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Breastfeeding Balm and Baby Saftey?
Im formulating an herbal infused nipple cream for breastfeeding. I used one for all 3 of my babies and find them very useful. My Midwife formulated her with oil, extracts and a cream aloe base. Her extracts were Sweet Orange and Almond. I of course don’t want to copy her ingredients,
1. So are their extracts that are safe enough that if the baby fed soon after applying it they would be okay? Honestly I don’t see an medicinal benefit in her using the extracts, maybe they were more for scent?…
2. And her aloe cream base…could this have simply been aloe and butter? This would surely require a preservative which she only had Vit E in it (I know its not a preservative). Id prefer this to be an anhydrous product that didn’t need a preservative if possible. (of course Id use an antioxidant) -
8 Replies
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My god, why would you need to apply anything on to feed. THE BABIES ARE PROGRAMMED TO SUCK, BY NATURE.
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Chemist77 said:My god, why would you need to apply anything on to feed. THE BABIES ARE PROGRAMMED TO SUCK, BY NATURE.
LOL its not for the baby… Its to sooth sore, cracked nipple from breastfeeding. That first month is very painful for mommy.
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I would think, the less chemical exposure to a baby the better. So keep it simple and don’t use any extracts. Not only do you not have any way of knowing what is actually in an extract, they don’t provide any benefit.
I’m a big believer in keeping things simple. Less ingredients is better.
You really don’t need anything more than Petrolatum.
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Perry said:I would think, the less chemical exposure to a baby the better. So keep it simple and don’t use any extracts. Not only do you not have any way of knowing what is actually in an extract, they don’t provide any benefit.
I’m a big believer in keeping things simple. Less ingredients is better.
You really don’t need anything more than Petrolatum.
Thanks so much I def agree.
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USP / BP grade lanolin is generally recommended for cracked nipples when breastfeeding.Proceed with caution in this area as I remember a few years ago there was an FDA recall of a breastfeeding balm due to the use of a particular preservative that is not safe when ingested. -
@ozgirl yes Ive heard of this but then whats the fun really as theres are great Lanolin brands out there, plus many people are weary about lanolin. I used a balm myself with all my children that was made by my midwife and it was great. Her “saftey” in making it maybe not so good, oils, water, no preservatives….but it was used only for a couple weeks so whatever.
I will def keep that in mind and just make a anhydrous balm, or state a very short shelf life. 30 days max.(still unsure if thats safe though)
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Agree with ozgirl and Perry. Proceed with caution and the simpler the better. Personally, I would not want any superfluous ingredients in a cream that I would not be comfortable dishing up to a 6 month old in a bowl. As a previous user of lanolin, I wouldn’t recommend anything else unless the user is looking for a vegan alternative (I had pet sheep as a child so partial to lanolin).
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@Tori Thanks!
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