How to Choose the Best Baby Wipes

Baby wipes are used to clean up messes made by babies and toddlers – from diaper blowouts to food spills and spit-up. They come in packages of varying sizes and are readily available at stores that carry infant products, including grocery stores, drugstores, and even clubs like Costco and Sam's Club that offer bulk bundles. Choosing the best baby wipes can be confusing as many options are available, including reusable cloth alternatives.

To help you decide which is right for you, it's helpful to understand how baby wipes are manufactured and what the most important ingredients to look for are on the back of the package. The main components of any disposable baby wipe are the basesheet, the solution, and the packaging.

The basesheet is the most visible part of a baby wipe and is typically made from wood pulp, cotton, or polypropylene fibers. The basesheets are saturated with at least 95% water (usually filtered, purified or distilled).

Baby wipe solutions often contain several ingredients designed to clean and moisturize the skin. Oils and lubricants can help remove soil, and some oils are also effective at providing a thin protective film against moisture loss. These can include olive, castor, vegetable, olus, or sunflower oil, as well as glycerin.

Most baby wipes also contain surfactants, which act as cleaning agents to break down and remove messes from the skin. The most common surfactants are alkylphenols such as alcohol and polyethylene glycols. Perfume is often included as a fragrance for the baby.

Preservatives are also important in baby wipes, as they ensure that the products do not grow harmful bacteria or fungus after production and until the expiration date printed on the packaging. These can be emulsifiers such as polyethylene glycols, methylisothiazolinone and sodium benzoate, as well as stabilizing agents such as butylene glycol and phenoxyethanol.

When it comes to buying baby wipes, price is one of the most important factors for most parents. Generally, the more you buy at once, the lower the price per pack. Many retailers and online brands also offer a monthly subscription service to make sure you always have the right amount of baby wipes on hand.

Cloth alternatives to disposable baby wipes are becoming more and more popular, as they offer a greener option while still being convenient for many parents. They can be washed and reused over and over, or stored in a wet bag with a splash of water to keep them moist until needed. They can be a bit more expensive upfront, but some moms find that they save money in the long run because they don't have to constantly purchase new wipes. They're also more gentle than disposables, which can be harsher on the delicate butt of newborns and young babies.