How to Wash Baby Clothes

When you wash baby clothes, remember that while hard soaps and detergents may work well on baby clothes, they certainly are not good on her skin. This is because your baby has very sensitive skin. So, you may have to choose separate washing agents to wash baby clothes. Also, when you wash baby clothes, keep in mind that it can be time consuming and they need to be carefully attended to. If they are not cleaned properly, you baby can suffer from problems like diaper rashes or skin infections.

Remember not to use too much of detergent when you wash baby clothes. These can cause irritation on her skin. Always rinse them thoroughly.

How can I wash baby clothes?

• If possible, buy a detergent that is free from dyes and fragrances as these can harm your baby's skin. Some detergents contain mild fragrances that is okay on your baby's soft skin. Most babies can tolerate regular detergent in very small quantities. If you don't want to buy special detergent/soap, use an extra rinse to remove all traces of detergent.
• Rinse the cloth diapers soaked with urine under cold running tap water and other soiled cloth diapers in the toilet bowl and then place them in a bucket with a tight lid. You can either use water in the storage bucket or not - adding a little vinegar to the water in the bucket prevents smells as the vinegar will neutralize the ammonia in urine which causes the smell.
• When washing the cloth diapers, first soak the cloth diapers in water to which a disinfectant has been added. Soaking time should be around 30-45 minutes. (Usual disinfectants like Dettol need a contact time of only half an hour and must be thoroughly rinsed afterwards).
• Now wash with a small quantity of detergent and rinse several times.
• Hang them out for drying.
• Soak the laundry in a bucketful of detergent mixed with cold water. This prevents your baby's clothes from shrinking.
• Rinse them thoroughly to ensure that there is no detergent remaining on the clothes. If in doubt, you can consider giving them an extra rinse.
• You can use dryers to dry her clothes.

Video on Washing Cloth Diapers

Baby Laundry detergents available in India

Oxywash manufactured by Enzyme Technologies Private Limited has a baby care detergent that is specially designed for your baby’s delicate skin. Pigeon India also has a laundry detergent specifically for baby clothes.