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There may be plenty of worrying headlines about children using adult beauty products from younger and younger ages, but what about the reverse?
I’ve been a beauty editor for more than a decade, but when I had my first child in 2020, I was immediately impressed with the body washes, bath products and moisturisers designed for babies, particularly as someone with eczema and sensitive skin. The products’ gentler, often fragrance-free formulas are easier on my skin, tend to cost less, and result in a less cluttered bathroom, since we can all use the same things. These are the ones I’m still using – on the entire family – five years on.
The best baby toiletries for adults
Weleda baby calendula nappy change cream
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US
Great for: eczema flare-ups
This was the only nappy cream I ever used on my children as babies, since it seemed to clear up any hint of a rash before it got bad. But it also works miracles when dabbed on my and my son’s eczema flare-ups (calendula is anti-inflammatory). The lanolin ingredient creates a barrier to lock in moisture, and the calendula and chamomile bring down redness quickly and effectively. It leaves a white cast, though, so avoid using it on your face.
Great for: removing makeup
Beyond nappy changes in the first couple of weeks with a newborn, I never found much use for cotton wool when caring for a baby. I did, however, discover that these extra-large, rectangular cotton wool pads are perfect for removing makeup. You only need one for your whole face, and they’re made from 100% Gots-certified organic cotton, meaning no dodgy chemicals.
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Great for: washing my own hair
I remember a cherry version of this shampoo, which smelled like marzipan, that my sister and I used when we were kids, so I bought this mainly for nostalgia. But it’s also a great shampoo – light, effective and delicious-smelling, leaving my hair silky and easy to comb through. (Although, as my son rightly points out, it actually smells more of peaches than mango.) I pack it for all of us when we go on holiday.
This Works baby sleep pillow spray
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Great for: a gentle pillow spray
No amount of lavender and chamomile would have lulled either of my children to sleep in their first years, so when I was given this pillow spray as a gift, I immediately adopted it for myself. I’m actually a pretty good sleeper (given the chance), but I find this helps me wind down when I’m feeling wired. I like that the scent – a delicate lavender with a hint of lemon balm – is subtler than most sleep sprays designed for adults.
Mustela bébé no-rinse cleansing water
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Great for: removing makeup
A French pharmacy favourite, the Mustela bébé range has long been available in the US but used to be difficult to find in the UK. Mercifully, it launched in Boots in 2024, when my youngest child was a year old. I quickly fell in love with the gentle avocado cleansing water, which I pump on to flannels to wipe away substances (jam and face paint) on my kids, but I also use it to remove my makeup every night.
Childs Farm OatDerma bath milk
Great for: a skin-soothing soak
Since my eldest son has eczema, bubble baths tend to be drying, leaving his skin tight and irritated. I bought this oat-based bath milk, which has colloidal oatmeal and oat oil – both great for eczema – as a substitute, and it left his skin so soft that I tried it myself. I now put some in my own baths, along with a slug of Aromatherapy Associates deep relax oil, and emerge with such silky-smooth skin I don’t even need to moisturise afterwards.
Nivea Sun kids SPF50+ roll-on sun lotion
Great for: a non-greasy family sunscreen
During summer, at least one portable sun cream can be found rattling around in the bottom of my handbag at any given time. This broad-spectrum SPF50+ offers great protection and is free from ingredients that can cause harm to aquatic life, such as oxybenzone. It also isn’t greasy like some of the other kids’ sunscreens, so I’m happy to use it on the children and myself.
Aveeno baby soothing relief emollient cream
Great for: dry skin
The Aveeno baby range is great, especially for dry and sensitive skin, but the oat-based creams are my favourite. There’s an Aveeno baby dermexa range designed for eczema-prone skin, but the classic emollient cream works best for my son and me, keeping our skin hydrated and flare-ups at bay. I apply a layer over my body every morning, then top up in the evening if my skin feels dry.
La Roche-Posay baby Lipikar Syndet AP+ body wash
Great for: a daily body wash
Even before having kids, I loved the La Roche-Posay brand for its no-nonsense skincare, sun protection and body care. But since my babies were born, we’ve all used this multipurpose body wash more or less daily. With glycerine and shea butter to protect the skin barrier, it’s hypoallergenic and gentle enough to use from birth, yet still cleans effectively. The large bottle means it can last for ages, even with four of us using it.
My Little Sudocrem
Great for: bites and scratches
It’s not exactly news that Sudocrem’s classic antiseptic healing cream is great, but it was only when I had kids that I truly understood its brilliance, and also discovered the infinitely more convenient My Little Sudocrem. Much better than a massive tub which goes out of date (and kids are destined to get their hands on and smear everywhere), this compact pot is now my go-to for the whole family’s insect bites, spots, cuts and grazes.
Neal’s Yard Remedies organic pure baby oil
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Great for: removing sticky stuff and moisturising cuticles
I bought this oil when I did a baby massage course with my first son – it’s a fragrance-free blend of borage, sunflower and jojoba oils – and while it did the job perfectly well for that, its greatest use has been as a general sticky-stuff remover. I’ve found that nothing removes the residue left by plasters and dressings quite so well. It’s a small bottle, but a drop of oil goes a long way for our purposes. I also massage it into my nail beds between manicures, and it works just as well as expensive cuticle oils.
Le Petit Marseillais crème lavante mains lait
Great for: dry hands
With all the nappy changes, snack preparation and medicine dispensing, I have never washed my hands more than I do now that I have kids. When we started getting my eldest to wash his hands at the sink, I quickly realised I’d need a gentler product – our usual soap gave him red, itchy skin. I picked up a bottle of this mild Le Petit Marseillais soap on a trip to France and noticed an immediate, positive difference in the skin on my own hands too. I now stock up every time we’re on holiday.
Kit & Kin magic salve
Great for: cracked skin
Due to the aforementioned constant hand-washing, I have permanently dry skin on my knuckles and between my fingers, which sometimes cracks when the weather gets especially cold. A mum friend gave me this salve to use as a nappy cream, and while I’ve never used it for that (I love the Weleda one), it is one of the few things that soothes the dry skin on my hands.
Kokoso natural konjac baby bath sponge
Great for: a face exfoliator
Konjac sponges – natural sponges made from fibres of the konjac plant – are traditionally used in Japan to top-and-tail wash babies, as their naturally alkaline and mineral-rich fibres cleanse without the need for any product. I used them when my kids were newborns and still buy them for exfoliating my face in the shower. A word of warning: they’re biodegradable, so will start to naturally break down after a couple of months.
Bioderma Atoderm cleansing oil
UK
US
Great for: a hydrating full-body cleanse
This incredible cleansing oil is a fairly recent discovery, but it may well give my beloved La Roche-Posay body wash a run for its money. Designed for the whole family, even newborns, its rich oil formula leaves skin hydrated, yet without a greasy residue, and is gentle enough to be used on the face as well as the body. Those without dry skin may even find it’s hydrating enough that they can skip moisturiser afterwards.
Lisa Niven-Phillips is a beauty journalist with more than a decade’s experience in covering everything from lipsticks to laser treatments, shampoo to skincare. With a good radar for snake oil, she prides herself on being able to see past fancy labels to discover the products that really work. A love of no-nonsense formulas, surprising beauty heroes, and anything that makes parents’ lives easier made this article a delight to work on
English (US) ·