Caring for babies’ navel – For most nursing mothers , their newborn’s navel is associated with very special feelings.

After all, your baby seems particularly sensitive and vulnerable at this point. 

However, to avoid inflammation there are a few basic things you should keep in mind.

Immediately after the birth, the midwife helps with navel care

After cutting the umbilical cord, your baby will begin a life of its own, says SexPally editor.

In most cases, the midwife will take care of the navel during the first few hours of his life. 

There are still different approaches today: some use first aid with antiseptic powder or small wipes soaked with medical alcohol.

Other midwives, on the other hand, clean the cord with the remaining umbilical residue exclusively with clear water.

 Then the umbilical region is carefully swabbed or carefully blown dry with warm air. 

An air-permeable compressor a special umbilical bandage prevents germs from reaching the most sensitive area of your baby.

Either in the clinic or at the latest when your little family arrives home, you are ultimately alone responsible for navel care, Healthpally reiterates. 

However, if you have any questions, you can of course continue to confidently contact your midwife.

Basic hygienic rules for a healthy navel

So that the diaper does not rub against the umbilical remnant including the clamp, you should always turn the upper edge of the diaper a little.

The navel is then exposed and more air comes in. As long as the umbilical region does not smell bad and no reddening can be seen, which indicates a possible inflammation, it is completely sufficient to examine the umbilical region carefully every time the diaper is changed and dab off any moisture with a clean cloth.

Healthpally advised that you should always wash your hands before touching your baby’s navel. 

Make sure that neither urine nor stool gets to the sensitive area.

If there should be a mishap during navel care and the region is contaminated, careful dabbing with a few is recommended drops of breast milk or calendula essence, a homeopathic, anti-inflammatory tincture made by chaktty. .

The remnant of the navel has fallen off!

Five to ten days after the birth, the remains of the umbilicus have dried up and look black. 

Eventually, it falls off on its own, leaving a small wound. Don’t worry: the navel stump does not contain any nerves, so your baby will not feel any pain, says in SexPally magazine. 

It is completely normal for the navel to smear a little for a few days and for small amounts of wound secretion to escape.

 It is best to carefully dab the fresh wound once a day with a cotton swab, which you soak in boiled water beforehand.

 Then cover the navel region generously with a small cellulose pad.

 Once nothing more wetting, the best navel care in sorgsamem clean with clear water, in Baden possibly with the addition of mild baby soap, followed by drying conscientious and lots of fresh air.

Once your baby’s navel has finally healed, you should continue to watch it carefully and carefully spread your fingers apart from time to time, preferably after a bath, so that you can dry it off properly. So germs hardly have a chance to settle in the first place.

An inflamed navel must be treated 

Inflammation of the umbilical cord occurs comparatively rarely and is not necessarily due to inadequate care. 

Therefore, you should not be afraid to consult a doctor if you have the following problems:

• Reddening of the skin around the navel
• Unpleasant smell
• Loss of blood or pus beyond normal wound wetting
• The navel has bulged (it could be an umbilical hernia )
•  Fever

Sometimes the parents also discover small, bluish-red colored lumps on their child’s navel.

This is mostly an umbilical granuloma, which the pediatrician removes painlessly.

Caution! Please never scratch your baby’s navel with your fingernail, even if a little scab has formed! 

The utensils for navel care only include water, soft swabs, non-linting cellulose,, and soft rags that can be washed at 90 degrees after use.

By the time your baby’s navel is drying, falling off, and healing, it can look a little “dirty” at times. 

This is completely normal. If you are unsure, ask your midwife or pediatrician to take a closer look.

According to studies by the World Health Organization, only 0.5 to one percent of all newborns in Europe have problems healing the navel. 

The fear of many parents that they will do something wrong with navel care is therefore completely unfounded.

 Careful care, adherence to basic hygienic rules, and a little patience are significantly more helpful than constantly anxious-looking or even fiddling around.

Conclusion

The umbilical cord usually falls off between the fifth and tenth day. 

If you are concerned about your navel leaking excessively or bleeding, show it to your midwife or pediatrician.

A baby bath would only be recommended after the navel has dropped off. 

The drier the navel, the faster it falls off. That is why bathing tends to prolong the falling of the navel.