Help with Cradle cap...I'm Desperate!!

Hi T.,
Unfortunately cradle cap could last till they are a year old! My son had it for almost 11 months. It's just a matter of diligently washing it of, which can be so time consuming! I used mineral oil for my son. I would leave it on his scalp for about 10min, used a soft comb to get rid of the scales, then shampoo his hair. I used a shampoo by Aquaphor which is very mild.Whenever we go out I just applied mineral oil to his head(my son had a thick head of hair!)so you can't see the scales, and it'll look like he has gel in his hair! Hope this helps! Good luck!

Have you tried Olive Oil? That worked for us, I think it took about a week for it to go away.

K.

Hello:
My 3 year old had this very bad for about 6 months. I did nothing but the olive oil and a soft brush. My doctor said there was nothing you could really do and it would go away. It did. My newborn (5 months) has it too. I use olive oil, soft brush (let that sit a bit) and then wash with "Mustella newborn shampoo". It really works. The shampoo is designed for cradle cap.

Hope that helps.
E.

T.-

I think the Dr. is right with the dandruff thing, but I would personally try Olive oil. It is natural safe and effective. You have to do it liberally. And its not pretty but you will have to scrub it off with a soft brush. You could also mix in some oatmeal with it to act as a scrub that is mild. Try that, it worked for my son. Dont worry-it will go away in time.

V.

Oil, any kind, but olive is good. Massage first then wash. May take two or three times.

How old is your baby? Sometimes when our babies our little we don't want to scrub them too hard. I would say if you've taken him to the doctor and all that already just make sure you scrub his head. Like REAL good. Now I am in no way inplying that you don't wash your baby I think sometimes they just need an extra bit of scrub. :) What I always did too when mine were little was after their bath was rub vaseline on their skin all over including their head - so they don't get dry. Have a great day! -A.

I would get a soft tooth brush and a mix of baking soda and water, a good paste and softly scrub the head. i would not continue using all those chemicals, or cream. My middle daughter had it and I just keptusing the baking soda until it was gone, after scrubbing then put some good oil, not mineral oil, I like burts bees apritot oil,or good lotion.
/do it right after a bath when the skin is soft. good luck!

Gentle Naturals makes a cradle cap treatment. I think you can buy it at Wal-Mart. It says Disney on the bottle and has a picture of Winnie the Pooh.

I would do the baby oil hting everyday. I don't know if yo uare washing his hair after you scrub his head if so apply moer baby oil and leave it on to absorb. You have to do this everyday. When he goes to sleep apply a little baby oil to his head to let it absorb in overnight.

I soaked my daughter's head with olive oil for about 30 minutes and then brushed the flakes off with a tooth brush. It worked and lasted a while, but it did come back and I had to do it again. Her hair was pretty greasy for a day or so after. HTH!

My daughter had the worst cradle cap ever, I was so embarassed I thought everyone would think I didn't bathe her. Anyway, we did a treatment of selsen blue, let it sit for 1 hour on her little head, rinsed, then I took a very fine tooth comb and very gently combed with pressure to remove the scales. She did not seem uncomfortable at all, it even looked a little soothing. Luckily it never came back! Good luck.

My son is 7 months old now but when he was your son's age he had it SOOO bad too. i know this sounds really gross but once his head was all lubed up with baby lotion I used my thumb nail and just started peeling it off. So much came off, there was a pile of skin on the blanket. i became obsessed and thought i was doing something bad, but the nurse at my doc's office admitted she had done the same thing with her child. My son now has a beautiful, smooth head!

Hi T..
I read the other responses and here is what we do.
My son, 5, has allergies that still trigger excema( cradle cap as an infant..later called excema or other skin conditions) as they mature, around his mouth if he has dairy( I let him have ice cream at special occasions but he drinks rice or goat milk at home)...and his Head flares up too. I have used oils and struggled to get them out, causing him to cry. I use the combs but that is sensitive. I find that inceasing essential fatty oils (they have awesome waffles with flax)vitamins..nutrition...is essential. Every little health issue on my side of the family comes down to allergies and nutrition deficits...I am of danish, Irish and Italian heritage and if you study your heritage (or guess) you will find a legacy of similar issues. Just work with a reputable nutritionist. Down the road, if this does not resolve, please email me I will tell you who we worked with. I live in Roseville but she is no longer in town, in Sac but it has helped in so many amazing ways..I breastfed, I ate well but I think genes, environmental factors...are HUGE!!!! Enjoy your sweet guy, it truly does go by lickety split

The only thing that worked for my daughter was washing her hair with Head and Shoulders. The doctor said it was O.K. but just make sure to not get it in her eyes. Not sure what age I started using it on her, but it seems like she was around 6 months old, but my friend used it on her son earlier than that with no problems.

Hi, I had success with organic olive oil. I rubbed it into my son's scalp and waited about 15 minutes and then washed it out with a natural shampoo, like Alba organic baby wash and shampoo. possibly his head is reacting to all of the chemical products you have been trying. I would stop all other products and use the olive oil approach it may take a few times before you see any improvement. Try a cool cloth on the area if your baby seems agitated
good luck

When my daughter was born she had thick baby hair, and craddle cap. I stopped using the baby shampoos at the advice of her peciatrician, and started using stuff that rinses out easier, and a conditioner for some control.
Needless to say, all has been well since then. Also, rinse
at least two extra times more than you think you need to.
I would buy something extra moisturizing when you go looking, and the herbal essences seems to rinse out really well for us here.
W.

I used Baby Silk gentle scalp rub for my baby's cradle cap. I applied it before shampooing and rubbed it in with a soft baby brush.

Hi T., I used olive oil and a fine-tooth comb. Very gently. I'd skip the ointments.

When my twins had it, I was told to use mineral oil. I believe it is a litte thicker than baby oil. just leave it on.

Oragel makes a great cradle cap product. You can get it at most drug stores. It comes in a green box. They make a great excema wash and cream for babies too (I use it to wash my face it is so gentle). It cleared up my son's cradle cap in two days. Good luck!

Hi T., I know the frustration with cradle cap. My daughter had it very bad also. It is more or less an eyesore than anything. It is obviously hereditary in my case as I have been diagnosed with seborrheic psoriasis. (major head dandruff) She has grown out of it. But when she was a baby we would use Aveeno baby shampoo every other day and when it got really bad to put mineral oil on the flakes and slough it very gently off with a very fine tooth baby comb. Good luck!

Hi, T.

Please don't use baby oil, this will make your situation worse. My daughter had cradle cap when she was a baby and my grandmother suggest I use Mineral oil (you can find at walmart) OR Olive oil. That's it... and it CURED it. But you must NOT put anything else on the scalp, and be consistent.
After a couple of days you will see a difference.
Take care, Ree

hi T.,

best to deal with it from the inside out rather than outside in, which is only treating the symptom, not the problem. aloe vera taken internally is the best soothing and cooling nutrient for the skin and any break outs. it is safe and natural. just get organic aloe juice and put a small amount in his mouth or in a bottle. even more important if you are nursing, drink some in juice yourself. you can also apply it directly on his skin.

most disorders are caused by an excess of acidity (read The PH Miracle by Dr Young). So if you are nursing, you want to get your diet more alkaline as quickly as possible. you basically want to eat more greens, and you can also put a teensy bit of baking soda in water ( should taste great). you can google alkaline foods or go to http://alkalinediet.com/.

also i would think leaving selsun blue on over nite may be toxic for him, remember it has chemicals and they are going directly into his system. then he has to work harder to eliminate toxins which means more is released through the skin. the top of the head is where most heat/toxins release so do make sure your diet is free of the know irritants
(caffeine/alcohol/white sugar and sometimes wheat).

wishing you all a calm and cooling new healing time,

A.

Try washing with head and shoulders shampoo and gently scrub with a soft brush to loosen the scales. Good luck.
C. N.

I manage a medical spa in Redding, CA, and also run an organic farm with my husband. As an extension of our farm I produce a line of natural cosmetic and therapeutic products for people and pets. You might try a product I make for skin conditions: Rash Relief. I make it in an oil base, a lotion base and also as a shampoo and conditioner, and my clients with eczema, psoriasis, hives, etc., have had good success in managing their outbreaks with these products.

Please let me know if you are interested in sampling these products.

Blessings,

V. T

My oldest had this for a long time. We didn't use any medications and our doc warned us not to scrub too hard because that could make it worse. We used baby oil and a massaged it in with a soft baby hair brush, or the softest toothbrush I could find. I would let it sit, then shampoo out the oil, this helped, but whenever I stopped for a while, it strated again. She eventually grew out of it. I hope this helps.
From a mom of 4 girls

ALOE-VERA 3 times a day!!! try not to put much chemicals or it will get worse!!! Love, G.. :0)

My daughter had it when she was a couple months old. My doctor had me put baby oil on her scalp, massage it in and then gently rub it with a very soft toothbrush. This really helped us. I did have to continue to re-apply it until it went away (I can't remember the timing, but I want to say a week or two). Her case was mild, but I think the oils helped moisten her dry scalp.

Yes, olive oil helps and comes off easy too. I did the baby oil thing (technically I put baby oil GEL in) and it took days for it to finally rinse off. In one way it was good cause her head got enough moisture to keep the skin from cracking.

It does go away, but don't be surprised if it comes back. I noticed my little one had a few flakes recently (15 mnths old), probably from being in the sun. So another suggestion (from experience) is to keep the head covered if you can, especially during summer.

Supposedly it doesn't bother them... but I'm sure its got to itch!! Just my opinion.

~B

P.S. Try not to over do it with the scrubbing, you can irritate it and possible create more dead skin as the skin tries to rejuvenate itself. Kind of a catch22. Good luck!

My son had it horribly as an infant also. I would do the baby oil thing and then wash his hair with Head and Shoulders (be careful though because it can burn his eyes if the soap gets in them). Make sure to brush his hair with a soft fine brush with the baby oil on his head and when you have the shampoo on his head. Good luck!!!

Hi T. -

Our son had pretty bad cradle cap too - and it took quite a while to get rid of.

We would put Mineral Oil (you can get it wherever you're getting baby oil - or maybe a pharmacy/drug store) on his head, all over and lay him on a towel to avoid the mess, and let it sit on his head for 1-2 hours. After that, we'd gently wash out the mineral oil with baby shampoo, and then lay him down on a towel, and use a soft baby brush and brush his head until basically no more of the cap would come off. Then, we'd do it all again the next night and we did this for probably a month.

Anyhoo . . . don't sweat it -it'll go away somehow, good luck!

I tried baby oil, mineral oil, Head and Shoulders, frequent baths, a lot fewer baths, hard scrubbing, gentle scrubbing, on and on, and none of it seemed to work. It was only when I finally GAVE UP at around four months that my son's cradle cap just seemed to magically go away. It's ugly but not painful so I figured there were many other things more worth spending my time and energy on! Don't worry. He won't have it forever. :-)

I just used burt's bees shampoo for babies and my fingernails. I washed his head every other bath (which would have made his head washing just about every 2-3 days) to avoid drying everything out. But within one week it was gone. I don't like baby oil because it's a petroleum based product. If you want to use an oil I'd suggest either the olive oil or jojoba oil.

A friend of mine swears by the baby shampoo offered by Arbonne. She said it just went away after a few washings and has never come back - sure wish i had that when my kids were little.

R.

www.arbonne.com
#15837881

I also used the Mustela shampoo... gone in a day! Still use the shampoo and have never seen another flake!

Several things that have worked well for me and for friends are plain olive oil or St. John's Wort oil massaged into the scalp. You can leave it on overnight. With all the topicals you have been using the skin is probably over irritated. Maybe some aloe vera would help to cool and sooth the skin. Homeopathy works extremely well for this problem and is safe for even the tiny babies. Would recommend seeing a homeopath and not self treating at the healthfood store. Depending on where you live there should be a doctor who also is a master homeopath. Lastly, acupuncture for babies called sho ni shin (no needles are used just tapping and gentle stimulation)has worked well for some babies for craddle cap. It does go away with time. Good luck!

Hi, T.! Here's another vote for olive oil. We would gently warm the olive oil, then massage it in and loosely wrap our son's head with a cloth to allow it to penetrate (think about the hot oil treatments people do on their hair). After the wrap came off, we would gently comb through and remove all the flakes...worked like a charm! (And yes, it would return, but not as thick).

hi T.,

i know so many babies with this. I used a little scrubber from tuberware and oil and rubbed lightly and did it everyday along with aloe vera jelly from ava care. It did work but took sometime. There are different kinds of oil that are at the health food store. I would try to stay away from anything that has a chemical base. It sounds as though you already have.
It is much harder on the parents that it is one the babies.
We don't want anyone to think we are not washing our babies head. As a parent, most of us understand and for the ones that don't. "who cares"

try: askdrsears.com it has everything. He speaks on dr. Phil.

Good luck

K.

I think using all those creams and products is probably making it worse. How can his scalp breathe with all that stuff on it, plus slough off the scales if they are constantly gunked up. Plus all that scrubbing is probably aggrevating his scalp, if he is waking up with it worse you cold be stimulating the scalp to produce more of what is causing it in the firs place. How do you know it itches? Most doctors say it doesn't bother them. Sounds like you are more concerned than he is. I would ask the doctor about using a dandruff shampoo, we used head and shoulders dry scalp, shampoo and conditioner in one. We use it twice a week and his cradle cap is gone. Only draw back is if it gets in his eyes it stings. The cradle cap will clear up as he gets older.

Poor thing I know exactly how you feel. My first daughter (now 3) had cradle cap and it lasted about 2 months. If your little boy's scalp looks like a reptile, it's probably at its worst and can only get better. My second little girl not only got cradle cap on her head but on her face! Believe me, I was mortified and again it only got worse before it gone better. I did not use Selsun Blue as recommended by my pediatrician. The dermatologist said that baby oil and regular baby shampoo would do the trick. They say it can last months and with both my girls it lasted about 2-3 months. It'll get better if you can stand looking at it and picking at it! Don't!

Hi, a natural way to help with this it Burts Bees Apricot oil... you can find this at Longs... take a little bit (it is pretty concentrated) and gently massage into his head. Good Luck!

Both of my twins had cradle cap! I used head and shoulders shampoo and a hair brush every other shower. Then I used arbonne baby oil (scent free) on their heads, and in the really bad spots I used aquaphor healing ointment on it. It took some work, but now they are 9 months old, and they haven't had one flake.

When my son had that (wasn't as bad) I put baby oil left it on for a while and used the baby comb to comb it off. That seemed to help but I felt like it made his head tender. I just did it very softly. good luck

My son had this up until he was about 8 months old and then it just went away. He used to scratch his little head so bad and it would bleed and we tried everything you have tried, the Dr said that it would just go away at a certain age and it did. We had to wait it out. I felt horrible for him and everything your doing helps, but it wont make it go away. We tried T-gel on him, once or twice a week is what we were told. We did that and the prescription anti-fungal cream. Sorry, I know this isn't really helpful but you aren't the only one!! :)

In our case, my son started having it around 2 months and it got really bad at 3 months or so, along with rashes around the side of his face and chin, shoulders and chest. I have really bad eczema and lots of food allergies, he may too. I tried cutting out dairy in my diet (since I'm breastfeeding) and that seemed to help a little. However, like any case of eczema, a flareup requires stronger medicine to control the initial symptoms, before dietary control can work effectively. My father in law is a pediatrician and he recommended that I use my own creams on my baby, for just a little bit, and allergy medication. I used OTC hydrocortisone for his face, and then triamcinolone for his scalp and body. As for the allergy med, we gave him one ml of zyrtec just for 2 nights. (I was nervous about giving him more) It worked (skin and cradle cap are gone) and now whenever there is a slight flareup, OTC hydrocortisone works well enough when I catch it at an early stage. You should bring him to a allergist to check him out just if you want.

Good luck!

I used Jafra's Precious Protein Oil (made with sesame oil) on my grandson's cradle cap. This is a "leave on" product, so use it after shampooing. It got rid of the scaly skin in a matter of days and with continued use kept his scalp clear.
L.

"The antibacterial properties in breastmilk make it an ideal treatment for a variety of skin conditions both for your baby and for you.
Wash the affected area with breastmilk to be sure it is clean. Breastmilk is a sterile solution and will clean your infant’s skin gently.
After the area has been cleaned, apply a thin layer of breastmilk and allow it to air dry. This same technique can be used to prevent eczema flare-ups, treat other skin rashes, and cure and prevent diaper rashes."
http://breastfeeding.suite101.com/articl...

Use Mustela Newborn Foam Shampoo and a soft toothbrush to gently work away the flakes. The cradle cap should be gone within a week or two. We still use the shampoo and the cradle cap never came back. It lasts forever--I'm still on the same bottle 8 months later.

Hi T.,

I own a small company that makes an excellent herbal treatment for all types of skin irritations. It is called Superhealer and it might just do the trick with your child.

If you send me your address I'll be happy to put a sample in the mail for you, free of charge. I really believe in my product and have had great success in treating everything from exzema to insect bites to vaginal rashes in children.

Superhealer contains only organic extra virgin olive oil, beeswax, and effective healing plants like yarrow, white sage, lavender and calendula. Old time plants that have been used for centuries to treat all types of skin ailments.

Let me know if you'd like to give it a try. You can also check out my website at schoolgardenco.com.

Good luck,

L. Ludwigsen
School Garden Co.

My daughter had cradle cap from week three to about 2.5 months old, with a few little flakes here and there now (she is now 4.5 months). I did a bunch of reading and I found that many doctors mentioned that cradle cap is just overly healthy skin creating too much skin before the old skin can shed (just like on the rest of our bodies). They said that when your child's head is wet lightly scrub it with a washcloth to help remove it. I then applied an organic flax seed oil for moisturizer on my entire daughter's body (Trader Joe's has this for $6). Her whole skin is now really clear with a nice complexion and she only had tiny flakes of cradle cap here and there. (Note: some of the other readings I found mentioned NOT to put on many of these over-the-counter items like Selsun Blue or other heavy pharmaceuticals because 1.) they are petroluem based and 2.) they have a very strong chemical odor that can potentially harm your child's eye ducts. If you are looking for more info on this, I did most of my research online on natural and alternative web sites when looking under key words "cradle cap" and "natural remedies", fyi.). Also, you may want to look on these sites if his itching continues as it may also be an allergic reaction to something you are eating (I found that things improved even more when I cut out eggs, vinegar, wheat, nuts, and dairy- it was tons to cut out but now my daughter is soooo very happy, with no itching, and good digestion, too). I hope that helps!!! Good luck!

I've tried baby oil and used a brush and just tried brushing it out. I've even used this Cradle Cap product I saw in Target that has the Winnie the Pooh logo on it. Sorry I don't remember the name. It worked but it just smells. Then I had to wash his hair a lot to get the smell out. I thought my son had it bad but eventually it got better. I know you probably want immediate response but it'll be fine. I just know someone once told me, don't pick at it though or else he'll bald spots. That was tough for me. Good luck!