How To Care For Your Baby’s Umbilical Cord

Bringing a newborn home is always exciting yet scary – there are several things that you need to take care of and one of them is cord care. Read some tips to help you care for baby’s umbilical cord. 👶

Caring For Your Baby’s Umbilical Cord

Your baby’s umbilical cord stump dries out and eventually falls off — usually within one to three weeks after birth. In the meantime, treat the area gently:

• Keep the stump dry. Parents were once instructed to swab the stump with rubbing alcohol after every diaper change. Researchers now say this might kill bacteria that can help the cord dry and separate. Instead, expose the stump to the air to help dry out the base. Keep the front of your baby’s diaper folded down to avoid covering the stump.
• Stick with sponge baths. While there’s no harm in getting the stump wet, sponge baths might make it easier to keep the stump dry.
• Let the stump fall off on its own. Resist the temptation to pull off the stump yourself.

Signs of a problem

During the healing process, it’s normal to see a little blood near the stump. Much like a scab, the cord stump might bleed a little when it falls off.

However, contact your baby’s doctor if the umbilical area oozes pus, the surrounding skin becomes red and swollen, or the area develops a pink moist bump. These could be signs of an umbilical cord infection. Prompt treatment is needed to stop the infection from spreading.

Also, talk to your baby’s doctor if the stump still hasn’t separated after three weeks. This might be a sign of an underlying problem, such an infection or immune system disorder.

Do you have your own Umbilical Cord care tips?

If you have your own tips that worked for you. Please share them with other new moms in our comments below.

📸 via @bumpbubnbeyond on Instagram

Originally posted 2021-03-03 11:39:58.