1. If you’re breastfeeding, take a probiotic. Whether or not your baby has been on antibiotics, the extra helpful bacteria will help keep the yeast in line. Children can take probiotics themselves, but depending on your child’s age, I would either consult the box for older children, or your doctor for a young baby.
2. While the natural remedies weren’t the best for eliminating yeast, I do think they are helpful as natural antifungals for yeast prevention. Simon’s cloth wipe wash from Bee Green Naturals has tea tree oil in it. So does the easy to find spray from California Baby that we use when on the go (we get it right at Target). My most favorite product though, is the California Baby Calming Non-Talc Powder. Before we started using this, I would daydream of potty training, thinking he was going to have yeast rashes on and off for the rest of his little diapering life. It has cornstarch in it, so I would be wary of using it to eliminate a rash (yeast feeds on cornstarch!!), but once it is gone, this stuff is absolutely amazing. It is smooth and silky, has tea tree oil, kaolin clay and chamomile in it, and just keeps his little baby area so nice and dry. That’s really the key here, staying dry. It smells nice too.
3. Naked time is another good way to prevent prevent yeast from growing. Keep baby dry and change diapers as often as you reasonably can.
4. More bleach. Look, I really don’t want to deal with yeast again. That poor rash made me so sad. So, now that they’ve been bleached once, I just go ahead and bleach once a month. I do my diaper laundry three times a week, and I assume that pretty much gets all the diapers through. So the first week of every month, I throw in a 1/2 cup of bleach to each load.
5. Our detergent now has GFSE in it! We are using BioKleen, just another perk. Any little bit helps, right? Biokleen’s Bac-Out is also supposed to be great for yeast, and while we have it now, we didn’t have it while our yeast fight was underway.
6. Using wool or fleece diaper covers overnight are another big help for Simon, with a fitted underneath, although you could also use a flat or prefold. The breathability of these fabrics keep more air flowing through, and keep his bum more dry!
One thing that people disagree on when it comes to yeast is the sun. The sun is touted as being a miracle worker because it is antibacterial. Don’t get me wrong, that is super cool. The sun does some amazing things:
Before Sun
After Sun
Yes, the sun takes stains out of diapers. Other things too, I’m sure. But antibacterial and antifungal are not the same thing. Will it hurt to sun your diapers when you have yeast? Of course not. Will it eliminate your yeast problem? Probably not.
As far as I’m concerned, the same goes for white vinegar. Yes, I use white vinegar in my diaper laundry on occasion, but it is also antibacterial, not antifungal. It won’t hurt or help. Apple cider vinegar is antifungal (which is why baths with it helps), but you can’t put that in your washing machine.
Thus ends our story of how we battled the yeast monster and won. In true middle school book report fashion, the summary of this blog post is: yeast is okay, bleach it away, dry baby must stay.
The two months that we were dealing with this was so stressful for me, but knowing what I know now, yeast really isn’t that scary (look at that monster, he’s even smiling…harmless little guy). You can keep your baby in cloth the whole time, and there are a wealth of remedies that can be used to treat and prevent.
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