How often should I bath my baby in summer?

Your baby is likely to sweat a lot in the heat. This doesn’t necessarily mean you need to bathe her more often. But giving her more frequent baths, if she enjoys them, can be a good way to cool her down.

Don’t use cold water, use water that feels warm but not hot to your skin when you dip your elbow or the inside of your wrist in it. If you have a bath thermometer, the ideal bath temperature is believed to be 38 degrees C, which is almost the same as body temperature.

When bathing your baby, take special care to wash her neck, underarms and other visible folds in her skin and to dry them well afterwards. When your baby sweats a lot, the sweat glands can become trapped beneath the skin. This means that the skin can get irritated and develop a rash.

If you do want to use extra baths to keep your baby cool, you probably don’t need to use a cleanser on her more than once a day. Just let her enjoy the water for no more than five to 10 minutes at a time. If you feel that your baby’s skin is getting dry, reduce the number of baths and see if that helps.