One of the first products I replaced in my home was baby wipes. Temen frequently got diaper rashes from her antibiotics, which made her hate diaper changes with a burning (literally) passion. I had already dipped my toes in the cleaner home waters, so I thought maybe the chemicals in her wipes were hurting her. Or, at the very least, maybe they weren’t hurting her – but they weren’t helping her.
I found that Pampers Baby Wipes contained:
- Fragrance I have conflicting feelings about this. When the term “fragrance” is used on a label, it indicates a combination of nearly 3,000 fragrant ingredients. This label is really just a possible way to slip some nasty things in there, because companies aren’t required to disclose what is included in fragrance. You don’t know if it’s synthetic or natural fragrances, and it often includes harmful phthalates. Because of this, when you see the label “fragrance” it could contain possible carcinogens or allergens. I allow fragrance in my Mrs. Meyers products because they’ve publicly said it does not include phthalates, but even then, I am still trying to remove Mrs. Meyers products from my home. (We’re down to Mrs. Meyers dish soap, hand soap, and hand lotion in bathroom and kitchen.)
- Phenoxyethanol This is a synthetic preservative, not found in natural extracts. It’s listed as a possible skin irritation and potential neurotoxin. In 2006 the FDA even said that Phenoxyethanol is toxic to infants because it can depress the central nervous system and may cause vomiting and diarrhea, which can lead to dehydration. Many countries and regulatory agencies have this as either prohibited or ‘limit use’.
So here’s what I did. I decided not to use it anymore! Better to be safe than sorry, I made my own baby wipes with ingredients that I know are totally safe, non-toxic, and likely to help her diaper rash because of the coconut oil and another little helper.
Homemade Natural Baby Wipes
Natural, homemade baby wipes that soothe diaper rash and keep your baby's tush toxin free.
Ingredients
- 1 Air tight container
- 1 Paper towel roll, cut in half
- 1 cup Water
- 1 tbsp Organic Coconut Oil
- 1 tbsp Dr. Bronners Castile Soap
- 5 drops Lavender Essential Oil
Instructions
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Boil water.
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Once boiling, remove from heat and add coconut oil.
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Stir to melt.
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Once melted, add castile soap and essential oils.
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Stir.
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Cut paper towel roll in half.
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Remove center cardboard.
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Place paper towel roll in air tight container.
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Once water, coconut oil, castile soap, and essential oil has cooled down, pour over paper towel roll slowly.
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Place cover, enjoy!
Recipe Notes
It’s honestly so easy. In fact, I whipped up a batch this morning before work. And if you knew me, you’d know I usually wake up about fifteen minutes before I have to be out the door! (Sleep is too good.)
Helpful tips:
- I use natural paper towels as often as I can, and Young Living’s essential oils. Per my research, they are the purest and most trustworthy/unadulterated oils. When I’m rubbing that on my baby’s bottom I’m not going to take any chances! (You can sign up to be a Young Living member HERE.)
- These last two weeks before you should ditch them, but we use them in about a week so haven’t had any issues with that.
- Typically, this recipe costs us just under two cents a wipe when we use the full paper towel size, which is just a little bit cheaper than Kirkland, and most definitely cheaper than others. When we use select-a-size, it’s obviously even more affordable!
I mark Lavender essential oil as optional, but in our house it’s a total must. It calms Temen’s tush, supports her emotionally (we’ve seen a dramatic change in her at night after we started using lavender in her routine), it’s also been proven to support your urinary tract and circulation. So, we use it. But you can see what works for you, maybe it’s lavender, maybe it’s something else, or maybe it’s nothing.
There you have it – homemade baby wipes! And here’s a little secret: I use this recipe as a base for my face wipes too.
xxoo,
Samm
