Washing Detergent for Babies: Do You Really Need One?

Every parent to be is trying to get ready for a baby to arrive as much as possible. The outfits have been carefully selected and bought. The nursery is furnished, accessories and toys are acquired. That is a correct and responsible approach to parenthood. It always seems that some details are missing. Finding a good detergent for babies is one of them. Besides, it appears that you almost do not know anything about how to wash baby clothes and take care after them to ensure their lasting performance. So, first of all, it is necessary to answer the question if newborn laundry detergent is needed. Is there the possibility to go without it?

Baby Laundry Detergent: Pros and Cons

We all know that all the products with the label For Newborns or Safe for Children are more expensive than regular ones. All detergents for babies are no exception. The shelves are full of products that claim to be safe for your child. However, is it really so? Can you trust all these labels and marketing tricks they use nowadays to attract customers?

To decide on whether you are going to need a washing detergent for babies or not, think about how you are going to laundry endless outfits that are changed up to a dozen times per day. Put all the optimistic hopes aside, your child will leave a lot of stains on the outfits. Thus, it is obvious that you cannot avoid buying a baby laundry detergent. Every parent dreams of perfect and lovely parenthood, though, all these spitting-ups and poos have to be washed from the clothes of a child. So, you will definitely need a good detergent for babies that has to be effective against stains, as well as not harmful for the sensitive skin of your child.

Baby Safe Detergent: Is It Indeed Safe?

The next step is checking a washing detergent for babies you are going to use for laundry. First of all, do not buy a big bottle. If your newborn turns out to be allergic to it, you will simply waste money on this big bottle. After you choose and buy one of the safe detergents, try it with your clothes:

• Carefully read the quantity needed for one cycle and do not use more.
• After the laundry, assess if the clothes are clean enough, as well as check the smell and if fabrics are rinsed sufficiently.
• Additional recommendation: no matter what is written on the label of detergent for babies’ clothes, always rinse the outfits twice.
• If your clothes are not clean enough, this infant laundry detergent is unlikely to cope with newborn outfits. Increasing the quantity is not the way out as it may lead to irritations and negative reactions on the skin of your child. This is absolutely unacceptable.
• Try wearing the clothes after washing them with a gentle detergent for babies and be attentive to the skin reactions. If it is dry, red or irritated, forget about this detergent.

All Baby Laundry Detergents: Necessity or Marketing?

All in all, it is possible to say that detergent for a baby should fulfill its function and be effective in washing out stains, as well as does not cause irritations or any other problems with the skin. The same functions are assigned to a detergent for adults. For this reason, lots of parents nowadays, instead of looking for a specifically-labeled sensitive detergent for babies, are using the one they are buying for themselves. This is an acceptable option if a detergent you use is really a hypoallergenic clothes detergent. Besides, this approach has been recently approved by dermatologists. The most important is to select a product that will not harm the skin of adults and babies alike. Besides, in the case of utilizing it for your baby, it is still better to rinse the laundry twice. Each machine has got this function. This is an effortless way to stay on the safe side.

Thus, the decision to buy a special product or to use the one for adults is up to you to make. However, there are still certain aspects to take into considerations while choosing a baby-safe laundry detergent.

How to Identify a Safe Laundry Detergent Suitable for a Baby

Despite the decision you have made on a detergent to use, the one for adults or specifically designed for babies, be sure to check the contents of a product before you buy it. Pay attention and be sure that the one you opt for:

• Is one of the hypoallergenic detergents: first, this has to be written on the label. However, it is quite hard to be sure until you try it out. That is why when you use a detergent for the first time, be very attentive to the skin reactions of your baby. If any doubts or suspicions, take these clothes off.
• Contains no fragrances: they can, first of all, cause allergic reactions. Besides, a newborn should feel the smell of its mother and breast milk, not the artificial fragrance of the outfits. Here, it is worth mentioning that unscented is not equal to fragrance-free. In the first case, there are certain artificial smells, though, they are not so obvious or masked. Thus, be sure that the product you choose contains no fragrance. While in the shop, open a bottle and check the smell on your own.
• Is dye-free: once again, such products may cause baby detergent allergy.
• Is composed of plant-based substances: on the contrary, products that have chemically-based contents tend to be more irritating for the skin of your child. Hence, look for organic detergent for babies or adults. They tend to create fewer problems.

Safety Always Comes First

As it is important for parents to care for the skin of their child, they pay particular attention to the quality of products they choose for their child. However, this is essential to remember that any chemical imposes danger to your kid. The gentle laundry detergent you have been so carefully selecting may become a real threat to the health and even the life of your child if it finds it somewhere in the bathroom.

Thus, rule number one is to store all the chemicals out of the reach of children. You should be extremely cautious and do not let your curious toddler play in the bathroom or closet where chemicals are stored.

When dealing with outfits of infants and toddlers, the nature of stains becomes different: food and chocolates, grass and dirt. To achieve a clean state of these clothes becomes harder and harder. Though, it is still better to avoid using bleaches, brighteners, and laundry pods. The latter is becoming widely popular as they have great results. However, this is the most dangerous. These detergents are highly concentrated. Thus, better avoid using them for kids’ clothes. The skin of your toddler is still quite sensitive, so it is preferable to opt for a non-allergenic detergent.

Safe and Non-Allergenic Laundry Detergent: Important to Know

Is laundry detergent safe for the skin of your child? On the other hand, what harm can it cause and how? These are the most common questions of parents who are trying to protect their child from possible threats the world around has. Here are a couple of considerations and additional tips you should pay attention to.

First of all, the skin of your baby is too thin to withstand strong impacts, despite the source. Sun, air, chemicals, and everything around is new for a baby that has spent 9 months in the most comfortable ambient. When it comes to detergent, this is the product that is in direct contact with the skin of your baby. Adults are already accustomed to numerous chemicals and are even not sensitive to additives that are more aggressive. While the skin of a baby will react immediately. Hence, stay always attentive when trying something new for a child: be it a new laundry detergent for sensitive skin, shampoo, and even food.

Besides, never forget to rinse the clothes twice, as well as to choose the detergent suitable for the machine you are going to use. Those who have got high-efficiency machines should check is a detergent is suitable for it. In such a way, the result will be more satisfactory, while there will be no harm caused to the machine. On the bottle, look for the indicated HE which stands for high-efficiency.

The List of Hypoallergenic Laundry Detergents Safe for a Baby

When it comes to choosing a sensitive skin laundry detergent, we are looking for the one with a gentle impact on fabrics. Though, it does not mean that the efficiency should be sacrificed. Present-day products have achieved the level that combines effectiveness along with careful handling outfits while they are washed. Here is the list from which you can pick a hypoallergenic detergent for babies:

• Puracy

  This is the brand of natural hypoallergenic laundry detergent for babies. Its peculiar feature is that it has been designed by doctors with plant-based components. This is a safe option for the skin of your child as there are no brighteners, aggressive additives, chlorides, sulfates or animal byproducts. Besides, this is an eco-friendly product that will cause no harm to the sewage or your washing machine. Except for the bottle that is plastic. Those who care for the eco-impact will have to bring to a recycling point. It is also HE-labelled. Besides, it is quite concentrated, thus, one bottle will let you make almost a hundred loads of machine, thus, this product is budget-saving. Hence, those who are looking for a product that will gently care for the skin of a child, while it is effective enough to remove stains, Puracy will be a great pick.

• Molly’s Suds

  The detergent specially designed to be used with hard water. In general, if your water is hard, give preference to a powder product. It is better dissolved and better rinsed under these conditions. This is one of the all-purpose products as it is suitable for cold and hot, soft and hard water. Besides, it is composed of only five ingredients, none of them can cause allergy. the only exception is a peppermint, the natural scent added in it, that can lead to allergy only if the skin is sensitive to this product. This hypoallergenic baby detergent is economical, as you will need just a tablespoon per one load. It can be used for any machine. Be especially attentive to the place where to store this product as the packaging is not reliable.

• Dreft

  This is the brand of a laundry detergent safe for babies that is 80 years old. Quite impressive, isn’t it? Besides, this one has been recommended by thousands of pediatricians and lots of users across the continents. Those who are looking for the safest products for their kids should pay particular attention to this detergent. It is designed for newborns, besides, there have been clinical tests carried out that prove the effectiveness of this product. Parents who have chosen cloth diapers may be sure that this detergent is safe for the most sensitive parts of their newborns. Though, keep in mind that Dreft products have light scents, as well as be ready that the price is a bit higher than average.

• ECOS

  This is the alternative for those who care not only about the quality of the product but also about the impact on the environment, as well as the process of manufacture. In this case, ECOS is the right pick. This is not only a fully natural plant-based product but also is produced with the use of green energy. The bottle in which it is sold can be recycled. Ingredients are biodegradable, hence, you may have no worries about the environmental impact at all. It is safe to use and safe to dispose of. This product is suitable for regular and HE machines. However, the fact that softeners are included in the content of ECOS detergent makes it impossible for cloth diapers. Besides, a light scent that it has is not always what parents expect from non-allergenic laundry detergent.

• Mrs. Meyer’s Clean Day

  One more product chosen by parents for themselves and their kids. 97% of natural plant-based ingredients are used to manufacture this safe laundry detergent. Besides, the quarter of the material used for the production of the bottle is made of recycled materials. This is a liquid product that is quite concentrated, thus, you will need just one ounce per one load. You can expect that with it, you will have 64 loads. Though, still, the cost is higher in comparison to other detergents on the market. It has a light scent that is disliked by some customers. It is important to know that Mrs. Meyer’s detergent has been tested by dermatologists and is acknowledged to cause no skin irritations.

• Dreft Purtouch Baby Liquid

  This is another product of a famous brand. It is 65% plant-based that is recognized as an advantage by some users. While those who give preference to exclusively organic products find this detergent unacceptable. It is claimed that 99% of stains can be removed with it, including those from food. Thus, this is the choice of parents whose toddlers love eating on their own. This is the product of the brand recommended by pediatricians for being safe and causing no irritations and allergies. Only neutral and safe components have been used in the process of manufacture. Though the cost is not so budget-saving, this is a number-one detergent for many parents.

• Rockin’ Green

  Another alternative for parents who care for the environment and prefer cloth diapers. This is a plant-based and also cruelty-free product. Besides, it is biodegradable. You can be sure that the skin of your child isn’t under threat because this detergent contains no dyes, brighteners or other chemicals that can cause irritation. Being a powder product, it copes with cloth diapers, is fully rinsed from fibers, and does not clog them. However, this is not the product to opt for if you have got hard water. As it is always with powders, the package is extremely dangerous for children, hence, it shall never be left in the places accessible to children.

• 3-in-1 Grab Green Natural

  No matter which quality of water or which machine you have got, this powder detergent will be suitable. It’s hypoallergenic and completely non-toxic. This is one of the biodegradable products that are safe for the sewage system, besides, it is produced with the view to eco-friendliness and cruelty-free concept. Some users complain about the strong smell of the pack. Thus, if you are sensitive to smells, this is not the option for you.

Final Say on Baby Laundry Detergents

Nowadays, the choice of products is abundant, especially for children. Parents put effort and are ready to pay more for the safety and comfort of their kids. This is where greedy manufacturers try to line their pockets. Thus, the label Safe for Babies does not always imply the same. For this reason, parents should always stay tuned and not ignore blogs and forums where other people may complain and share their negative experiences with the use of a certain product. While looking for laundry detergent for babies’ clothes, be sure to check the content, smell, and the process of manufacture. Those who follow eco-friendly trends should pay attention to the possibility of recycling and if a product meets a cruelty-free concept. Be careful with the first use of any detergent and always remember to keep it far from the kids’ reach. Safety rules and precautions should never be disregarded.