Here's a little fast fact I learned last year when taking my Certified Lactation Counselor's course, a course accredited by the ANCC (American Nurses Credentialing Center):
It's a long standing practice in the US to give our newborns sponge baths until the umbilical cord stump has fallen off. The fact of the matter is that you do not have to wait until the baby's umbilical cord stump to fall off before submerging him/her in water. As long as you dry it properly after, it will be fine. Here is an article that sums it up: Caring for Your Baby's Umbilical Cord Stump and here is a discussion on the matter here.
This was brand new information for me last year. It took a bit to sink in because it's what we did with our two girls and what everyone I knew at the time did. I recently asked my midwife what the practice is here and she replied that there was no practice. You bathe a baby as you usually would. In the bath with you, in a baby tub - whatever works. She said that she suggests drying it with a hair drying after - but, that that wasn't really necessary either as long as it was dried thoroughly by a towel.
So, if you're due to have a baby, go ahead and give him/her a proper bath as you please.
Please Note: I believe that care for circumcised infants is different. It is not something we are going to do, however, if you are, you would want to follow your doctor's advice.
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