what type of medicine do i need for baby%3F

[cchavez]

I need to buy....
Baby Tylenol
Baby Motrin (why baby tylenol and motrin)
Mylecon Gas drops
Pedialyte
saline????
alcohol
alcohol pads
cotton balls
diaper cream

Am I missing anything??? TIA

[Andrea S]

My ped does not recommend Motrin before 6 months they like to wait until a year. Also if you are having a boy who is going to be circumsized you need vaseline.

Andrea
mom to Andrew 8/14/02

[mama2be]

Aquaphor for diaper rash

[parkersmama]

The saline is to be used if the baby has a stuffy nose. I get the Little Noses brand or the store brand either one. You spray or drop (depending on what type you get) into each nostril then suction it (and hopefully the goop along with it!) out with the bulb syringe. It's not always easy but usually does help! :-)

I agree about waiting on the Motrin. I don't know if you count this as medicine but be sure to get sunscreen if you'll have your baby out in the sun any. My ped has said that they now say it's fine to use sunscreen on young babies. If you are going to be breastfeeding, you probably won't need pedialyte. Most of the time breastfeeding mothers are told to continue nursing through a sickness rather than give pedialyte.

[COElizabeth]

We received a large tube of Vaseline in the hospital for cicumcision site care, and it was more than enough. Your list looks pretty complete to me. I used Q-tips to get the alcohol into the navel area. They made it easier to get down to the base of the cord as my ped instructed.

Elizabeth
Mom to James
9-20-02

[MartiesMom2B]

Where can you get Aquaphor? Is it at a regular drug store? I haven't seen it.

Sonia
EDD 4/14/03

[MartiesMom2B]

The sunscreen made me think of this. Since summertime is coming up and I'm sure I'll be taking a lot of walks with DD, do I need to get insect repellant? What's safe for a newborn? What is suggested?

TIA!

Sonia
EDD 4/14/03

[parkersmama]

I'm not sure about insect repellant. I've never used it on a young baby. I'm even wary about using it on my young kids! I did start using it last summer because the mosquitos were so bad and there was all that talk about West Nile virus that I was nervous. I'd definitely ask your pediatrician about using insect repellant before trying any.

[smomom]

I found that Little Tummies and the Gerber brand of gas drops worked as well as the Mylicon - and both were much cheaper.

My ped also told me not to give motrin in the first 6 months....

[blnony]

Just a note about the aquaphor. Its wonderful stuff. It's great for small rashes anywhere on baby and its great for dry or chaffed patches too. You should be able to find it with the grown-ups lotions, its made by the makers of Eucerin, so its usually around their products.
Also, you should wait on the Motrin. On the box it also discourages using before 6 months.
Good luck-

[egoldber]

Sometimes it is behind the counter at the pharmacy. Also, Target and Costco carry it as well.

HTH,

[juliasdad]

I'm not so sure about the Motrin vs. Tylenol debate. One could argue that the Tylenol box discourages early use more than does the Motrin box, since Motrin gives dosing instructions all the way down to 6 months and says "under 6 months, call your doctor", while the dosing chart for infant Tylenol says "0-2 years, call your doctor".

You might buy a really small bottle of one just to have in case of emergency for the first few weeks, but wait until your first pediatrician visit before comitting to buying quantities of one or the other until you get his/her recommendation, as the peds seem split on this issue. And, more to the point, they seem to have tons of free samples of both to hand out!

-dan

[jubilee]

I found a squeeze tube of Aquaphor in the lotion section. They also had a little jar. It doesn't say diaper creme. Is it the right stuff??

[egoldber]

Yes, it's the right stuff!

[parkersmama]

If you need the dosing for Tylenol or Motrin, check out Dr. Sear's "The Baby Book". It has a great chart for dosing these medicines in babies under 2. He has a comment about how stupid it is that the companies are covering their tushies by not giving dosing info. It's actually more dangerous because people give it anyway and guess at the dosing. Also, once when I asked about different doses my pediatrician copied a chart for me that gives dosing for Tylenol and Motrin by age & weight so you can pinpoint what dose your child requires (I always use weight...it's more accurate).

[dogmom]

My MD had a sheet with the age/weight dosing for both Motrin and Tylenol that the company gives them. It's very clear and easy to follow. I also got 3 vials of free Tylenol they had after his 2 month shots, just in case.

But lets talk about you. My little one hasn't needed anything yet, but I was sending my husband out on day one for stuff for me. Here are the things I needed after labor and that big 9 lb head.

Tucks, or another brand of witch hazel pads
Dermaplast spray
Colace (I don't care how much bran/prunes I ate, I needed help)
Milk of Magnesia (That's for day 5 when they kept insisting something should have happened by day 3 down there.)
Motrin, if they don't write you a script for something at the hospital for you
Pads, First: steal as many peri pads from the hospital that you can fit in your bag. They get the thinnest, widest, flatest ones for when you run out. My pad felt like it was 3 inches thick and made of stone. In a pinch flattened out disposable diaper will work. It was the only way I could get comfortable sitting when I nursed. Did I mention I tore?
Reusable gel ice pacs, I used them for the pain of a blocked milk duct and there is some thought that ice should be used for the very painful part of engorgement, not warm packs. They also have come in useful for various muscle pains.

Oh and if you can beg some Lidocaine jelly out of the nurse, go for it. It was great.

Jeanne
Mom of Harvey

[Rachels]

I've also found the Boiron homeopathic stuff for colic to be essential. It often worked better than Mylicon.

-Rachel
Mom to Abigail Rose
5/18/02

[anna lisa]

How much does a tube of Aquaphor cost you ladies?

I found a small tube in my local CVS and it was almost $9! I can't see using this as a daily rash-prevention cream at that price!

[gravymommy3]

I am sure everyone is aware of this, but I am just going to mention it anyway...

Be very aware of what type of Tylenol or Motrin you are giving your little one. By this I mean to double check the concentration of the liquid you are giving. Infant drops are far more concentrated that the free-flowing liquid. If you are using a dosing chart that is not printed on the label of the bottle, then be sure you understand the total milligrams of Tylenol or Motrin your child should be getting based on weight (far more important that age). It is very easy to accidently administer too much medicine, so just pay close attention to how many mg. your child should get. Not trying to scare anyone, just want to point out the different concentrations of the medicine out there.

[egoldber]

That tube at Target costs about $5. And I don't use it as rash prevention every day, only when she has a rash. And the tube will last you a lot longer than you think. I have had the same tube for many months now.

HTH,