When parents bring their newborn baby home from the hospital everything in the home changes.  Everything focuses in on the baby and his/her safety.  This becomes the number one issue. 

It may not be 'till the first spit-up or poop that the question of the baby’s safety and laundering baby clothes get connected.  How do parents protect their baby’s tender sensitive skin from skin irritation, rashes, and allergies?    

Parents add new words to their vocabulary including non-toxic, hypo-allergenic, chlorine free, dye-free, fragrance free, or scent free. 

In order to keep your baby safe and problem free first speak to your pediatrician.  Identify the possibility of any inherited skin sensitivities or allergies you may have passed on to your baby genetically. Seek his/her recommendations about laundering your baby’s clothes.

Second when washing your infant’s clothes – diapers, sleepwear, undergarments, onesies, coveralls, rompers, socks, bibs, outfits, etc. refer to the care label for cleaning and stain removal instructions. The same is true of any material that the baby comes in contact with---sheets, blankets, comforters, towels, washcloths, etc.  Babies are messy by nature, and they have a knack of adding all sorts of stains—formula, baby food, juice, and whatever comes out of them--- to their clothing any time of the day or night.  This will require many trips to the laundry room.

After safety issues have been addressed then the stain removal and cleaning issues remain.  Choosing a detergent that is going to be tough on stains yet gentle on your baby’s skin is not a simple as one might think.

Do you choose an environmentally safe detergent that protects you baby and the environment together, but can be bought only at special stores at a more costly price?  Do you purchase a baby specific laundry soap like Ivory Snow or Dreft that adds to your already tight monthly budget? Or do you use your ordinary laundry detergent, and make sure it is the dye-free, fragrant free type that you can use with all your household washings and stay on budget?

For cleaning and whitening purposes some mothers add baking soda to their wash to soften the fabrics, remove odors, and give the clothes a fresh clean more natural smell.  Other mothers wash all the baby’s whites with a safe amount of bleach for cleaning and germ removal purposes.