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Do bath emollients and additives prevent eczema in babies?

The best evidence, including a Cochrane review of 33 trials and two large randomized trials, shows that regular emollient or bath additive use in infancy does not prevent eczema, and may slightly increase the risk of skin infections. However, one large randomized controlled trial found that in low risk infants, addition of emollient does reduce the risk of eczema.

This applies both to infants at high genetic risk of eczema and to infants in the general population.

Strength of evidence

Strong

Based on a Cochrane systematic review pooling 33 randomized controlled trials plus two large standalone RCTs (BEEP and CASCADE), which is the highest tier of evidence for this question.

What the evidence says

Many parents wonder if putting moisturizer on a baby's skin, or adding oils to bath water, can stop eczema (a dry, itchy skin condition) from ever starting. Good quality research says no.

A large review pulled together 33 studies with over 25,000 babies. It looked at emollients (moisturizing creams), bath additives, and other skin care steps used in the first year of life. The review found these steps probably do not lower the chance of a baby developing eczema.

Two big studies back this up. One, called BEEP, followed nearly 1,400 babies with a family history of eczema, asthma, or hay fever. Daily moisturizer for the first year made no difference to eczema rates by age two. However, another large study, CASCADE, tested the same idea in babies without any special risk factors, with different results. In this study, the group that used regular emollients had a lower rate of eczema at age 2.

There was also an unexpected finding. Babies who used daily emollients had a higher rate of skin infections, like impetigo, than babies who did not. Researchers think this might happen because moisturized skin can let bacteria in more easily, or because containers of cream get shared and touched a lot.

None of this means moisturizer is bad for babies with eczema once it appears. Emollients are still a core part of treating eczema after it develops. This evidence is only about trying to stop eczema before it starts, and for that purpose, bath emollients and daily moisturizers do not seem to help, and may add a small risk.

Sources

✓Reviewed by CH, MD, FRCPC

Reviewed by a specialist physician certified by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, who has read this answer against the sources listed above and confirmed it reflects them. That is not medical advice about your child. How we review

Answer checked August 10, 2026

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