How to properly dilute potassium permanganate for a bath

Maternity hospital, the first joy of meeting the baby and family is over, and it’s time for the first bath. This exciting moment causes fear from the first thought, especially among new parents.

At what temperature should I bathe, with what products, for how long, and how often? It seems that everyone already knows the answers to these questions. But there remains one more important point - the use of potassium permanganate, or simply potassium permanganate. Baths with it were the most common means of hygiene in the times of our mothers and grandmothers, but recently they have begun to actively prohibit it. Let's figure out whether potassium permanganate is needed for bathing a newborn or whether it still causes harm.

Potassium permanganate for children How to prepare a solution?

If there is a child in the family, there should be potassium permanganate in the first aid kit. Already at the first visit to the child after discharge from the birth. at home, the doctor recommends treating the navel with potassium permanganate or bathing the child with potassium permanganate. When the child grows up, the presence of potassium permanganate in the home medicine cabinet can also be very useful. Why do you need potassium permanganate for children and how to use it correctly. Let's figure it out together.

Potassium permanganate or potassium permanganate is a strong oxidizing agent. Its main property is antiseptic. It kills bacteria, viruses and fungi. It is this property of potassium permanganate that is used in medicine. Potassium permanganate can be dangerous and even fatal. If potassium permanganate crystals come into contact with the skin, severe chemical burns can occur. Also, if ingested, burns to the mucous membranes of the mouth, stomach and esophagus, poisoning and even death are possible. Therefore, it must be stored out of the reach of children . Potassium permanganate is included in the list of precursors - precursors of narcotic drugs. It is sold in pharmacies only with a doctor's prescription in the form of a dry powder. And potassium permanganate is always used in the form of a solution. You will have to prepare the potassium permanganate solution at home yourself. How to do this correctly?

general description

It is enough to ask the older generation whether you can drink potassium permanganate, and you will receive a positive answer. After all, they have repeatedly seen in practice that this inexpensive tool can help out in many situations. Potassium permanganate is a dry solid that is rich in color and dissolves in water. In this case, the crystals make it possible to obtain a pink solution.

If you make it very concentrated, the liquid turns out almost purple. When applied to the skin it turns it brown. But the solution is used not only externally. Today we are talking about whether it is possible to drink potassium permanganate precisely because the solution in this form is used for poisoning.

Potassium permanganate for newborns

It is mainly used for bathing and for treating the navel.

Bathing newborns with potassium permanganate

For bathing newborns, a very weak (pale pink solution) 0.02-0.05% solution of potassium permanganate is used. And to obtain it, you first need to prepare a 10% solution, as described above. Strain it through cheesecloth. And then add it to the bath, to 6-12 liters of warm (37°C) boiled water. Newborn babies are bathed in boiled water until the remainder of the umbilical cord falls off and the umbilical wound heals (up to about 1 month). The child is placed in a bath with potassium permanganate for 5-10 minutes and gently bathed. Wash your head, back, stomach, arms and legs with your palm or a soft cloth. After bathing, the baby is washed (rinsed) with boiled water without potassium permanganate.

Potassium permanganate for children Treatment of the navel

An intense pink 5% solution is used to treat the navel. To obtain it, 3 g of potassium permanganate is diluted in 60 ml of warm water. The solution must be filtered through cheesecloth. After that it can be used. It is recommended to treat the navel with potassium permanganate 2 times a day. In the morning after waking up and in the evening after swimming. Treatment of the umbilical cord or umbilical wound is carried out using a cotton swab.

Reviews from experienced parents

Daria, Margarita 4 months, Daniil 5 years Until the navel healed , I bathed the children in potassium permanganate . Then I switched to adding herbal infusions on the advice of a doctor. The only thing I didn’t calculate was that after bathing in potassium permanganate (especially when I bathed my son, I didn’t know anything at all), the towel became stained, but it hardly washes off. I already dried my daughter, first with an old soft cloth, and then with a towel.

Natasha, Mashenka 1.5 months All my grandmothers persuaded me that I should bathe my daughter with the addition of potassium permanganate . My friends said - under no circumstances. I was confused, I finally consulted with a doctor, and she told me how to breed it correctly. We swam almost from the first days, and on the contrary, I liked it - I knew for sure that the water was the cleanest and that my baby would be healthy from such bathing . And when my belly button was overgrown, I generally bathed in ordinary water, and everyone was happy.

If a child ate potassium permanganate

• If a child has eaten potassium permanganate powder, it is dangerous primarily due to burns to the mucous membrane of the stomach, esophagus and oral cavity.
• And also, if you drank a concentrated solution, it is even more dangerous. Because the solution will definitely get into the esophagus and stomach. And there it will cause burns and begin to be quickly absorbed.
• If a child drinks a slightly pink solution of potassium permanganate, then it is less dangerous. But it depends on the amount of solution drunk and the timeliness of the assistance provided.

What to do

• First of all, you need to call an ambulance.
• If there are potassium permanganate crystals in the mouth and on the tongue, you need to start rinsing your mouth with water. A 1% ascorbic acid solution is best. Or remove the remaining potassium permanganate using gauze moistened with a 1% ascorbic acid solution or a 3% hydrogen peroxide solution + a 3% acetic acid solution in a 1:1 ratio or water.
• And if possible (there is no severe swelling of the pharynx and esophagus, or swallowing problems), begin to rinse the child’s stomach repeatedly with water before the ambulance arrives. Give the child water. Then induce vomiting by pressing with a finger or the handle of a spoon on the root of the tongue. It is effective to give the child ascorbic acid orally along with water if it is available in the house. To lavage the stomach, you can use a solution of 50 ml of 3% hydrogen peroxide + 100 ml of 3% acetic acid per 1 liter of water.
• The child is subject to mandatory hospitalization. Intravenous infusions of a solution of ascorbic acid, B vitamins will be required. As well as FGS to exclude burns to the stomach and esophagus and monitoring of the child.

Now you know how to use potassium permanganate for children . Stay healthy!

Source

Characteristics of the drug

Potassium permanganate is a chemical compound that is a potassium salt of permanganic acid (chemical formula – KMnO4). These are dark crystals, dissolving in water, they color it dark purple.

Potassium permanganate

In addition to its use in industry, agriculture, and for water purification, the substance is actively used in medicine due to its beneficial properties:

1. Potassium permanganate is a powerful antiseptic, therefore it is used for various skin problems (irritation, dermatitis, fungal infections, etc.);
2. The drug has astringent properties, that is, it causes tissue retraction, which is sometimes used for superficial wounds or skin diseases that cause suppuration.
3. Sometimes potassium permanganate is used for poisoning, the stomach is washed with the solution;
4. Since potassium permanganate dries the skin, it is used to treat hyperhidrosis, or increased sweating of various parts of the body.

Can children be given potassium permanganate if they have an intestinal infection?

Have you heard about how you can be treated with potassium permanganate? It's hard to believe, but it is used not only for gastric lavage!

Take care of yourself and BE HEALTHY!

During the Great Patriotic War, like cartridges for a soldier, it was in the bags of orderlies and paramedics and was widely used in the treatment of wounds in hospitals.

The first thing people resort to for throat diseases, intestinal disorders, and poisoning is potassium permanganate (potassium permanganate, potassium permanganate).

During the Great Patriotic War, like cartridges for a soldier, it was in the bags of orderlies and paramedics and was widely used in the treatment of wounds in hospitals.

How it works

Potassium permanganate for chickenpox is an effective method of therapy because it has a disinfecting effect. This property makes it useful for treating scratched pimples, prevents the occurrence of bacterial complications, and prevents suppuration of wounds.

Potassium permanganate helps reduce itching and alleviates the condition of patients with chickenpox. Thanks to this, a person does not scratch the rash, and nail wounds and scars do not form on his skin.

Potassium permanganate helps reduce itching and alleviates the condition of patients with chickenpox.

Bathing a child in a solution of potassium permanganate

Temperature for newborn bathing

Before the first baths of a baby brought from the hospital, parents have many questions: is it possible to bathe a newborn in a solution of potassium permanganate, is it necessary to use it, how can it harm?

The possibility of using the drug for bathing newborns is not disputed, sometimes even recommended by doctors. It is necessary to know the rules for preparing the solution, otherwise such procedures will only cause harm.

What are the benefits of using potassium permanganate?

Potassium permanganate can benefit newborns:

1. A baby's navel is a wound that needs to heal quickly. This will be facilitated by the astringent properties of potassium permanganate;
2. The drug dries out the skin. This means that irritations of a child’s skin, such as prickly heat, can be treated with baths with potassium permanganate;

Miliaria in a baby

1. No one can be sure of the sterile purity of tap water, and the use of potassium permanganate, an excellent antiseptic, can solve this problem.

Contraindications

Not all children can bathe in water prepared with the addition of potassium permanganate; for some children its effect may be harmful:

1. There is no need to use the drug if the umbilical wound has already healed;
2. If the skin is excessively dry with signs of flaking, using the product will aggravate its condition;
3. You cannot bathe a newborn in potassium permanganate if there are open wounds on the skin (scratches, etc.), or if there are wounds on the diaper rash that bleed.

Important! If the baby is seriously ill from birth, you can use potassium permanganate for bathing, but only after consulting with your pediatrician.

Correct breeding

If you know how to properly dilute potassium permanganate for bathing a newborn, it is possible to eliminate the unpleasant consequences of its use.

Quantity

Important! The main thing when diluting the drug correctly is to avoid obtaining an overly concentrated solution. It depends on how much potassium permanganate is added to the newborn’s bathing water.

You need to remove only a few crystals of the substance from the bag of potassium permanganate powder, if they are large - from 2 to 5-6. When the crystals are very small, a small pinch will be enough, which will barely cover the middle of the bottom of a teaspoon.

The right amount of potassium permanganate

Breeding process

1. Take a small glass container, such as a jar, and pour hot water into it. Heated water is needed for better and faster dissolution of drug crystals;
2. Add potassium permanganate and wait until it completely dissolves. You can stir the liquid, which will turn dark purple;
3. After this, carefully strain the liquid through gauze, folded at least twice, into another container. In this case, the crystals that remain undissolved will remain on the gauze;

Important! Contact of whole crystals with the delicate skin of a baby will cause a chemical burn. Therefore, it is necessary to additionally check the absence of crystals by careful observation in the light.

1. Dilute the resulting liquid in a bath of water intended for bathing. The water will take on a uniform pinkish color.

Breeding potassium permanganate

Bathing a baby

The solution of potassium permanganate must be freshly prepared, otherwise it will lose its beneficial characteristics.

Bathing a baby in potassium permanganate is no different from water procedures in ordinary water. You just need to follow some rules that will reduce the risk of unpleasant consequences for the baby and parents to zero.

Bathing rules:

1. You should never grab potassium permanganate crystals with your hands; you should pour them directly from the bag, for example, into a spoon;
2. A towel that will be used after a water procedure will definitely turn brown and will not wash. Therefore, it is better to use an old diaper or sheet;
3. The baby's stay in the bath should not exceed a 10-minute period;
4. After each bath, you should carefully rinse off the remaining solution from the walls of the bath, although it is very likely that the plastic containers will still darken;
5. It is necessary to dilute the already prepared and filtered solution in bathing water; it is forbidden to place crystals directly into the bath. In the latter case, there is a high risk of undissolved crystals coming into contact with the baby’s skin;
6. For greater safety, it is recommended to wrap the baby's body with gauze;
7. Avoid getting water on the baby's mucous membranes, mouth, nose and eyes.

How to properly dilute potassium permanganate for bathing a newborn? article

Read about pediatricians' doubts about the advisability of adding potassium permanganate to water here. If you still decide to use potassium permanganate when bathing a newborn before the umbilical wound heals (it’s better to replace it with an infusion of the string), then DO IT COMPETENTLY!

By following these seven steps, you will dilute potassium permanganate absolutely correctly. You will have no chance for error.

1. Boil the kettle.
2. Take a transparent glass. 3. Without touching the potassium permanganate with your hands, pour some crystals into a glass (about as much as this teaspoon). 4. Pour boiling water (in very hot water, potassium permanganate dissolves much faster, literally in a matter of seconds). By pouring cold water over the crystals, you may not wait until they are completely dissolved, but with boiling water this danger is minimized. 5. Stir thoroughly. The solution should turn out purple (not black, NOT purple-like-ink, but just purple, i.e. it should remain transparent). 6. When the water calms down, lift the glass to the light (to a light bulb, chandelier, sun) and see if the crystals remain at the bottom. It is these undissolved crystals that, when in contact with the delicate skin of a child, will cause an inevitable burn . And that is why potassium permanganate needs to be diluted in a transparent glass, and not in a bathtub - in a bathtub (especially in an anatomical one, where the bottom has a complex shape with depressions and protrusions), you may not notice the crystals, but in a glass they are very clearly visible. Stir the solution in the glass and monitor the sediment until the last grain of potassium permanganate disappears. 7. The solution is ready. Pour it into a bathtub filled with water. The water should be clear, slightly pink (not crimson, not purple, not inky).
Slightly pink. Source

Useful and healing properties

• Manganese baths are used to combat fungal nail diseases . For this procedure, a small basin filled with a faint pink solution will be sufficient.
• A positive effect of a solution of this concentration on dermatological problems , as well as a reduction in pain and inflammation in calluses, was noted. To do this, you need to add a small amount of ordinary kitchen salt to the bath. This method will also help reduce excessive sweating. You should keep your feet in the solution for at least half an hour, provided there are no negative sensations. There is no need to wipe your feet; it is better to let them dry on their own. After completing the procedure, it is recommended to apply a nourishing cream to soften the skin. If the procedure is repeated periodically, the pain in calluses will decrease significantly.
• To combat gynecological problems , especially thrush, it is recommended not only to periodically douche the internal genital organs, but also to take manganese baths.
• Also, such baths of low concentration are used for bathing children for hygienic purposes , in cases of streptoderma or diaper rash, as well as bathing newborns for better healing of the umbilical cord. In this case, it is very important to maintain the correct concentration of the solution in order to protect the child from burns or subsequent irritations.
• People suffering from chronic hemorrhoids can combine taking potassium permanganate baths and using compresses.

What will serve as a replacement for potassium permanganate

What water to bathe a newborn baby in

An alternative to potassium permanganate with similar beneficial properties are herbs sold in pharmacies:

• medicinal chamomile has a mild antiseptic effect and slightly dries the skin;
• celandine, string will help with the healing of small wounds and skin rashes;
• lavender and valerian have a general calming effect.

Herbs for baby bathing
Important! Before using herbal infusions and decoctions for bathing, you should consult a doctor, as allergic reactions are possible.

What Doctor Komarovsky says

How long to feed a newborn with breast milk

Children's doctor E. Komarovsky does not believe that baths with potassium permanganate are beneficial for the baby. His opinion: why use a weak solution of potassium permanganate if it is not effective as an antiseptic? If you achieve the effectiveness of the solution by increasing the concentration, it will be dangerous for the skin of the baby.

If you follow the rules for diluting potassium permanganate and safety when swimming, water treatments with potassium permanganate will not harm the baby. Therefore, they can be used, even if they are carried out only to reassure parents, according to Dr. Komarovsky.

Basic Rules

In case of poisoning, the most important thing is not to waste time so that toxins do not circulate throughout the body, aggravating the intoxication. Is it possible to drink a weak solution of potassium permanganate? Yes, but only so that its concentration does not exceed 0.1%. This is quite easy to do. You don't even have to do any additional weighing to do this. You just need to add 2 crystals of powder per liter of boiled water. The solution should be pale pink. A more saturated solution can lead to damage to the mucous membranes of the digestive organs. It is recommended to strain it first. This will prevent the possibility of undissolved crystals getting on the mucous membranes.