Are Moisturisers Necessary for a Baby?
Despite the silky soft texture of a baby’s skin, they are quite prone to dryness of skin and other related problems. A new born baby does not particularly need moisturisers because they have naturally well-balanced oils in their skin, and the peeling and drying of skin are quite normal. However, this does not mean that applying moisturisers is particularly harmful or unnecessary. Massaging your baby with moisturisers has a lot of benefits. It provides relief from irritated skin and rashes and brings about the much needed bonding time with parents and other caregivers. Moreover, it also has calming effects on the baby, helps digestion, and results in softer, smoother skin texture. While moisturisers can help with calming down skin irritants, it is also recommended to consult a doctor before attempting a routine on your own.
Much like your baby, their skin is also adjusting to the new environment around them, so it is important to be mindful of the ingredients and other properties of the moisturisers used. Moisturisers used by adults and older children are not suitable for newborns and infants. With this in mind, let’s have a look at the best baby moisturisers in India in 2023.
How Do We Choose These Baby Moisturizers
The BabyG team conducts thorough research on all the products recommended in the list through their personal experience as parents and experts and the community experience of over 300k parents who use the BabyG early development app. During the research process, we looked at reviews around real usage of the product, quality, rating, pricing, safety, and overall value as per the use cases of different parents.
To choose the best baby moisturizers, we further detailed our research to look for moisturizers that are non-toxic, safe to be used on a baby's delicate and paraben-free. As well as if they are easy to apply, hydrating and nourishing.
By doing so, our team has ensured that we provide our community with reliable and high-quality product recommendations. Our mission is to ensure that our parenting community always make informed, expert recommended and well researched decision to give the best development and products to their little ones!
Top Rated Baby Moisturisers in 2023
1. Best for Dry and Sensitive skin: Aveeno Baby Soothing Relief Moisture Cream
The Aveeno Baby Soothing Relief Moisture Cream is designed to help soothe your baby’s dry or sensitive skin, redness and itching for up to 24 hours . It contains active ingredients such as Colloidal Oats which helps maintain the skin’s normal pH and moisture barrier. It helps to prevent or repair chafed, chapped or cracked skin. This hypoallergenic and fragrance free moisturiser has several natural ingredients with great benefits. It is easy to apply and does not leave behind any residue.
Key ingredients: Prebiotic colloidal oatmeal, oat oil, prebiotic oat extract, glycerin
Suitable for: Infants and adults
Pros: Parabens-free, phthalate-free, soothing
Cons: Can be heavy or greasy for some
2. Best for Being Value for Money: Mee Mee Nourishing Baby Lotion
Priced at just Rs. 99 for a 100 ml bottle, this pocket-friendly lotion is a great product for everyday use. This gentle and mild lotion is filled with the goodness of chamomile and soothing fruit extracts. This lotion can protect and moisturise your little one’s skin for up to 12 hours. Chamomile is a naturally moisturising agent and the fruit extracts give the lotion a mild fruity fragrance. The texture of this lotion is thick and easy to spread. The formula is hypoallergenic and non-greasy. It will easily get absorbed into your baby’s skin. What’s more, it is also completely free of parabens which can cause skin irritations.
Key ingredients: Dimethicone, chamomile, fruit extracts
Suitable for: 0-2 years
Pros: suitable for all skin types, quick absorb formula, suitable for newborns, non-toxic
Cons: Has a mild fragrance
3. Best for Everyday Use: Cetaphil Baby Daily Lotion
Cetaphil Baby Daily Lotion is a moisturiser containing natural ingredients including calendula extracts, shea butter, vitamin E and glycerin, which naturally enhance skin healing and hydration. It does not leave any oily residue and performs well in all seasons. It is suitable for everyday use and all skin types, even sensitive skin. It is light, runny and smooth, and gets absorbed into the skin easily. The mild scent in this product is pleasant, but not strong enough to cause the baby any discomfort. It can be safely used on the baby’s face and body right from day one.
Key ingredients: Calendula, Shea Butter, Vitamin E & B5, Glycerin
Suitable for: 0 months and up
Pros: Hypoallergenic, parabens free, mineral oil free, alcohol free, non-greasy
Cons: No concerns
4. Best for Dry Skin: Johnson's Baby Milk and Rice Cream
Johnson's Baby Milk and Rice Cream contains ingredients such as milk proteins, rice extracts and multiple vitamins. These ingredients leave the baby’s skin feeling soft and smooth for 24 hours. This lotion helps increase skin hydration and moisture retention so that the baby’s skin can feel soft and nourished all day long. This mild and gentle cream helps to reduce roughness, dryness and flaking. It is hypoallergenic and pH-balanced and promotes healthy skin for newborns. The formula for this cream is lightweight and non-greasy, getting absorbed quickly in the skin.
Key ingredients: Milk proteins, mineral oil, glycerin, dimethicone, hydrolyzed rice bran protein
Suitable for: 6 months and up
Pros: Parabens free, sulphate free, no dyes, clinically mildness-proven
Cons: No concerns
5. Best for Rashes and Irritation: Curatio Atogla Baby Moisturizing Lotion
Curatio Atogla Baby Moisturizing Lotion has a unique formula consisting of ingredients which helps protect the baby’s skin against rashes, dryness and other irritations. Ceramides help build the skin barrier which helps prevent moisture loss. GLA (Gamma Linoleic Acid) helps reduce inflammation. Aloe vera gel helps by soothing the skin. This cream provides gentle moisturisation and makes the skin soft and smooth. It also helps address concerns of chapping and scaling.
Key ingredients: Cholesterol, ceramide III, oat lipid, GLA, aloe vera gel, vitamin E
Suitable for: 5 years and up
Pros: Helps heal the skin, nourishing, easy to spread, parabens free
Cons: No concerns
6. Best for Deep Moisturisation: Pigeon Baby Moisturizing Lotion
Pigeon Baby Moisturizing Lotion has a unique combination of ingredients that leave the baby’s delicate skin nourished and moisturised. Almonds enriched with Vitamin A and E help combat dryness. Oat lipids consist of ceramides that regulate moisture. Other ingredients include chamomile, rosehip and olives which help provide deep moisturisation to your baby’s skin. This cream has been specially formulated to suit a newborn’s skin. Along with all the natural goodness and a mild fragrance, this product is also skin pH friendly, hypoallergenic, parabens, sulphates and colour free. The moisturising and soothing properties of its ingredients result in intense moisturisation and prevention of dryness and irritation.
Key ingredients: Almond, oat lipids, olive, rosehip, chamomile
Suitable for: 0 months and up
Pros: colour free, suitable for daily use, natural ingredients
Cons: Has a mild scent
7. Best for Organic Ingredients: Little's Organix Moisturising Baby Cream
Little's Organix Moisturising Baby Cream helps soothe the baby’s skin and provides relief from skin rash. It helps protect the skin against skin irritations such as nappy rashes and redness. The two major ingredients of this cream are aloe vera and neem. These ingredients help heal, soothe and form a protective skin barrier, as well as provide moisturisation to keep the baby’s skin soft and smooth. The texture of this cream is light and non-sticky. Its recommended usage is 2-3 times a day, or every time a diaper is changed. This product is dermatologically tested and parabens and phthalates free.
Key ingredients: Neem, aloe vera
Suitable for: 0 months and up
Pros: pH balanced, rash relief, natural ingredients
Cons: No concerns
8. Best for All Skin Types: Softsens Baby Lotion
This lightweight and non-greasy lotion is suitable for daily use as it provides long lasting moisturisation. It prevents moisture loss and locks in the moisture of your little one’s delicate skin. This lotion contains natural moisturising agents like natural milk cream, shea butter & vitamin E. It hydrates the skin and gets rid of dryness and itchiness. It uses a quick absorb formula and doesn’t clog pores, or leave behind a sticky residue. This makes it suitable for everyday use for all skin types. This lotion is also hypoallergenic and free from harmful chemicals such as parabens, sls, sles, alkalis and phthalates.
Key ingredients: Natural milk cream, shea butter, vitamin E, natural orange oil, glycerin
Suitable for: 0 months and up
Pros: dermatologically-tested, natural ingredients, safe, lightweight, cruelty free
Cons: Has a mild fragrance
9. Best for Natural Ingredients: Mamaearth Daily Moisturizing Lotion For Babies
Mamaearth is well known for being a toxin free and safe brand. This lotion consists of several natural ingredients that moisturise and nourish the baby’s skin. Shea butter and cocoa butter are natural and chemical-free moisturisers, while calendula extracts have anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and anti-inflammatory properties. Aloe vera gel and vitamin E soothe and provide relief from hot and dry weather conditions. Along with a long list of natural ingredients, this lotion does not contain any harmful chemicals that could cause any harm to the baby’s skin.
Key ingredients: Shea butter, cocoa butter, olive oil, jojoba oil, calendula, aloe vera, vitamin E
Suitable for: 0 months and up
Pros: Hypoallergenic, quick absorption, non-sticky, non-toxic
Cons: Has a mild fragrance
[Related - Best Body Lotions For Baby Dry Skin in India]
How To Choose The Right Baby Moisturizer
Babies’ skin is different as compared to adult skin. It can be more sensitive and prone to irritation. Thus, there are a few things to consider while choosing the correct moisturiser for your little one.
- Choose moisturisers with more natural ingredients like butters and oils, such as shea butter, cocoa butter, coconut oil, etc. Ingredients such as these are naturally moisturising and chemical free.
- Try to avoid moisturisers with harmful chemicals such as parabens, PEGs (Polyethylene Glycol), phthalates, sulfates, dyes, etc.
- Look for products that are fragrance free to avoid problems with allergies or eczema.
- Choose a moisturiser that is right for your baby’s skin type. The skin types can be classified into - dry skin, sensitive skin, normal skin, and eczema prone skin.
- Use products that are hypoallergenic; such products have a low risk of allergic reactions.
- It is also advisable to use a pH neutral baby moisturiser so that your baby’s skin is well-balanced and healthy.
- Consider buying only tried and tested products from brands that are well known for their safety standards and quality.
As a general practice, it is recommended to conduct a small patch test before applying it all over the body and face.
How to Apply Baby Moisturiser Step by Step.
- Take a couple of pumps of lotion into your hands. If using moisturiser from a tub or pot, avoid double dipping, rather spoon it out into your hands.
- Make sure your hands are warm and rub them together to warm up the moisturiser.
- Gently apply the moisturiser to your baby’s skin, going in circular motions until you have covered as much area as possible.
- Start with the torso, moving on to the legs next, and finally end with the arms, face and neck.
Conclusion.
Your baby’s skin is more sensitive than an adult's skin. However, there are certain factors in the baby’s physical environment that can cause drying and irritation to their precious skin. Therefore moisturisers can be useful, not only to hydrate and rejuvenate the baby’s skin, but also to lock the moisture in and create a strong barrier among many other benefits. Thus, it is quite important to select the right moisturiser for your baby’s needs.
LEAVE A COMMENT