Childrens Washing?

Question

Apart from wahing hands before eating & after visiting the loo and washing face and hands before bed how often should children shower or bath each week.

Answer 1

Well i am going against the other replies by saying that i don't think a daily bath is totally necessary for children. As you say handwashing after loo and before eating is important. I think at bedtime, you should definitely wash hands and face and also bottoms. Unless you have a bidet then it is obviously quicker and easier just to run a quick bath (or shower) and give the kids a quick dunk - do hands, face, bottom, knees, feet etc. It makes a good bedtime routine. But if a child's skin is dry,then a whole bath or shower everyday may not be a good idea. People are too paranoid about 'germs' these days. Kids won't die if they dont have a bath every day. If they don't and you want to know how often i think they should have a bath every week, i would say a couple of a times a week would be fine. If they do have dry skin or exczema then you can get stuff to put in the bath which helps greatly unless the condition is bad.

Answer 2

This has changed a lot over the past couple of generations, and of course varies from culture to culture. 20-30 years ago in N. America, lots of little kids (pre-puberty) would have a bath or shower only once or twice a week. The generation before that, most kids had a bath/hairwash only once a week. Now, in N. America, most parents bathe their little kids every day, or at least 4-5 times per week.
For many of us, thinking of washing our little ones only once a week now sounds kind of gross, so it would be more socially acceptable now to bathe your child at least 3-4 times per week, as long as the skin/scalp doesn't get too dry.
When puberty hits, most kids will want/need to shower daily.

Answer 3

Every day. As well as the hygeine thing its a good way to bond with them because its fun, they can share the water with each other and you. And it gives you a chance to play with them, talk about the day and look out for any bumps, scratches or rashes without being all sergeant major about it.
They're usually relaxxed, happy and warm after a bath so a story in bed afterwards makes a great nightime routine.

Answer 4

I wash my son's bedding about every week. Sometimes it may be sooner than that if he decides to take a drink in bed with him. Or if he has an accident during the night.

Answer 5

well in an idea world they should have a bath or shower
every night
as it set's them up for a good nights rest
i have 4 children & they have a set bed time routine which inclues having a bath

Answer 6

Prevention is better than cure.

As long as they prespire or when they are drench in rain. It may be twice a day or even thrice a day if the weather is too hot.

Just like washing of hands. As long as they have dirtied their hands, they should wash them in order to prevent bacteria transmission.

Answer 7

My two kids (3.5 and 2) have a bath every night. Not just to get them clean, but as part of their bedtime routine. It's important that kids wash regularly!

Answer 8

Can depend on the age of the child, but my son has a bath most nights except the odd occasion when he is very tired.

Answer 9

There is no "should", it's purely a matter for their parents. They should simply consider what difference it makes for their children to bath/shower on a more or less frequent regular schedule.

Answer 10

a few times a week, every day unnecessary unless routine dictates. Kids dont perspire until they are teenagers! A bit of dirt is good for them anyway ;)