How to Get Rid of Baby Acne

Washing the Baby’s Face

Soak a clean cloth with warm water and gentle soap. Wring out any of the extra water and massage a tiny amount of baby soap into the material. Ideally, check that the water is around 70 °F (21 °C), which is a perfect temperature for your baby’s sensitive skin. Cotton balls are great substitutes for washcloths. Look for soaps with a “baby” label on them. This way, you can be sure that they’ll be gentle on your child’s delicate skin. You can likely find these in stores that sell baby supplies.

Wipe the baby’s face to keep it clean. With gentle care, wash off your baby’s face, which will help keep their skin really clean. If your child has bad acne, wash their face once a day in order to keep their skin in great condition.

Pat the child’s skin dry with a clean, soft cloth. Lightly blot away any leftover soapy water, so your baby’s face is totally dry. If you wash each day, you may see some improvement in the baby’s acne.

Avoiding Bad Habits and Products

Don’t touch or scrub the acne. Similar to teen or adult acne, picking and scrubbing the problem area isn’t going to accomplish anything productive. Even if the acne looks small, don’t try to rub it away—you may end up making it worse. Instead, focus on washing the skin each day and leaving the acne alone at any other time.

Avoid treating the acne with medication unless a doctor tells you to. Acne medication can do wonders for teens and adults, but this unfortunately isn’t the case for young children. Talk to a pediatrician or dermatologist and see if there are any creams or medications you can use to treat the acne. Unless you get direct permission from a medical professional, it’s best to leave the acne alone. Acne medications are designed for fully developed skin, and may hurt a baby’s sensitive skin.

Toss out any oily products from your skincare routine. Check and see if there are any creams, ointments, lotions, or other skincare products that you’re using on yourself. Although the products may be good for your own skin, you don’t want the greasy and oily products transferring to your baby’s skin. For instance, avoid hand lotions or creams that make your skin really oily and greasy.

Identifying Baby Acne

Attribute small bumps on your child’s skin as baby acne. Usually, this type of acne will appear about 2 weeks or so after your child is born, and will disappear on its own in several months. Like teen or adult acne, you can usually find baby acne around the forehead, cheeks, and nose. Like regular acne, baby acne is red and white. You may also notice small, white bumps on your child’s face. These are known as milia, and are no cause for concern.

Recognize sections of red, itchy skin as eczema. Believe it or not, babies get eczema pretty quickly. If your child’s skin looks really dry and red, it may not be baby acne after all. If you suspect that your child has eczema, try to keep them away from irritants like soap powder, cigarette smoke, or spray-on products. Nylon and wool may be soft, but they can be really scratchy on a baby’s skin. Instead, look for cotton-based clothing instead.

Identify patchy, bumpy, and red sections of skin as a rash. Babies can get a variety of different rashes, several of which appear with bumps or acne. Many rashes tend to go away on their own, but you may want to consult a doctor if a rash hangs around for several weeks or months. A doctor can help you identify the specific rash you’re dealing with, and may have advice on how to treat it.

Consult a doctor for a more specific diagnosis. Baby acne can be its own issue, but it can also be a sign of a more serious condition, like a skin infection. Talk to a medical professional so you can know for sure. Be sure to mention when you first noticed the rash, and how long it’s been present. Start feeding your child breast milk if you can.