What Causes Diaper Rash?

What causes diaper rash? A number of factors. Determine what causes diaper rash, however, and you can easily discover a natural treatment.

Diaper rash—infant, toddler or adult—appears in the skin folds and tissue covered by a diaper. The frequent moisture and waste material found in a diaper can contribute to tissue breakdown and the warm, damp environment makes an ideal breeding ground for bacteria. There are, however, several forms of diaper rash and therefore, a range of answers to the "What causes diaper rash?" question.

Causes of Diaper Rash

There can be a variety of contributing causes to the various forms of diaper rash including:

• chafing by a diaper or diaper cover
• intolerances to the chemicals, perfumes or dyes in soaps, lotions or wipes used on the skin
• reactions to diaper material or soap used to launder diapers
• food intolerances
• overly long contact with the waste materials contained in a diaper

In addition, rashes that are most often found on other parts of the body—eczema, atopic dermatitis, psoriasis and cradle cap or seborrheic dermatitis—can also be appear in the diaper area. Regardless of type of rash, however, one of the common contributing factors to diaper rash is a yeast overgrowth,often as a result of antibiotic use by baby, a breastfeeding mom or adult diaper-wearer and/or a high dietary intake of sugar and/or refined grains by child, breastfeeding mom or adult diaper wearer.

Triggers

Contact diaper rash triggers are generally soaps, lotions or a wet or dirty diaper left on the skin for a prolonged period of time.

Contributing factors to a yeast diaper rash in children include antibiotic use—by child or breastfeeding mom—the type and amount of sweeteners found in formulas, a high intake of fruit juice, refined grains and other sugars or, when a child is solely breastfed, high dietary intake of refined grains and sugars by mom.

The poor nutrition that can stimulate dysbiosis, an unhealthy imbalance in gut microbes, can lead not only to nappie rash in children or adult diaper rash, but to thrush and vaginal infections as well.

Nutritional deficiencies can also be a stand-alone factor in diaper rash. The deficiencies can cover a range of nutrients but are most often of essential fatty acids such as the omega 6, gamma linolenic acid, and omega 3s, found in fish oil and flaxseed oil, and vitamins and minerals such as vitamins A, B complex, C and E, zinc and magnesium.

Finally, insufficient moisture, both taken internally and supplied externally, can trigger diaper rash. Ensure your child gets a regular intake of clean water (ounces of water equivalent to 2/3 the number of pounds of body weighti.e. a 21 pound child would need 14 ounces water/day) on top of any breast milk or formula and use natural and organic baby skin care products that help guard against moisture loss through baby's skin.

To combat triggers in adult diaper rash, again insure sufficient intake of clean water, avoid dehydrating beverages such as coffee, and use a natural and organic skin care product to both soothe and protect against moisture loss.