Dry skin with atopic tendency: 4 good habits to adopt for cleansing
Dr. Valleteau de Moulliac,
Consulting pediatrician for Laboratoires Sarbec
By nature, atopic-prone skin is very dry (cutaneous xerosis). Therefore, you should avoid anything that can worsen this condition and, on the contrary, do everything that can improve it. As for your baby's cleansing routine:
- Do not give baths that are too hot or too long. Prefer showers. Avoid using water that is too hard (calcareous) or too chlorinated. At this age, you can bathe your baby only every other day or even every three days (little dirt), despite the benefits of bathing for your baby's comfort and the bonding it creates between you.
- Avoid soaps and instead choose syndets, dermatological bars with acidic pH that are non-surfactant, or even better, cleansing oils. The benefit of oils in bath water has never really been clearly demonstrated.
- Dry without rubbing, but by patting gently to avoid irritating the skin.
- Then apply a hypoallergenic emollient cream or balm to skin that is still slightly damp. Xerosis (dry skin) impairs the barrier function of the epidermis. Emollients are used to restore this property of the skin. The effectiveness of emollients on dry skin is well proven. Their tolerance is usually very good. The best one is the one that is best tolerated, easiest to apply, and gives you the most satisfaction.
By applying these habits for your child’s cleansing routine, you will help improve their dry, atopic-prone skin.
