Diaper rash is a foe that all parents will have to face sometime during their diaper changing experiences with each and every child. Those icky red bumps and scales appear in even the cleanest diapers for seemingly no reason. Fighting the rash quickly is your best defense. Just don't turn to the Gerber company for help with your child's rash.

With their 70+ years of experience, you'd think that Gerber could come up with a diaper rash ointment that didn't smell like dead fish and had a better consistency than plain ole' white goo, but you'd think wrong. Don't let the coupons they offer tempt you into straying from your tried and true remedy, because sometimes checking out the competition can lead to disaster, or in this case, a worse diaper rash.

Our Rash Comes to Light

My youngest daughter (as of right now) is two and still wearing the cloth diapers that she's worn most of her life. Amazingly, our experiences with rashes, for both of my beautiful daughters, have been few and very far between. Unfortunately, K woke up with a "full" diaper earlier this week and we now are combating a full-blown case of diaper rash.

Since the tube of the brand I normally use was empty, I picked up the Gerber Diaper Rash Ointment I had bought on sale and with a coupon (for us "bargain hunters", this is a deadly combination leading to either great victory or smashing defeat) and prepared to slather it on my child's bum. This was not the first time I had used the Gerber Diaper Rash Ointment, and I wasn't prepared for any kind of stunning result.

Texture, Color, Smell!

The Gerber Diaper Rash Ointment has a screw-on, flip-top lid (read my review on Balmex to find out why that is a big NO NO in our house http://babyface.epinions.com/content_8462896772 ) that is just too easy for my child to open (and EAT). While this might be advantageous for the mother of a less inquisitive child or a squirmy newborn, for a 2 year old, it's an "open" invitation to dine. The flip-top lid also has a large opening for the white goo to come out of, meaning you have to spend less time struggling to get the goop out.

I don't have a good analogy for the texture of the Gerber Diaper Rash Ointment. Maybe a cross between very thick finger paint and a bar of soap? Regardless, the ointment is a very thick white goo that was clearly aiming for creamy but seriously missed the mark. When I initially opened this tube, the first thing that rushed out at me was a fishy-smelling yellow oily substance and some thinner version of the goo than appears now. The sticky thickness of the ointment makes it difficult to apply to a very sore bum with a light touch. You may consider leaving the blow torch and putty knife at the changing table if you decide to use the Gerber Diaper Rash Ointment.

The smell is one that will drive you away from the table wondering how you managed to get your hands on a tube of dead fish. It is not pleasant, especially to my 34 weeks pregnant nose. Luckily, the ointment is generally buried under layers of diapers and clothes, and doesn't seep from my child's body in giant waves.

What's Wrong with This STUFF?!

That is the question I generally get from my husband. He refuses to use the ointment and applies only the medicated diaper powder to her bum after drying her off and putting on a new diaper. I wonder if the batch of the Gerber Diaper Rash Ointment I purchased wasn't fully mixed or had a chance to separate? Yes, diaper rash creams have an expiration date (did you know that?) but my 4 ounce tube of Gerber Diaper Rash Ointment doesn't expire until September 2001. Regardless, I was sorely disappointed in the trusted Gerber brand not to perform as I had expected.

Bargain Hunters BEWARE!

As I said previously, I purchased the Gerber Diaper Rash Ointment on a "whim" when it was marked down and I had a coupon. Lost somewhere in the mess of my computer desk (unless I chucked it when on a nesting/cleaning binge several weeks ago) is the original box and price tag for my tube of Gerber Diaper Rash Ointment. If I was pressed, I'd say it was probably marked $2.99 plus I had a 50 cent or 1 dollar off coupon. I thought it was a good buy, at the time. Hindsight, they say, is 50/50... I just can't bring myself to throw it out (frugal, thrifty, cheap), and I hang onto it for emergencies.

Tech Specs

The active ingredients for Gerber Diaper Rash Ointment are: Zinc Oxide 40%, Cod Liver Oil (eww, that fishy smell...) 13.56%. The inactive ingredients include: BHT, Lanolin, Levomenthol, Methylparaben, Petrolatum, Talc.

Each tube of Gerber Diaper Rash Ointment is secured with a small foil seal over the opening, so you can be assured of it's sanitary condition. You must remove this foil before using the ointment (it says so in the instructions).

Store your Gerber Diaper Rash Ointment at 59 - 86°F (room temperature).

If you need to contact Gerber anytime, day or night, you make reach them via telephone at 800-4-GERBER, or visit their website at www.gerber.com

Overall

While my experience with Gerber Diaper Rash Ointment may just have been a fluke or the result of a poorly mixed batch of goo, I'm not willing to put my daughter's sensitive bum to the test again. Gerber claims that it's diaper rash ointment will "prevent and treat" a diaper rash, but I have yet to see these results. I'll stick with my Dr Sheffield's or Equate A&D, thanks.

Recommended: No