Dealing with heat rash aka "bungang araw"

This heat is punishing. The baby has been in just his diapers all day for more than a month now, jus to help him deal with the heat. He is in airconditioning some days, but most of the time he is indoors with a fan and that's just not enough to stave off the dreaded heat rash that summers bring to children.

Bungang araw is generally harmless, but it's uncomfortable as hell for the child. It is painful to hear his nails violently scratching through his skin even when he is asleep. Here are few things we have tried. Some are better than others:

1. Caladryl. Generic name calamine lotion. It helps ease the itchiness but won't prevent a rash from appearing. Since it is in liquid form it is also not ideal for the daytime. It'll bleed into his sweat and it'll be a gunky sticky mess. Use at night so he is more comfy in this sleep. Warning though, the stuff is pink, so if you apply it and let the baby lie down on your sheets you'll have pink stained sheets!

2. Fissan. Make sure you ask the nice but clueless lady at the local drugstore for the kind that's for heat rash, otherwise he/she will give you the stuff for your feet. Apply liberally throughout the day. It gets caky when mixed with sweat. Just wipe him down and the re-apply.

3. If you are vigilant about keeping the rash dry then you won't have to deal with yeast infections. If the rash does end up with candida it'll look really raw and red and angry. Gah, not a pretty sight. It will also get worse really really fast if left alone. If the rash gets suspicious looking apply anti-fungal cream immediately and often until it dries up. If you can't get anti-fungal cream some diaper rash cream applied often will help dry it out, the fungus will die eventually.

4. When drippy with sweat, wipe down with a damp washcloth often. This will keep his skin cool as the stuff dries and gets rid of the sweat which, when sitting next to his skin for extended periods, can irritate his skin even more.

The only other thing I can think of is to wait this nasty summer out! We did take a dip in the pool. The pool had a hundred other kids there though, and 2 days later he developed a fever, so perhaps not the best idea :P