Pampers new brand of Dry Max diapers causes rashes, burns, sores, and boils on their babies, some parents are alleging in a growing online backlash. But is it really Dry Max, or just typical diaper rash that the parents are incorrectly correlating with the new diaper?

One parent posts, “We were using Pampers diapers with the dry max and at 2 weeks old she developed a diaper rash that turned into horrible open sores.”

Another, “my 2.5 year old experienced an inflamed reddness on his legs, bottom and genitals. I couldn’t explain where it came from. I doused him with desitin for two days and it bled instead of clearing up. It didn’t hit me til I read a post on facebook. Now I will switch him to another diaper.”

And another, “I was in the store the other day and didnt pay any attention and picked up a box of Pampers just thinking they changed the packaging. My youngest will be 2 next week and has NEVER had a diaper rash. Night before last he woke up with a leaking diaper (no surprise, we go thru it every night) and when I went to change him, his bottom was blistered and bleeding.”

To fix the rashes, parents say they have had success with using frequent rinsing, oatmeal baths, and Aveeno.

Reached for comment, P&G said:

At Pampers, nothing is more important to us than the health and well being of babies. That’s been our reason for being for over 40 years.

Whenever we make an improvement to our diaper – whether it was the introduction of adhesive tape followed by stretch many years ago up to the new Dry Max technology today – our overriding concern is that the product is safe. We have an entire division that is devoted to product safety, and we conducted extensive safety assessments including clinical tests before we introduced our new diaper.

Pampers with Dry Max is the most mom- and baby-tested diapers in our history. More than 20,000 babies from around the world involving more than 300,000 diaper changes were part of the development of Dry Max. This is one of Pampers’ most thoroughly researched and tested new products ever.

According to Dr. David Schonfeld, a member of the Pampers Parenting Network and Thelma and Jack Rubinstein Professor of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, “I’ve reviewed the consumer and clinical data and feel comfortable that Pampers with Dry Max underwent rigorous safety testing and is a safe product. As a pediatrician, this is exactly the kind of testing I would hope to see in a diaper. Diaper rashes are usually caused by irritation from feces and urine – it’s called a diaper rash because it appears in the area that diapers are worn. Although a good diaper helps to protect the baby’s sensitive skin, some diaper rashes are still going to occur no matter how good the diaper is. The testing that Pampers conducted before the diapers were sold and the monitoring of complaints since it has been on the market do not show any evidence that Dry Max causes more diaper rashes than the product it replaced.”

Diaper rash is one of the most common ailments affecting babies and toddlers with many causes and symptoms of varying severity. In general, a healthy baby is expected to get a diaper rash roughly 3-4 times a year with some percent deemed severe – meaning the rash is deep red, with possible blisters and/or breaks in the skin. Some of these rashes can have appearance characteristics typically associated with burns. When you consider that there are about 10,000,000 babies in diapers in the US alone combined with the frequency of the rash, it makes sense that as hundreds of thousands of parents switch to Dry Max diapers, some many have children that coincidentally develop diaper rashes at the same time.

As background, our Dry Max diaper uses the same type of ingredients as our other diaper and in fact, many other disposable diapers on the market. The improvement is in the design and manufacture of the diaper, which allowed us to create a diaper that is 20% thinner than before and is our driest diaper ever as it helps lock in wetness.

Moms are voting for Pampers with Dry Max in a big way with their purchases. Millions of bags of Pampers Swaddlers and Cruisers have been purchased in the last several weeks alone. We’re also proud that Pampers Cruisers with Dry Max has received product awards from Parenting Magazine, iParenting Media, Mom’s Choice Awards and Parent Tested/Parent Approved.

And in a recent survey of parents requesting samples of Pampers with Dry Max, 70% preferred our new diaper over their usual brand – the highest score of this kind we’ve seen. This is consistent with the overall positive feedback we’re seeing from parents.

Still, we know that every product change can be a source of stress for some parents who have grown to love their current products and don’t always understand why we made a change. We are always concerned to hear from any parent who has a bad experience with our diapers and take reports of rash or skin health concerns seriously. Babies’ well-being has always been and continues to be our top priority.

Pampers also addresses the concerns in an FAQ on their website. They encourage anyone with questions or concerns to call1-800-PAMPERS. Commenters say that got refunds from the company after calling up and making complaints.

Pampers bring back the OLD CRUISERS/SWADDLERS [Facebook]
Pampers Swaddlers & Cruisers with Dry Max FAQs [Pampers]
Pampers Dry Max causing rashes and burns, parents allege [WalletPop] (Thanks to Sierra!)

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