How To: Bathe a your gentle newborn baby

How to Bathe a Newborn Baby

Patty Siegrist shares some tips on how to bathe a newborn baby on this BabyCenter video. Set up for the bath by setting the room temperature to 74 degrees 15 minutes before the bath. It is safe to bathe a newborn in a tub after the umbilical cord stump has fallen off.

Prepare the bath area with a large bath blanket on a surface with the clean clothes, a hooded bath towel, Q-tips, a comb, washcloths, and towels.

Line the bath tub with a towel to prevent the baby from slipping. Add hot water first, then cool water. The water should be warm, but no hotter than 90 degrees. You can test the water with your elbow.

Keep one hand around the baby until he or she can sit up alone.

With a washcloth, wipe all the little baby parts, starting with the cleanest parts. Use a Q-tip only for behind the ears, do not go inside the ears. Wash in between all the folds. Wash the bottom area last, from front to back. With circumcised boys, don’t use soap.

Remove the baby from the tub. Wrap the baby in the towel and hold the baby over the tub to wash the hair.

Some bath tubs come with a thermometer in the bottom of the tub.

When the baby gets a little bigger, you can take the baby into the bathtub with you.