Moms and dads around the country love to use baby wipes because they are convenient. They keep them handy at all times. But now baby wipes are causing serious allergic reactions. Are they unsafe?
CBS news reports on the serious allergic reaction.
Pediatricians are now warning parents against using baby wipes. Six serious allergic reaction incidents have occurred in recent days due to baby wipes.
CBS sheds light on the ingredient causing the allergic reaction, “The culprit is a preservative called methylisothiazolinone (MI), which is found in personal care and household products. This is the first time MI in wet wipes has been reported to cause the allergic skin rash, called allergic contact dermatitis, in the United States, according to the report’s authors.”
Doctors are advising parents to use normal paper towels and tissues on children in lieu of baby wipes. One pediatrician told CBS, “The current trend toward the use of wipes in personal hygiene products is not without consequence. As wet wipes are being increasingly marketed as personal care products for all ages, MI exposure and contact sensitization will likely increase.”
CBS reports, “The first case was in a healthy, 8-year-old girl with a recurring rash on the face and buttock areas. Doctors told the patient’s mother to discontinue using all wipes, but the girl still returned with a rash, only for the doctor to find out mom only switched brands. After finally discontinuing the wipes, all rashes rapidly resolved and did not come back. Another five children presented to their doctors over a 22-month period from March 2011 to Jan. 2013, with similar allergic reactions caused by an MI allergy, which was later confirmed through testing. Doctors initially misdiagnosed some of the children with other skin infections, and mistakenly prescribed antibiotics and steroids. But these patients too saw their symptoms resolve once their parents no longer used the products.”
