As parents, you can go any miles for the betterment of your child. The new parents seem the most obedient beings. They absorb all the information, shielding your baby from any harm. At all stages of parenthood, ranging from newborn to teenage and young adults, you will get advice about how to handle the kids. However, we particularly receive suggestions on taking care of the newborn kids. Many of these are based on multiple superstitions and beliefs. Making the baby wear black beads or a kala tikka(black dot) from kajal to protect from the evil eyes of others and general well-being of the baby are some of these believes.
One such belief surrounds using second-hand clothes for the
newborn baby instead of the shiny, new designer clothes. Our mothers and/or
the beloved mothers-in-law are always on the toe when it comes to taking care
of the newborn. They have a bagful of suggestions and beliefs to protect the
baby. Read below to know more about such beliefs as well as the scientific
reasoning behind the use of second-hand clothes for your baby:
- Beliefs Supporting Using Used Clothes For
Baby
- Scientific Arguments On Using Second Hand
Baby Clothes
- Advantages Of Second Hand Baby Clothes For
A Newborn
- Disadvantages Of Second Hand Baby Clothes
For A Newborn
- How To Buy Used Clothes For Baby
Beliefs Supporting
Using Used Clothes For Baby
Providing the newborn
baby with used clothes for the initial period has deep roots in our culture. It
is a custom practiced in a few sects, and some say it will bring good luck to the
newborn. These are ancient beliefs from the period when infant mortality was
high. The birth period and post-natal period were crucial times when due to
lack of medical services, the health of the child and mother was possibly
affected. Therefore, people waited for some time, till the survival of the baby
is assured, and then purchased new clothes and even named them. They believed
that new articles attracted evil and bad luck from other people. This fuelled
the tradition of using ‘hand-me-downs’ for the newborn!
Scientific
Arguments About Using Used Baby Clothes
Trotting to the
rational viewpoint in this regard: The fabric of the new clothes may be treated
with chemicals and other agents. Baby skin is
special. This can be harsh for the extremely delicate skin of the newborn
baby. In addition to this, the new clothes may also have innumerable bacteria
on them, in the due course from production to landing in your closet.
Therefore, to protect the skin of the baby, it is advised to use second-hand
clothes for the baby.
So the idea is to prevent damage to the baby’s skin, for which you may even
wash the brand new clothes a couple of times and it should suffice.
Let’s have a look at the other advantages and disadvantages of wearing used
clothes for the newborn baby:
Advantages Of Used
Clothes For A Newborn
Babies outgrow their
clothes very, very soon. In general baby clothes are not subjected to a lot of
wear and tear and are used only for a few weeks before they are either packed
away or put on sale. Hand-me-downs from someone from the family or a friend is
even better as you know from where the clothes are coming from. Not only this,
the below pointers will make you at least think again about using used baby
clothes:
- They have been tried and tested. So you
get the clothes for your baby, which are deemed best in terms of softness
and comfortable design
- Your baby will grow up pretty quickly and
you may not be using them in next three weeks! The hand me downs of
various sizes are perfect here since baby clothes are expensive
- You never know the size of your baby, so
buying new clothes which may not fit your little one at all, creates a lot
of disappointment and wasted money
- Saves your baby from an unnecessary
allergy from brand new clothes
Disadvantages Of
Used Clothes For A Newborn
Apart from the fact
that you may not like the idea that your baby is wearing a second hand or a
hands-down dress, there are some other arguments that may prevent you from
using used baby clothes for your newborn:
- Possible infestation by worms or bugs
- Sometimes the stain and smell from old
clothes do not wash off easily
- Some mental block regarding who has worn
it before, was the baby fine? So if your baby falls ill, then the used
baby clothes should not be blamed for this
- Some not so friendly social beings of the
society may mock this practice and degrade one as a miser
Most mothers want to
buy fresh, new, and colorful clothes for the baby and dress them like dolls.
This again can be an issue with using old baby clothes as mothers want to dress
their babies in clothes of their own choice. A mix and match therapy could
prove useful for this.
How To Buy Used
Clothes For Baby
Our elders will probably save you or your husband’s baby clothes for your children. They may come forward with this little surprise for you on time. Usually, the hand me downs passes within the family. In case you do not want to take the efforts of buying new clothes and subject them to multiple washes you can buy second-hand baby clothes in good condition. It is available on various online platforms, charity shops, and specialized baby stores. However, you should wash the clothes thoroughly with gentle soap and hot water to avoid any discomfort to the baby.
If you are buying baby clothes that have been used earlier, you need to be a
little careful and check for buttons, zippers, clasps, pockets, belts, etc., to
ensure that what you are buying is proper and you are not spending your money
on something that needs a lot of work later on. If something would require a lot
of repairs, it is better left as it is.