olive oil? baby oil? grape seed oil?

[Wriggley]

So ladies what oil are you getting for your LOs.

I am really not keen on baby oil id prefer something a bit more natural.

with my son we used olive oil and it was amazing!

though my SIL has just had a baby and have been told they no longer recommend olive oil and we should be using grape seed oil?

thoughts? should i go with the recommendation or go with the olive oil which i know worked well for our son?

 

[Giggs]

My midwife recommended sunflower oil as its thinner than olive oil and still has all the benefits, don't know anyone who has used it yet though

 

[Louloubelle78]

My sister swore by Olive Oil so will be giving it a bash, along with coconut oil as I've seen somewhere its quite good

 

[TwoRdue]

Silly question but what is the oil for

 

[Wriggley]

Silly question but what is the oil for

new babies skin often gets really dry in the early weeks so you use some oil to help the dry skin

 

[summer rain]

It's as a moisturiser olive oil is ok but there are some reasons why it isn't the best as a skin moisturiser. It isn't as easily absorbed as people think and can clog baby pores, it has quite a strong smell when you want to avoid anything strong smelling for newborns as it can distress them, unless you're buying the pricey organic stuff you can not be sure that the olive oil isn't mixed with cheaper oils or hasn't been extracted using powerful chemical solvents and olive oil goes off easily when heated or exposed to air. When it cons to eczema some claim it helps others claim it makes eczema worse, and it was definitely the latter in the case of my kids. Grape seed oil is good but coconut oil is probably the best all round oil as it is more easily absorbed, smells fairly neutral, is stable at all temperatures and for up to 8 months after opening, has gentle natural anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties, is less greasy and 'oily' than other oils and the list goes on xx

 

[summer rain]

And the only thing I would use baby oil for is lubricating mechanisms and hinges or cleaning stainless steel, it's made of highly refined petroleum by products xx

 

[rowleypolie]

Good to know, I was also lost on the oil thing. Another question... I have heard not to use soap on baby until a few months old, so do you wash baby off with warm water and then use the oil? Essential oils are big right now in my social circle would you use any of those with the coconut oil? Like lavender?

 

[Wriggley]

It's as a moisturiser olive oil is ok but there are some reasons why it isn't the best as a skin moisturiser. It isn't as easily absorbed as people think and can clog baby pores, it has quite a strong smell when you want to avoid anything strong smelling for newborns as it can distress them, unless you're buying the pricey organic stuff you can not be sure that the olive oil isn't mixed with cheaper oils or hasn't been extracted using powerful chemical solvents and olive oil goes off easily when heated or exposed to air. When it cons to eczema some claim it helps others claim it makes eczema worse, and it was definitely the latter in the case of my kids. Grape seed oil is good but coconut oil is probably the best all round oil as it is more easily absorbed, smells fairly neutral, is stable at all temperatures and for up to 8 months after opening, has gentle natural anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties, is less greasy and 'oily' than other oils and the list goes on xx

my only issue with coconut oil is fact we are having a summer baby and i remember as a child my mum would use this to attract the sun to help her sun tan :/ lol so i worried that it will just attract the sun which is obviously not the best thing for baby

 

[summer rain]

It doesn't 'attract' the sun if you apply any type of oil and sit in the sun it's supposed to help you tan but its dubious as to whether this is the case and also you're not going to put a baby in direct sunlight as that would be dangerous. SCBUs advise coconut oil for the babies in incubators and they are in the heat and in some cases under uv lights for jaundice treatment so if there was any risk they would not recommend its use.

 

[summer rain]

Good to know, I was also lost on the oil thing. Another question... I have heard not to use soap on baby until a few months old, so do you wash baby off with warm water and then use the oil? Essential oils are big right now in my social circle would you use any of those with the coconut oil? Like lavender?

I wouldn't use the oil routinely just if you see baby getting the startings of dry skin, cradle cap or eczema. The skin can moisturise itself pretty well if given the chance and using any type of moisturiser daily can affect this ability. Essential oils you can use but great care needs to be taken to make sure they are being used in very very dilute quantities and that they are oils suitable for babies, some of them can have quite strong effects on the nervous system, some can have a hormonal effect (tea tree) and some are potentially highly allergenic. I wouldn't use any essential oils on or around babies until at least 3 months of age personally xx

 

[MrsClark24]

Our midwives have all said olive oil, and I only had DD 3 weeks ago! It's worked wonders for us, shes really suffered from dry skin too!

 

[Pink Flowers]

we used avocado oil last time, it worked so well.

 

[NewlyWedFifi]

I went shopping specifically for an oil to use on baby yesterday, ended up getting coconut oil. I love it on my own skin and hair so hopefully it will be good for DD.