Try not to fret over your baby's acne.

Congratulations on your new little bundle of joy. Bringing home a new baby is very exciting, but it can be a little nerve wrecking too, especially for brand new parents who don't know exactly what to do. When you've never parented before and don't know exactly what to expect, every little sound your baby makes and every little inconsistency in his behavior alarms you. Don't worry, it's probably no big deal, and that's doubly true for baby acne.

A few weeks after you brought your newborn home with a smooth, rosy, baby doll like complexion he has sprouted what appears to be a pimple on his chin. Relax, that's probably exactly what it is., but you may want to rule out a few other possibilities first, like:

• Milia - tiny bumps on the skin, usually the face, that are present at birth and are usually cleared up within a few days or weeks of birth. Milia are harmless and so common are virtually all babies have it to some degree.

• Cradle Cap - reddish skin covered in scales of flakes that can be oily and yellowish or brownish in color. Cradle cap is sort of like dandruff and is completely harmless. It may show up around the ears, eyebrows and armpit area. When it's found in places other than the scalp, it's called seborrheic dermatitis.

• Eczema - a skin condition in which the skin doesn't produce or absorb enough oil so it gets red and irritated. Eczema is pretty common among babies. Most of them grow out of it, but really bad cases can carry on into adulthood. Remember the skin doesn't absorb moisture efficiently, so it doesn't matter how much lotion you slather that child in, it will not help. Your pediatrician can prescribe you with a cream or gel that will help until the condition goes away.

These issues are pretty fast and easy to rule out. No one knows for sure what causes babies to get acne. It may be related to hormones they get from their mothers in the last stages of pregnancy or fluctuations of their own bodies. After all, they've just gone through a struggle of epic proportions to be birthed and adjust to a new world much bigger and more complicated than the one they've just graduated from.

Your baby's acne may appear to get worse when he is crying or gets a little too warm. That doesn't mean it actually is worse. It will get back to normal a few minutes after he calms back down. There's really not much you can or should do about the blemishes, but he's some things you should not do:

• Squeezing - Your infant is not on his way to the high school dance. There' absolutely no need to squeeze the pimple to make it less noticeable. It fact, doing so will hurt the baby for no good reason and could possible damage the skin.

• Acne Treatment - Don't put anything on the spots that your doctor doesn't give you for that specific reason. It will irritate the skin and make the issue worse

• Scrubbing - Do not scrub your child's skin. Acne has a shaky connection to hygiene, if any at all. Like all humans, and most living creatures for that matter, your baby's skin is the first line of defense of his immune system, which is still developing. If you damaging by scrubbing, you're just asking for an infection. Excessive washing can also dry out the skin and make the acne worse.

The wisest thing to do is wait it out, and let it clear up on its own. Your baby isn't worried about it, and you shouldn't be either. At this point, you're only transferring your own negative associations with acne on to your child and this no need for that. Pass this information on to other new parents you know and look like a parenting pro.