Diaper Blowout: Causes & Preventing Baby Blow Out Diapers
No parent enjoys a diaper blowout surprise, but it’s a pretty standard baby thing to do in the first few months after birth (if you know what we mean). Hence, learning how to prevent diaper blowouts is vital for parents, especially newborns.
Newborns are most at risk of experiencing baby blowout since they stool very frequently– up to 8 to 12 times a day! And since newborn poop tends to be more watery, there’s a higher chance they’ll sit in soiled clothes.
What Is a Diaper Blowout?
If you can picture an explosion of poop, that’s what a diaper blowout looks like. Baby blowouts can happen for several reasons, one of the most common being constipation. If your baby doesn’t have a bowel movement for a day or two, they’ll likely let everything out at once on day three.
Diaper blowouts can also happen if your baby is wearing the wrong size diaper. If their diapers are too small and they have a watery stool, the diaper won’t be able to contain it. But if their diapers are too big, small gaps between their skin and diapers can cause leaks around the leg cuffs.
How Do You Prevent Diaper Blowouts?
Before you even check on your baby’s diaper size, you should ensure their diapers are fastened comfortably around their waist, back, and legs. You should also ensure they wear the correct diaper for their weight range.
Also, check the position of the diaper’s leg cuffs when you put them on your baby. If it’s not pulled up to the right height, there’s a higher chance your baby will experience blowouts that leak out around the legs.
How to Clean Up a Diaper Blowout
Unfortunately, diaper blowouts tend to happen at the most inconvenient times, whether you’re out in public or in the middle of cooking dinner– your baby’s bowel movements can’t wait! And sometimes, you may be unable to salvage their favorite onesie or pair of pants.
That said, a disposable diaper is a more convenient choice to dress your baby in, considering you can toss them in the garbage and not worry about replacing another expensive cloth diaper.
Multi-purpose baby wipes come in handy when diaper blowouts happen on the go. Use as many baby wipes as you need to clean the rest of their body, and wipe down surfaces that may have come in contact with the blowout. If you can find a changing table or private area to wipe your child down, remove their soiled clothes and clean their private area.
If you have the good fortune of being at home when a diaper blowout happens, follow these steps:
- Quickly set your baby’s dirty clothes aside if they have a chance of being salvaged.
- Strip them down and get them in a warm soapy bath as soon as possible.
- Rinse your baby with soap and water from head to toe.
- Dry them off and dress them.
- Head back to the blowout scene and disinfect surfaces that may have been contaminated.
- Lastly, treat the soiled clothes with a pre-wash stain remover and let them soak for about 15 minutes before washing.
P.S: Always bring a change of clothes (or two) wherever you go! They’ll come in handy when a diaper blowout happens.
