Diaper Changes: How Often Should I Change My Baby's Diaper?

Photo by @isabelplett

 

With the birth of the first baby, new questions arise daily. Even if you might not have expected it before, diapering is certainly a big topic for you too. This article answers many of your questions about changing diapers.

How often should I change my baby's diaper?

Age	How often change diaper?	Diapers per day
0 – 48 hours	every 4 – 6 hours	6 – 8
Newborn	every 2 – 3 hours	10 – 12
Infant	every 3 – 4 hours	8 – 10
from 6 months – toddler age	during the day every 3 – 4 hours + 1 night diaper (approx. 12 hours)	5

In case of bowel movement, you must change the diaper as soon as possible.

In addition to all the facts about changing diapers, I will explain how to recognize if your infant is excreting enough and what healthy stool in infants should look like.

How often to change diapers for the baby?

The older your child gets, the longer the intervals between diaper changes. In principle, in case of bowel movement, the diaper should be changed as soon as possible.

In the first 48 hours you usually need to change your newborn every four to six hours. After that, it's approximately every two to three hours.

Newborn babies should be changed every two to three hours.

Infants between two and six months old need a fresh diaper approximately every three to four hours.

From six months to toddler age, it is also sufficient to change your child's diaper every three to four hours. From this age, your child usually only needs one diaper per night, as significantly less urine is excreted at night than during the day.

It is important that you regularly change your baby's diaper. This prevents diaper rash and ensures your baby feels comfortable.

Pay attention to your baby's signals and change the diaper more frequently if necessary, if it feels uncomfortable or produces more excretions than usual.

If your baby has a sore bottom, you may also change the diaper more frequently. In case of skin rashes and inflammations, fresh air is very beneficial for the baby's skin, so let your little one kick around naked as much as possible.

Photo by @cafema.illustration

Signs that your baby needs a diaper change

There are several signs that can help you determine when it's time to change your baby's diaper. These include:

• your baby is restless or crying
• your baby's diaper is wet and heavy
• your baby's diaper smells like stool or strongly of urine
• your baby makes certain sounds or words before they need to go
• Gestures and facial expressions of your baby, such as eye contact, whining, stretching, or pushing

Over time, you will learn to recognize your baby's signs. Many babies tend to fill their diapers at certain times – for example, always in the morning. You will quickly learn how often a diaper change is necessary for you each day.

How often to change diapers at night? 

The answer, how often you should change your baby's diaper at night, depends on various factors. The digestive system of newborns is not fully developed yet, and they usually have a bowel movement after every meal. Therefore, you need to change your newborn more frequently at night to avoid unnecessarily irritating their skin. Between the third and sixth month of life, the digestive system generally matures and nighttime bowel movements become a thing of the past.

For urine, it depends on the absorbency of the diaper and your child's sensitivity. If your baby becomes restless in wet diapers and has difficulty falling back asleep, you should consider changing them a bit more frequently.

 

Tips for Changing Diapers at Night

• Good preparation → Prepare everything you need for changing diapers in the evening
• Ensure a relaxed environment
• Dim lighting → e.g., yellow light from a night light or a salt lamp
• Quiet environment → speak as little as possible, more important is skin contact and minimal movement
• Warm environment → Ensure warm hands; you might have a portable heat lamp; you can also place the diapers on the heater to gently warm them
• Suitable clothing and sleeping bag for hassle-free diaper changing
• Suitable disposable diapers/cloth diapers for the night
• No pull-up diapers → This way, not everything has to be completely undressed
• Suitable cloth diapers for nighttime
• Fitted diapers with cover
• All-In-Two diapers
• Judes cloth diapers
• Insert with wool cover

Do older children still need to be changed at night?

The older your child gets, the more likely it is that you can skip changing diapers at night.

On the one hand, the bladder of growing toddlers has a larger capacity, and on the other hand, the antidiuretic hormone (ADH) ensures that the body produces less urine at night. Your child's sleep is less often disturbed by the urge to urinate, and the amount of urine can be well absorbed by the diaper. Often the diaper even stays dry until morning.

However, this is less clear with disposable diapers. Our study found that more than 15 percent of children who are diapered with disposable diapers are diapered for four years and longer. When cloth diapers are used, it is less than one percent of children.

Photo by @ablondegirlsjourney

Change diaper before or after breastfeeding?

Many newborns have a bowel movement during or after breastfeeding. If this is the case with your baby, you should change it after breastfeeding. However, if your baby often spits up after breastfeeding, you should wait a bit before changing or be careful to avoid putting too much pressure on the belly.

If your baby falls asleep during or after breastfeeding without having a bowel movement, it's better to change it before breastfeeding and only again when it is awake.

If your baby is impatient as soon as it feels hungry and therefore does not want to be changed before feeding, try to recognize the first signs of hunger and change it before it becomes too hungry.

Do I need to change cloth diapers more often than disposable diapers?

No, you do not need to change cloth diapers more often than disposable diapers. Even though disposable diapers often promise twelve hours of dryness, you should change them regularly. Disposable diapers are not very breathable, and due to the lack of air circulation in the diaper area, the baby's skin is more susceptible to fungi, rashes, and diaper rash.

Many assume that cloth diapers do not hold as well as disposable diapers. However, this is not true. Cloth diapers sometimes hold even better than disposable diapers. Additionally, cloth diapers are more sustainable, healthier, and even cheaper than disposable diapers.

Judes' goal is to be the simplest cloth diaper in the world. We believe Judes Family has done a great job of achieving this. Our Judes cloth diaper is as easy to use as disposable diapers and is ideal for use as a nighttime diaper. While the absorbent inner diaper quickly and safely absorbs all liquids, the waterproof outer cover provides optimal protection. The material is breathable and thus ensures a healthy diaper environment.

Photo by @soapbubbbbles

How many wet diapers do babies have per day?

Your baby's excretions are an important indicator of their health condition. Especially for breastfed babies, you can tell if they are drinking enough.

A newborn usually has only one to two wet diapers in the first 48 hours. After the milk starts flowing – approximately after two to six days – your child should have at least five to six full diapers (Source: La Leche League)

How do I know if the diaper is full?

For a diaper to be considered wet or full, it does not mean it has to be on the verge of leaking.

A diaper is considered wet at around six tablespoons of liquid. However, this rule only applies to exclusively breastfed children, meaning your baby is not receiving any other liquids besides breast milk during this time.

To understand how much six tablespoons are, you can weigh a dry diaper, then fill it with water and weigh it again. This way, you can know what a full diaper looks and feels like and can easily verify it by weighing if in doubt.

How do I know if my baby is drinking enough milk?

Besides wet diapers, there are, of course, other factors that can help you determine if your baby is getting enough nourishment.

Weight gain and growth of your child are important indicators of whether your child is developing well. Birth clinic, midwife, and pediatrician regularly check the weight gain. It is not necessary for you to weigh your child between appointments.

Also, the appearance of your baby provides clues to sufficient nutritional intake:

• Rosy skin color
• Good skin tension
• Active and attentive behavior

In addition to these factors, you can also pay attention to your baby's behavior. A healthy baby will naturally show you when it is hungry. Try to watch for its hunger cues and breastfeed your baby on demand – as a guideline: most

Breastfed babies drink 8 to 12 times in 24 hours during the first weeks (Source: La Leche League).

Stool – Appearance etc., what is normal

The first bowel movement – meconium – is blackish to dark green and is an important sign of a healthy intestinal tract.

Typically, the newborn passes the meconium 12 to 48 hours after birth. By the fourth day, the meconium should have appeared in the diaper at the latest.

What does the stool of breastfed babies look like?

The breast milk stool changes over time, and the color and consistency vary between ochre, yellowish, or mustard brown and liquid, soft, or yogurt-like – all these stool types are completely normal. The smell ranges from aromatic to slightly sour. Some also say the smell is yeasty or even fruity.

What does the stool of bottle-fed babies look like?

The stool of bottle-fed babies is more mushy than that of breastfed babies. Sometimes it is even already formed. The color of the stool ranges from pale yellow to dark green – the range of colors is wide. The smell is often more intense compared to the diaper contents of breastfed babies.

Did the text answer all your questions? If you have further questions, feel free to let us know in the comments! Follow us for all information about our cloth diapers on Instagram and exchange ideas with other Judes users in the comments.

Further Questions and Interesting Facts

What should be considered when changing boys?

For boys, you should ensure that the penis points downwards in the diaper. If it points upwards or sideways instead, leaking is inevitable.