Dealing with the Sour Milk Smell in Baby’s Neck

One of the worst things is to snuggle up to your baby and get a whiff of sour milk. This seems to be worst in the mornings, at least at my house. My baby goes to bed with skin fresh from his bath, but wakes up a bit sour. I think it has to do with the two night feedings in the dark. It’s hard to get the milk wiped up well if you can’t see it.

That being said, here’s how I handle sour milk. baby necks

1. Block it.
I know Brian is an fickle eater. He’ll suck it down and then stop. When he stops, it dribbles down his chin into the folds of his neck. If I remember, I’ll stick a burp cloth right under his chin to catch the dribble.

2. Wipe it. As soon as he’s finished eating (for the last time each feeding – don’t get me started), I wipe up all the milk that spilled with my handy burp cloth. Make sure you gently separate the folds of the neck to get in between.

3. Clean it. Despite my blocking and wiping, that stinky milk still gets into those folds. During the day, I’ll occasionally grab a diaper wipe, tilt his head back and clean the neck creases. It helps keep the neck folds clean and reduce the smell.

4. Bathe it. Brian has a full bath every other night. On those nights I make a point of getting into the neck folds with soap, water and a washcloth. Non bath nights I just use a wet washcloth to wipe off his face and try to wipe out any milk residue, too.

5. Rinse and repeat. Milk is a major food source for at least a year, so I keep cleaning. Eventually he’ll learn to eat more neatly, and then I’ll be dealing with carrots and peas in his hair.

6 Responses to “Dealing with the Sour Milk Smell in Baby’s Neck”

  1. Rachel Says:

    I forgot about this. Maddie’s neck was always stinky! I am going to check Lauren’s neck now.

    EW!

  2. (((((HUGS))))) sandi Says:

    Just wanted to let you know that I have been reading and enjoying your blog today! Lots of good, common sense tips that fall by the wayside all to easily! (((((HUGS))))) sandi

  3. Rebecca Says:

    Thanks Sandi, and I hope you only find sweetness and love Rachel!

  4. MilitaryMom Says:

    Call me insane, but I actually like that smell. I like smelling their ears, between their toes, and my favorite is their smell when they’re newly born before they have their first bath (vernix?)

  5. Rebecca Says:

    You know, I never got to smell my babies before the first bath. It guess that’s just another C-Section sacrifice…

  6. Madge Says:

    Well written article.

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