Should you wash new clothes before putting it on your baby?

Vote this down

The answer with the most votes is considered to be the best. Disagree? Vote for your favorite answer below.

Always wash the clothes before putting them on your child. If you're talking about a newborn baby/first child - where you might receive many many new clothes, try not to wash them before you are actually ready to use them. Leave them as is, with the tags. Many times, you will find that your baby has outgrown the clothing before he/she gets to wear it. If that's the case, you should be able to return it to the store for a refund or credit.

Answered by LisaReed {100}
3/19/2010 9:46:43 AM

[0 Votes]

I feel as though I should always wash my baby’s new clothes because I feel that the coloring in the fabric may irritate my baby’s sensitive skin. I also think about the many people that have handled the clothing before it even reached the department stores. I do not mean to sound too overly dramatic when it comes to my baby, but like everyone else I am concerned about my new baby and his well being. My baby already has a skin condition the doctor said “it is a common dry skin problem and that he should outgrow the problem”. I also recommend using Dreft when washing your baby’s new clothes, which is specially formulated just for baby’s sensitive skin. Because Dreft is a costly detergent and some people would rather use a cheaper detergent to save money, there are other scent- free detergents that can be used that are safe for your baby. You could also use All free and clear on your baby’s new clothes this is a scent-free detergent that would also be safe for your baby’s delicate skin. The dyes and chemicals used when manufacturing the new clothes for your baby may or may not irritate your baby’s skin, but It is always best to be safe than sorry. I feel like it is just best to prewash my baby’s clothes because of the clear and simple fact that too many people have handled my baby’s clothing before I purchased them in the first place. One of the most unsanitary parts of a person’s body is their hands, even though we try to be as clean as possible. We place our hands over our mouth to cough; we run our fingers though our hair and grab tons of door knobs within a period of a day. All the things that we do with our hands can be very unsanitary weather we realize it or not, than we handle our children’s clothing. So I would definitely recommend prewashing their clothes because it is no telling who has held your baby’s clothes before they reached your hands.

I agree, there are so many unknowns about what happened to the clothes before you bought them. Plus sometimes the tag on the clothing says: Wash before wear. - danielle128 3/20/2010 8:59:40 AM | Flag

My husband used to work loss prevention at a department store. The horror stories about clothes stuffed down pants, people using makeup and putting it back, and the stores putting stuff back on the shelf, I always wash stuff I buy. - neuroticscribe 4/7/2010 8:54:10 PM | Flag

Answered by BuffBaby {121}
3/19/2010 9:48:33 PM

[0 Votes]

I ALWAYS wash my baby's clothes before putting them on her. She has sensitive skin and I never know where the clothes have been before they end up at my home. Because of her sensitive skin I also have to use a dye-free/fragrance-free laundry detergent. I can't use Dreft because it is not approved for High Effeciency washers, but Tide and ALL both have free detergents that are approved. The clothes you buy in a department store have been through how many different boxes and shipping. The little dress you are putting on your little girl could have been taken home by someone else, tried on, and returned. Wouldn't you like to know it is clean and fresh when they show off their new clothes to the world?

I actually wash new clothes for everyone in my family -- adults and children alike. It doesn't take that long, and I feel better knowing that they are clean. - LunaLovegood 3/20/2010 5:25:44 AM | Flag

I agree especially when clothes ae returned. - mamasin56 3/20/2010 6:47:17 AM | Flag

Answered by kristi96 {103}
3/24/2010 3:03:11 AM

[0 Votes]

I always wash the clothes prior to wearing them. People try them on in the store and they go through tons of different hands during the shipping.

Answered by Maremagee {58}
http://mare-frugalliving.blogspot.com/
3/27/2010 9:47:18 AM

[0 Votes]

You should wash all new clothing whether for baby, other child, or yourself. New fabric is treated with formaldehyde and is very toxic. Not to mention the color dyes are harmful too. That is why organic clothing is gaining popularity.

Answered by soratosjc {41}
3/29/2010 1:44:53 PM

[0 Votes]

I wash all my newborns clothes becuase I just don't know what has touched the fabric before she wears it. It is rough and may have toxic or abrasive chemicals in the fabric so to be on the safe side, I do wash everything first. My first baby had very sensitive skin so I had to wash everything in a dye, fragrance, additive, softener 'free' detergent in order for her to not get a rash. Hope this helps answer your question~

My child had extremely sensitive skin also and developed a rash behind her ears. I didn't realize it was from the detergent until someone told me she might be more comfortable if I switched to the dye, fragrance-free detergent. I only wish I had known sooner what the cause of her discomfort was! - momov2 3/29/2010 6:46:09 PM | Flag