Okay…How Often Do I Really Need To Change The Diaper??

How often to change diapers can be a loaded question! (Pun intended?)

The answer depends on the type of diaper you’re using, the quality of diaper you’re using, and a little bit on how many diapers per month you can budget for. I am going to answer this question using my own opinion, while keeping those things in mind.

Cloth Diapers

If you decide to use cloth diapers – Change your baby’s diaper as soon as possible, whether it’s wet with poo or pee. The cloth aspect is less absorbent and therefore the moisture needs to be removed from the skin quickly to avoid diaper rashes.

Disposable Diapers

For me, when the newborn is between 0 and 6 weeks old, I like to change disposable diapers every 1.5 to 3 hours and after they poo. Why? Because it naturally works well with the routine that I set them on. Newborns tend to poo right after they eat, so typically they will sleep for 1 to 2 hours, eat, then they have some play time, and they end up pooing while they play, so that is when I change them, and that is the clean diaper that can stay on until they poo again, which typically is after the next nap and next feed (since they follow a sleep, eat, play routine).
Newborns also despise diaper changes, and they sleep all the time, so to keep them comfortable and sleeping as much as they need to, I slather on the diaper rash cream in the early days and usually just end up only cleaning them up after poos. (Which again, is still alllll the time. Newborn babies can poo 10 times per day! And that is normal!)

When the baby is 6 weeks and older, their schedule starts to change slowly, and they pee not necessarily more frequently but in larger amounts, so I begin changing diapers every 2 hours and I continue to do so for the rest of their infancy, changing after poos and every 2 to 3 hours or as their diapers seem “full”.

If you’re looking to save on diaper costs, or simply want to reduce impact on the landfills, I think you’d be fine to go all the way up to 4 hours between diaper changes, so long as they are wet diapers only and you’re using a quality absorbent diaper.

When to Use Wipes

I really don’t go crazy with the wipes after wet diapers. A newborns’ urine is very low in toxicity and therefore is not going to irritate the skin the way their bowel movements will, if they are wearing absorbent diapers. A quick pat with a wet wipe is all I do! And I’ve always felt that too much wiping can irritate the delicate skin. But what about drying? It helps to reduce the risk of rash to let the baby’s bum air dry before you apply cream or a new diaper, but your newborn will tell you just how much they looove laying there uncovered, waiting for their skin to dry…... (They hate it.) So, either invest in some dry wipes and pat their bottom dry quickly or close up shop and hope for the best until they can tolerate some drying time.

When to use Cream

I use diaper rash cream after each poo and before the overnight sleep. I don’t use diaper rash cream at every single change and I don’t use a very thick layer either, unless there is an active rash present. I do, however, feel the need to use a cream that has a very high concentration of zinc. 16% zinc is a good find! Send me a message and I'll let you know what brands I prefer!

As always, if you ever have any questions about caring for your baby, what products to buy or how to use them, just send me a message at emily@bijoubabycarellc.com and I will happily help you out!