and vegetables. This helps to maintain a healthy skin. Offer him/her with foods which make the liver functions regular and proper. A healthy liver often reflects into a healthy glowing skin. If your child has a generally bad skin then you can apply the above mentioned cure. However, look forward for some allergies. If your child is allergic to certain things, it is better to avoid them. But under normal cases, these natural remedies are pretty harmless.
In case of consistent problems like dry patches or itchiness, you might decide to consult the doctor. Sometimes the problems are chronic. Hence cannot be treated by home remedies. In such cases your child requires medication and ointment.
Reference:
https://www.momtricks.com/babies/can-i-give-my-baby-chapstick/
