Can you use diaper cream on cloth diapers? List of popular rash creams
When you have a baby in diapers, having the occasional diaper rash is to be expected.
But when you are using cloth diapers you have to be a little more mindful of which diaper cream you are using.
Many people simply go to the store and buy a diaper cream that doesn’t contain ingredients that are harmful to cloth diapers, others make their own and some buy a cloth diaper specific cream.
Finding a cloth diaper safe diaper cream can seem like a pretty daunting task, but once you have a basic idea of what you are looking for things get a lot easier.
If you are interested in more information on cloth diapering basics check out my article ” How hard is it to cloth diaper”
Cloth diaper safe diaper creams
There are many diaper creams that are very popular with cloth diapering parents that are cloth diaper safe but not specifically made for use with cloth diapers.
Top 4 diaper creams not specifically made for cloth diapers
- CJ’s BUTTer
- Earth mama organic diaper balm
- Burt’s Bees baby multipurpose healing ointment
- Honest company diaper rash cream
A few cloth diaper manufacturers make their own cloth diaper safe diaper cream, the most popular are
- Grovia magic stick
- Thirsties Booty love
BumGenius makes a wipe solution that does basically the same things a diaper cream would called ” bumGenius bottom cleaner” which comes in a spray bottle.
Diaper cream ingredients that are safe for cloth diapers
Coconut oil
Coconut oil is freaking amazing! it’s antibacterial, antimicrobial and antifungal, it’s also just plain good for your skin.
Most of the time the only thing I use when I notice a rash starting is coconut oil, or if I just changed a diaper with a really nasty poo, I’ll go ahead and put on some coconut oil.
Once in a while I have to break out something that has a little more kick to it like Earth mama organic diaper balm.
Zinc oxide
I personally have never noticed a problem with zinc oxide, it does leave a white stain and a little bit of a residue on cloth diapers but after about 2 washes it was gone.
However that particular diaper cream had cod liver oil in it which gave it a fishy smell and might have been the cause of the residue.
Beeswax
Beeswax creates a protective barrier making it the cloth diaper safe equivalent to petroleum.
Beeswax is also a great moisturizer, it is anti-inflammatory and antibacterial which makes it excellent for use in diaper creams.
Diaper cream ingredients that can hurt cloth diapers
Petroleum
If you are using a diaper cream with petroleum it is not safe to use with cloth diapers.
Petroleum coats the fibers of your cloth diapers and prevents them from absorbing liquid, making them useless, leaky disasters.
Petroleum has to be removed with a “degreaser” such as Dawn dish soap and a lot of hand scrubbing with hot water.
Petroleum won’t just wash out because among other things the melting point of petroleum jelly is 105*-160* F ( 40*-70* C).
And the average water heater in the USA is set to heat to 140* F but once it reaches the washing machine it’s more like 130* F.
But unless you have a tankless water heater which gives you almost instant hot water your washing machine is going to start filling with cold water that will slowly become hot.
This means the actual water temperature is probably closer to 98*-100* F when the wash cycle actually begins meaning the petroleum won’t be melted off.
Paraffin wax/oil
Paraffin is a petroleum based product therefore is will cause the same problems as petroleum.
Fish oil/ cod liver oil
Fish oils shockingly enough have kind of a fishy smell and can cause a residue to build up on the fabric of your cloth diapers that causes leaking because the pee can’t get through the fish oil barrier.
I do occasionally use A+D rash treatment cream which does contain cod liver oil, however I always use very little and only need it 2-3 times a year.
I have noticed a very light odd fishy smell and a weird residue, but that seems to wash out within 2-3 washes.
I also can’t recall having and leaking problems when the residue was still present, but once again I only ever put on a small amount.
My favorite diaper creams
The vast majority of the time I just use coconut oil, but when I do need something that has some more power to it I use these two creams.
Earth mama organic diaper balm
When I need just a little bit more than coconut oil the Earth mama diaper balm is my go-to.
It is kinda expensive at $12.99 for a 2oz container, but a little bit does go a long way, I’ve had the same container for almost 3 years and it’s still about half full.
A+D diaper rash treatment
First of all A+D diaper rash treatment cream and A+D diaper rash prevention cream are two very different things.
A+D prevention has petroleum as it’s main ingredient with the cream being 53.4% petroleum, the package is gold, brown and white.
The A+D treatment cream doesn’t have petroleum, however it does have cod liver oil which is not considered cloth diaper safe as well as zinc oxide which can cause staining.
I only use the A+D treatment cream when coconut oil and the earth mama diaper balm just aren’t cutting it.
I personally have never had any problems with it, but I only use it once in a while.
There is a little bit of a residue on the cloth diaper after it has come into contact with the A+D treatment cream but that seems to wash out after a few days
Resources
Some of the links below are affiliate links, meaning I receive a small commission (at no additional cost to you) from qualifying purchases made through those links. * Indicates an affiliate link
Link to article on the benefits of beeswax for skin on wellandgood.com
Earth mama organic diaper balm Link to Earthmama.com *
A+D diaper rash treatment cream Link to Amazon.com
Link to Grovia magic stick at thenaturalbabycompany.com *
Link to Thirsties Booty love at Thirstiesbaby.com
Link to CJ’s BUTTer at cjsbutter.us
Link to Honest company diaper cream at honestcompany.com
Link to Burt’s Bees baby multipurpose healing ointment at burtsbees.com
