I have a 2 and 4 year old and have recently been thinking that our routine is missing something. I have read enough children's bedtime books to see that it is the expectation in many houses that faces are washed before bed and often in the morning, too. We have washed our girls faces after every meal or snack and haven't regularly done this at any other time...unless it looks to need it, of course. I am thinking lately, though that this would be a good habit to start. I feel a little silly wondering about this though...would I have a different wash cloth for each girl, each time they wash their faces? That would be 4 extra wash clothes a day...seem excessive but doable. Do other moms use soap? I think it would just be a warm cloth for now but I would guess at some age I would use soap. Anyway, I guess that is the question...what is your young children's face washing routine?
After meals, and in the tub before bed, for us.
And it's generally just warm water, no soap involved.
Hi Marcia,
My son has had his face washed every night since he was born. I am guessing that my answer will not be like the majority of Americans. I live in Japan, and was taught how to take care of my son in the hospital for six days after his birth. It is very interesting to see how different cultures handle baby and child care. I had a natural birth with no complications and still stayed a week in the hospital learning to care for my baby. Babies get baths daily here, even with the umbelical cord still attached. (We had some sort of medicine to put on the umbelical cord after a bath.) Yes their bodies are fully in the water supported by our arms. We were told that we could use gentle soap, like a glycerin soap for babies from the start. When my son had baby acne, we used the glycerin soap to wash his face. I didn't use the soap every day if he didn't have the baby acne. So my son has had a bath every day of his life. The only time we skip the bath is when he has a fever. Although we have done showers and baths equally since he was 2. We don't use an extra washcloth for face washing. We lather the soap on our hands and wipe over his face. Then we have him rinse his face by cupping his hands to collect water from a small wash basin. We started having him do that when he turned 3. My son had a rather strange rash on his face at the beginning of this year. We took him to the dermatologist. The doctor told us to have him wash his face in the morning as well as before bed. Rash disappeared within a month after we started having him was his face in the morning. If we skip the morning washing, then he gets a rash by evening. We just use the glycerin baby soap. No extra washcloths for face washing. My son is four, so I think your four year old could wash without using a washcloth. When my son was 2, I used a washcloth. I just used one washcloth during the bath and started with washing his face so I wouldn't need an extra washcloth. So if your children don't take a bath daily you would really only have to have one extra washcloth per non-bath day for the two year old. I say don't sweat it, and do what your gut tells you is right for your kids. My friends and family were all shocked to hear that I gave my son a bath every day when he was a baby, but hey if it works for an entire nation of people who have a long life expectancy... it must not be all that bad!
Hope that helps,
D.
Never had my kids wash their faces unless they were dirty for some reason. But we always clean them up right as they are dirty so I don't really see them dirty at bedtime.
I always wondered about that too. You see it but I don't know anyone that does it "in real life".
I don't see a reason unless it is actually dirty. Too much cleaning can be bad for the skin.
Hi.
Our pediatric dermatologist said just a bit of cetaphil and water is enough at bedtime. Other times during the day...only water as needed. less is best.
Jilly
You don't want to dry their perfect baby skin by excessive face washing! If you do want to wash, just use a warm washcloth with no soap. We don't wash faces before bed. Our routine is pee, wash hands, brush teeth, read story, turn on nightlight, sleeptime!
I usually use a baby wipe on my daughter's face if she's got food on it after eating, and she washes her face when she showers or bathes. That seems to be enough for her. If she has trouble waking up in the morning I'll get a cool washcloth and wipe her face, getting the sleep out of her eyes etc. No soap needed.
My girls (almost 3 yrs and 9 mos) have sensitive skin so we wash faces every night. Usually just warm water, occasionally with their "soap" ( we use the Aveeno baby fragrance free wash/shampoo). I use the same washcloth for both girls faces.
We wash after meals only. I don't even wash my face before bed anymore.
I don't full on 'wash' my 3 year old's face before bed, but we do have a routine of washing hands and wiping her face with a wet tissue. Now if it's bath night her face gets washed with some gentle soap and water in the tub.
I wouldn't start that routine this young. There will be a time when their skin gets more oily and they'll need to wash more often. My daughter is 10 and already she is getting breakouts and now I'm working with her to make face washing part of the nightly routine.
My 4 year old washes her face after she brushes her teeth before bed. She just uses her hand and warm water (with help from Mommy if she needs it). No wash clothes or soap (unless you count the tooth paste :) )
Mornings again warm water. Occaisonally I will use a sensitive skin baby wipe if I see a spot we missed as I am dropping her off at school.
With my daughter and now with my grandchildren, we do not have face washing as a part of the going to bed routine unless their faces are dirty. As you said, you washed them after dinner. They're clean already and so why add an unnecessary task to an already time consuming job.
My grandchildren are now 8 and 11 and they still do not wash their face at night. They wash their face when it's dirty and in need of washing. This can be at bed time if the weather is hot and they've been plaing vigorously. When hormones kick in and their skin gets oily and in need of regular washing, then it's the time to add face washing to their routine.
It depends on the kid. I don't wash my face nightly as I have very dry skin and a nightly wash just leaves me flakey. I wash my face with every shower and I shower daily. How many washcloths you use depends on you. Some people re-use them for multiple washings/baths and some people don't. I prefer to use one per bath for DD, so one a day. She has allergies and especially in the spring she gets a bath nightly to get the pollen off or she can't sleep. I would use a very gentle cleanser, like Cetaphil. Cetaphil can be used with or without water. Just a warm cloth and a quick wipe to give them fresh faces. DD gets a bath before bed, so that's when I wash her face for the night. I don't wash her face during the day unless she needs it, and then use warm water unless soap is really called for.
Do what your kids need. Remember, too, that in times past, baths were much less frequent so washing hands and face was all you got most of the time.
