Acne is developed in some babies due to the lingering maternal hormones after delivery which may result to the stimulation of the sebaceous glands of the baby. Your baby receives these hormones after the delivery from the placenta.
You shouldn’t worry if your baby has pimples. Affecting about 20% of the newborn babies is baby acne also known as acne-neonatorum.
The various aspects of this type of acne is what we have to find out. But first, keep in mind that the treatment for infantile acne is different from acne treatment for any other age group.
Infantile acne is considered to be gender-biased. More affected than their female counterparts are male babies. At the age of 3 weeks is when babies normally have the acne attack. But there are babies who have it from the time of delivery. The types of acne you generally find in infants are pustules and papules. Papules are red bumps and pustules are whiteheads. A collection of pus is what they have.
Acne on the scalp is what some babies also have. Not requiring treatment are acne in babies. Within a period of four months, the lesions will take care of themselves. But taking normal care for your baby as you would with their other body parts is essential.
Use mild baby soap and gently clean the face once in a day with water. Trying harsher methods by using lotions and oil which you may think are good is a bad idea. They may at times, worsen the condition. When it needs to, infantile acne will disappear and this is something you need to understand.
Don’t stuff your baby’s cheeks with cosmetics if you want to photograph them and if you do need touch-ups, then do so in an imaginative way.
If you or your family doctor feel that the baby has severe acne, treat it with benzoyl peroxide, keratolytic agents or topical creams like retinoids.
Known to be mysterious are the ways of acne. Even if you have a family history of acne, it doesn’t mean that you baby will also have it. It’s possible that your baby will not suffer from an acne attack when they grow up just because they have acne now. Acne has its own working style and attacking strategy.
Quietly disappearing after the age of 12 months is infantile acne, and this normally appears after the age of three months in a baby. It’s not necessary to have special efforts of treatment. In some babies, this condition lasting up to three years is a possibility. The genetic makeup of your baby is the reason behind this. It’s also possible that you contribute to it, being as the hereditary part.
You have nothing to do with the infantile acne, relating to the treatment part. What you can do is observe its arrival and departure. At least, anxiety with its arrival and departure with pleasure.
