Ellen has her hands in her mouth CONSTANTLY!

[farsk]

Hello Everyone!

Ellen has decided that her hands are preferable to any teething toy. So here's my question. (Sorry they're so random!)
1. Why do strangers come up to my DD and touch her hands and then touch her face. I don't know where their hands have been, and now their germs are in my baby's mouth!
2. What can I do to cleanse my baby's hands "on the go?" Hand sanitizer? Alcohol wipes? Are these things safe to wipe her hands with and then her hands go straight into her mouth?

Help please! Ellen is sick and we have had nine hours of sleep over three days. I don't ever want her sick again "'cuz if Ellen ain't happy, ain't nobody happy!"

Thanks!

[starrynight]

The first question, I have no idea why people do this. Thankfully I haven't had too many people do this. Either I have always lived where people are "touchy feely" or I give off the impression of "don't touch my kids" lol

And I would just use baby wipes. If Ellen always has her hands in her mouth it's probably best to avoid alcohol based hand sanitizers unless you can keep her hands out of her mouth for a little while after you rub it on. Wet ones brand makes antibacterial hand wipes, maybe those?

And goodness you need some sleep by the sound of it! *hug* I hope you and Ellen get some rest soon.

[momma_boo]

Sorry about the strangers. Too bad we can't hang a sign on the baby that says, "Do not touch the baby." sort of like the "do not feed the animals" signs at zoos.

Do you have any of those hand covers (to prevent them from scratching)? When she was younger, I kept a pair with me. That way, you could keep her hands covered in case she was in a place where she might get touched, or you can use them to cover her hands until you were able to clean them. I usually use a wipe to clean DD's hands. I use the wipes with no alcohol or fragrance, so I didn't feel weird about using them to clean her hands/face.

I hope Ellen gets better soon!

[kristine_elen]

It's great that she sucks her hands -- a built in pacifier that won't get lost, according to the baby books that I've read. I wouldn't do anything to stop the sucking.
Can you tell people to not touch her? Grab their hand and make up some excuse? (She's sick and shouldn't come into contact w/others, the ped said it wasn't ok... etc.) I agree wipes are probly the way to go. Don't want her sucking a bunch of chemicals. That said, I have read that babies are a lot tougher than we think they are and most of the germs that reach her probably aren't that big of a deal.