AS A RULE, young mother have lots of questions. A baby is so small, he requires constant care and attention, and you`re afraid of hurting him. Genital hygiene causes especially many troubles. As for girls, here we can make for ourselves. But we understand nothing about boys. Let`s learn this science by ourselves.

Genital hygiene should be treated very carefully since the very birth. Otherwise, strangury, different inflammations or problems in youth age can occur. In fact, there`s nothing difficult here, you just need to learn several simple rules.

Boys

During first week, boys can suffer from scrotum edema. Genitals look too big and swelled up. You shouldn`t be worried. This is connected with the fact that through placenta or breast milk an excessive quantity of maternal hormones penetrates into a new-born baby`s organism. As a rule, this edema disappears in several days. But if such edema still presents by the end of the second week, apply for a doctor immediately.

Intimate hygiene for boys means regular (while each change of a diaper) washing of genitals with warm water. Doing this, you should move a skin wrinkle (foreskin) off a head of a penis necessarily. Fatty substance (smegma) is accumulated there, which should be removed. If you see reddening on foreskin, then you need to cleanse it with a cotton tampon, moistened in a light (light-pink) manganese solution or bur-marigold extract several times a day.

Sometimes, foreskin can be very narrow and doesn`t allow baring a head of penis completely. In such case, it`s desirable to apply for a doctor as soon as possible. As a rule, a surgeon just needs to make a small cut of a skin wrinkle. And the earlier he does such operation, the better.

If a baby has very sensitive skin, then you may sometimes do just “dry” washing with the help of wet or oiled tissues. You should wash a baby`s genitals with soap no less than once in 4-5 days.

Girls

In the end of the first week of a girl`s life you may notice mucous excreta or excreta with some blood. As a rule, they disappear by itself in 2-3 days. This is also connected with excessive amount of maternal hormones coming to a girls`organism. During this period, a baby needs careful care. Diapers should be changed every 1,5-2 hours. If excreta still take place for more than 3 days, you need to apply for a doctor.

Girls` genitals are very sensitive and have rather low resistibility to different infections. The most common “female” disease of new-born babies is vulvitis (inflammation of external genitals). So, keep them clean and warm all the time. Every time you change a diaper, wash your daughter with warm water. You can wash her either under tap or with a cotton tampon moistened in water. Move from pubis to coccyx, to prevent excesses of excrement from coming to genitals. Soap should also be used no more than once in 4-5 days, to prevent skin from getting too dry.

And yet, try not to take a great interest in babies` cosmetics. Use various creams, oils and powders only in case of need (while irritations and diaper rashes), not regularly. Otherwise you`ll break a natural protective skin layer of a new-born.