# any old witch hazel? kissaluvs diaper potion...



## melanyh (Nov 6, 2007)

i got some to use w/ds2 due in a month...

it says to mix w/witch hazel. can i get just any old witch hazel, or are there booby traps (i.e., additives or ingredients) to watch out for.

anyone else use this stuff? do you presoak and put in a wipes warmer, by chance?


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## pamama (May 22, 2005)

I actually just put a teeny tiny bit in a spray bottle with water. I was afraid witch hazel would be too harsh on her skin? I'm not sure, but I actually had a hard time finding plain old witch hazel. I also didn't start using it until she was about 2 months old. I used plain water before that. I spray her bum and then wipe with a dry wipe. Works great, but I really don't notice a difference from plain water.


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## yamilee21 (Nov 1, 2004)

I found plain Witch Hazel at Target for a little more than a dollar a bottle; it is next to the Rubbing Alcohol in the pharmacy section there, but I haven't found it at most other chain pharmacies. The liquid I mix up for the wipes is primarily water though.


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## LawrenceDoula (May 2, 2007)

I found some at Walgreens pharmacy, but it was more expensive than I thought it should have been.


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## melanyh (Nov 6, 2007)

so it sounds like water would do just as well, too, huh? the witch hazel at central market was $6! it also had grain alcohol in it and aloe ... so i put it back and decided to check with you gals.


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## LaffNowCryLater (May 2, 2003)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *melanyh* 
so it sounds like water would do just as well, too, huh? the witch hazel at central market was $6! it also had grain alcohol in it and aloe ... so i put it back and decided to check with you gals.

that sounds like the kind that is marketed as a toner or astringent (works great for that use!) but it may be too harsh for a baby, I haven't tried it before. I would get some pure witch hazel.


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## verumprimoris (Jun 14, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *LaffNowCryLater* 
that sounds like the kind that is marketed as a toner or astringent (works great for that use!) but it may be too harsh for a baby, I haven't tried it before. I would get some pure witch hazel.

Hi. I'm new to the forum. About that Kissaluvs witch hazel, I spent a few days getting an education on witch hazel for our little girls (7, >1). Hey, guess what -- the internet is full of wrong information. And a lot of baby lotion sellers will lie through their teeth to claim they are 'organic' or 'natural'. Here's what I found out -- maybe it will help some of you.

We've used the Kissaluvs stuff, and a few other products. Kissaluvs has sold us the baby spray with the with the witch hazel/ethanol. Unless I sprayed it right in the eyes (mine, not hers) or on a cut, it didn't sting at all. I've also bought the witch hazel with the methylparaben in it. That didn't sting at all. So like you gals, I went online to see what might be 'safer'.

Turns out there is nothing called 'pure' witchhazel. When the witchhazel bark is extracted to get the oils and other chemicals out of the plant, that's almost always done with ethanol (drinking alcohol). And it has to be preserved in some way immediately, so it doesn't go bad. The distiller who makes this stuff for nearly the whole US market has different chemicals they can use: ethanol, methyl paraben, rose ether and some others. There is no such thing as 'pure' witch hazel -- it will go bad (rot, if you will) without some kind of preservative.

So the people who make our baby sprays, like Kissaluvs, or the stores that sell us the wash, like my local Target or Walmart or Walgreens -- they all have to use witchhazel that is properly preserved. I tried to buy some that was 'pure' before I found all this out. One website sells a 'diaper area spray' that mentions witch hazel, but doesn't mention what it is preserved with. Their ingredient list goes on to say that their product uses "Polyaminopropyl Biguanide ( a gentle paraben-free, formaldehyde-free preservative)" -- but they don't mention that their spray uses witchhazel that is preserved with 14% alcohol. That might not be purposefully deceptive, but it is playing loose with the truth.

Just like how some of these companies try to play up the fear-uncertainly-doubt scare tactics by putting 'formaldehyde-free' next to 'paraben-free'. I cannot find a single chemist who will say that methyl-paraben breaks down into formaldehyde. Or that m-paraben is bad for the skin/body/baby. Turns out, methyl-paraben is made by blueberries. Yes, in commercial quantities (like for preserving witch hazel extract), it's made from petroleum. Just like the vast majority of the 'fragrance oils' used in all of these baby products. But if we are going to play the 'F.U.D.' game, I'd rather spray products on my baby that are properly stabilized and preserved than growing who-knows-what in them because someone used scare tactics over proper chemical names.

I want what is safe for my baby -- but I'm really getting tired of people who play fast and loose on my baby forums with the truth about the chemicals (natural or synthetic) that go into these products. I'm going to keep using the Kissaluvs stuff. They didn't lie on their labels (either through omission or some kind of mistaken chemical 'knowledge') and I can't find anything in the medical or science literature that would knock their methyl paraben or ethanol witch hazel sprays. And, it seems that the amount of ethanol in the spray is less than 14%, and the m-paraben is much less.

If I find out more info, I'll post it. Truth first!


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## jenniepaige (Apr 17, 2007)

We always just used a wet wash cloth worked great. I don't really see the purpose of the other stuff except that it smells great! I had no issues with it though, but didn't really use it to much. I would however like to find some sort of way to keep them damp so I didn't have to run to the sink everytime she had a diaper change though.


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## lirpasirhc (Oct 26, 2007)

i just keep a tiny peri bottle in the top drawer of the dresser i use as a diaper changing station. squirt a little water on the wipe and wipe away.


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## starshine1001 (Feb 16, 2008)

I just make my own solution of water, a couple of drops of TTO, and a couple of drops of another EO (lemon and lavender are my favorites!). If he's getting a rash or whatever (right now he has that teething poo that burns the bum), I'll add a cup of food-grade aloe. I put it all into a bottle, shake it all up, then pour it over my stack of folded wipes. I don't use a headed wipes dispenser, just the regular old wipe box.


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