Having a baby is the miracle of life. It is natural for parents no matter how many children they have had, to worry about every little aspect of their new-borns life from when they make a funny noise, to having a funny twitch. A common worry regarding babies is hair growth and loss. Learn more here.
Lanugo is commonly present in new-borns. This is a thin, soft hair on the shoulders and ears. This usually wears off, and falls out as babies begin to move around however, it is completely healthy for the hair to remain for 4 or months, and is particularly visible on dark haired children.
Although it may seem unusual, normally every baby will suffer from some kind of hair loss. The cause is relatively unknown, but hair often disappears and grows back at different times. While some babies are born with a full head of hair, others can reach their first birthday while still being bald. Another aspect of hair loss in babies is due to movement. When babies become used to sleeping in a certain position (for example on their backs) constantly rubbing their head against a pillow can cause bald patches. This will grow back in time and is totally normal. Once the baby is more mobile and is able to roll, crawl and eventually stand, the pressure and friction between the back of the head and certain services is considerably reduced which will aid the bald patches to disappear.
Another common condition in young babies is cradle cap. This is characterised by a scaly rash and general redness on the scalp. It clears up on its own and doesnt itch or hurt the baby, but understandably most parents are not happy with it and want to treat it. Professionals and health visitors would suggest that the best remedy is olive oil. Rubbing oil on to the scalp to soak in for a couple of hours then softly rubbing the cradle cap with a baby brush will soothe the skin and encourage the condition to go away.
A well-known myth regarding hair loss in babies is that shaving the head encourages thicker hair growth. The reason behind the birth of this myth is that shorter hair will always appear thicker, but realistically it isnt therefore cutting the hair of a baby does not actually make it grow faster and/or thicker.
Hair loss and stunted hair growth is certainly normal in babies. Instead of focusing on the individual strands to find problems, try looking to the scalp. It is easy to determine a healthy scalp from one that isnt, and if the scalp does look healthy, the hair loss they are experiencing is just a routine part of baby life. To help a healthy scalp is soft with no scaling, oozing or redness.
Hair loss in babies is not something to worry about. However, if
hair loss is hereditary and you are worried, consult your GP or a
hair loss clinic.
