5 Month Old Loosing Hair

Updated on August 26, 2008
D.S. asks from Grand Prairie, TX
24 answers

My 5 month old baby boy was born with a head full of beautiful hair. For the longest people automatically assumed his was a baby girl because of his thick silky hair. This past week I noticed that his hair has thinned tremendously. I also noticed that his hair is everywhere. When we woke up this morning, he had hair all over him. When I wash his hair, it comes out in my hands. Its so thin I can see his scalp now. This is not happening in just one spot, but all over his head. I'm not sure if its been thinning over time, or if this just started happening this week. I've only noticed the hair on everything (his clothes, face, bottles, my hands) this week, but I'm not sure if that's because I saw how thin has gotten and now I'm paying more attention?? I've been told that it can be malnutrition. I've also been told that babies often loose their hair over time but not all at once like it seems to be. Has anyone had this problem? Oh, I use Johnson's baby shampoo in his hair. I noticed about 6 weeks ago that his hair was getting really dry. What else can I do?

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A.J.

answers from Dallas on

I woul contact his dr that does not sound right... to come out in clumps like that... I think its just supposed to come out gradually...

HTH
A. J

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J.K.

answers from Dallas on

I D.

I don't think you have anything to worry about. My daughter around 5mths lost most of her baby hair and my sister's baby son that was born a month later did the same thing. I ask my mother and other mothers and the ALL said the same thing around 4-6 mths they start losing there hair and new hair replaces it very quickly.

I don't think its a nutional thing remember the baby formalla and in my case the breast milk has all the nution that a baby needs.

Good luck.

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M.H.

answers from Dallas on

Its fairly common for babies born with lots of hair to lose that first growth and then new hair grows out over time. My son did it too. He was 4 weeks early and had hair all over even his back! He lost it and had thin fuzz for a long time. Then his hair finally grew in.

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R.C.

answers from Dallas on

I think it's normal for them to lose some of their hair. I rememeber when my son's would fall out as I touched it! If you are concerned about nutrition, I give my son a powdered infant multivitamin which contains 23 essential vitamins and miverals. It can mix into juice, water and food--I put it into his breakfast. If you want to check it out, go to www.shaklee.net/recipeforhealth and type 20073 in the search bar at the top right. It's called Vita-Lea Infant Mix.

1 mom found this helpful
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M.R.

answers from Dallas on

I would call his pedi if you are worried. I know it's normal to lose their hair around that age. I'm not sure if that's normal in that degree but I know every baby is different.
Good Luck
M.

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J.P.

answers from Dallas on

My oldest daughter was born with more hair than I could imagine & never lost any. My 2nd daughter had a good amount of dark hair, lost it all, and it took a while for light brown curls to come in. They are just all so different, but it is normal to lose their hair.

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C.H.

answers from Dallas on

Aww how cute he sounds! He is losing his baby hair and making room for his "big boy hair". It just seems like he is losing so much more because he has so much more. This is totally normal its just that most babies dont have as much to loose and it's not as noticable. Its true that it could be malnutrition....call your Dr's office and talk to the nurse about it. At this age you might not need to wash his hair everyday with shampoo. Maybe just rinse sometimes- and make sure you get the shampoo with anti- tangle conditioners. Johnsons makes one.

D.M.

answers from Dallas on

Unfortuantly they do lose the hair. I have the cutest picture of my son with the typical "old man" bald look. He lost all of his hair on the top with just a ring around the bottom. When the top came in, he lost the bottom ring. My daughter did the same thing and I thought her hair would never grow back! But at last, it did come back and my son has the thickest brown hair. My daughter unfortuantly has my fine hair but it's to the middle of her back now. So don't worry, it's normal and babies are all different and lose it at different ages. Enjoy him now, mine is now 13 and it feels like yesterday that I was freaking out over the hair loss too!

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K.A.

answers from Dallas on

Sounds a like a lot say what I'm going to say. My daughter had dark hair at birth, and when it fell out it came in blonde, also. But she was without hair for quite a while. It was blonde fuzz but she looked bald. Sounds like your son may be a blondie.
K.

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K.G.

answers from Dallas on

First, I would call your peditrician right away! It could be a number of things including thyroid issues. Let your doc help you!

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K.H.

answers from Dallas on

Hi D., I am a cosmetologist but I raised 2 daughters one lost her hair like your little boy. She went completly bald. This happens alot in babies it's really not uncommon. I have a very large family of 54 with several of them going through the same thing. It just happens sometimes. I really don't think you have anything to worry about. If he seems to be eating well & not loosing weight I wouldn't be too concern.
Try not to worry it will grow back, maybe a different color but it will come back in.
Take care. God Bless you & your family.

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H.B.

answers from Dallas on

If you are that concerned, then call the doctor. My daughter was born with a lot of hair. Beautiful hair! She lost it pretty quickly when she reached about 5 to 6 months of age. We saw hair everywhere like you are. My doctor told me it was normal. Babies have high levels of estrogen in their bodies from the moms when they are in the womb. It takes about that long (5 to 6 months) for the estrogen to reach a lower level. It is the same reason why women lose hair after pregnancy. When a baby reaches 5 to 6 months, that is when their immune system starts kicking in, too. So your baby is growing up. He is now getting ready to grow grown up hair. My daughter had dark hair and grew back blond. So I would not worry too much about it. But if you are concerned, please do call the doctor to assure yourself.

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C.B.

answers from Dallas on

Few Caucasian people actually have the same type of hair they were born with. I was born with a head a thick black hair. Once I lost that, my hair came in platinum blonde which darkened over time to the dirty blonde/light brown hair I now have as an adult. Both of my sons had black hair when they were born and are now blondes. Losing the baby hair is completely normal. My youngest, who is 10 months old, would have baby hair all over his crib mattress and car seat. It did freak me out a bit but it is completely normal. Of course, you can always call your pediatrician and since he is 5 months old his 6 month well visit is not far away!

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S.S.

answers from Wichita Falls on

All of mine were bald (again) at about 6 months.

Call the doc if you're worried, but I really don't think there's anything to worry about.

S.

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D.B.

answers from Tyler on

When my daughter was about 7 months old she lost all of the beautiful head of hair she had been born with & she lost it in great big chunks. It seemed pretty awful at the time, but really it was just a few short weeks before she started to grow a new beautiful head of hair. Keep in mind that what happens over weeks or months for some, happens seemingly over night for others, "averages" cover a lot of ground. She is all grownup now(21)& she has a beautiful full head of hair.

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A.M.

answers from Dallas on

Both of mine were born with full heads of straight black hair. They lost most of it by 6 mos old. Bald spots were in areas where they slept and it almost fell completely out with just a few strands left all over. It eventually grew back in. My son is now 2 and his hair is long and curly. My daughter is 7 mos and her hair has not started growing back in yet but I'm sure it will soon. :)
You can give him a liquid vitamin supplement that is made for infants if you're concerned about malnutrition. Emfamil makes one. http://www.diapers.com/Shop/ProductDetail.aspx?productid=...

Hair loss is a normal developmental process that babies go through. Here is a paste and copy from an online article about infant hair loss:

<<It is common for babies to lose their hair during the first six months of life. This is because hair alternates between two stages—a growing stage and a resting stage. In newborns all of the hair follicles reach the resting stage at the same time, causing them to fall out in bunches. This is nothing to worry about, however, as the fallen follicles will soon be replaced by thicker, often darker hair.>>

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K.B.

answers from Dallas on

Both of my boys (now 7 and 12) had lots of hair at birth and then lost it and then it grew back in lighter but still as thick. I did notice a lot on the sheets when they woke up. I think it is normal, but the one thing I have learned for sure is to trust my mommy gut. If you think it might be a problem, call the doc just to make sure.
Take care :)

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T.F.

answers from Dallas on

My friend had the same thing happen to her son and when she called the pediatrician they had her bring him in due to a disorder called alopecia or something like that. He eventually lost the hair on his eyebrows too. Call your dr.

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B.S.

answers from Dallas on

Let me say up front that I am in independent distributor for the #1 nutrition and supplement company in the US, Shaklee. I am not trying to sell you anything, just want to give you some facts. Although shampoos say they are safe, my daughter did some research on shampoos and in the process found out about the ingredients that are in most shampoos. I would be very careful and make sure that what you use is healthy. Shaklee has an excellent shampoo with no chemicals or toxins in it. I am not trying to push Shaklee, just an FYI. I would encourage you to research the ingredients in whatever you use and choose one with ingredients that are safe. Once I found out what was in my brand, I started looking around. Naturally I chose Shaklee, but there are others out there, you just have to look. Please let me know if you would like some more information and whatever you decide or find out, let me know how your son's problem is resolved. Best of luck with the little one. I know what a joy children are. I have 3 grown children and 4 grandchildren aged 8, 6, 3 years and 2 months. Unfortunately they are in Alaska and I am in Texas. Oh, well. It makes life interesting. B. S

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D.S.

answers from Dallas on

It definitely sounds like a nutrient deficiency. I remember a friend of mine told a story about her teenager that had a bald smooth place on his leg and being a basketball player it bothered him. Not being able to afford a dermatologist at the time she read home remedies and found it was a vitamin deficiency. I am thinking it was vitamin A - don't remember for sure. She is out of town, but if you are interested, I will find out when I can for you. It did fix her son's problem forever.

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J.S.

answers from Dallas on

Baby's do go through a losing hair stage..but I thought it was much earlier than 5 months. My son had a wonderful hair when he was born..brown with blonde tips.no kidding, he looked like someone had frosted his hair!

Well, at about a month I think (he is 8 yrs old now), I was washing his scalp for the smallest amount of cradle cap and the washcloth come away with a lot of hair on it..like sticky paper results. I freaked, natuarally, but it is normal. He now has blonde hair. His dark brown hair just fell out to change color. He lost it all but right at his neck..looked like a rat tail and mom asked me not to put him in an orange outfit :0)

If you are worried, call the clinic. New moms call all the time so it should be no big deal for them to address your concerns.

Congratulations on your blessing!

J.

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J.R.

answers from Dallas on

The same thing happened with all three of my boys at about five months of age. They all had dark, beautiful silky hair and, after it all fell out, it grew back in blonde. I know it seems weird and a little scarey, but it is completely normal.

At his well check next month, you can mention it to the doc just to be safe (just to check his vitamin levels) but, from my own experience, I'd say it sounds just like what happened with my boys.

PS....everyone always thought my boys were girls too because of their beautiful hair. I think all babies that are going to lose their baby hair lose it rapidly....it's just more noticeable when it is thick, dark hair.

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M.H.

answers from Dallas on

I have 3 children and all of them lost their birth hair but it was a gradual loss. I would want to talk to your dr. I don't know if it is normal that it is coming out all at once. I always figure better safe then sorry. A call to the dr.s won't hurt.

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J.F.

answers from Dallas on

D., I wouldn't worry too much about it. My daughter lost her hair at a rapid pace too when she was five months old. It came out pretty much everywhere, but began to grow back within one to two months. Like others said, she was just losing her fine baby hair. To ease your worries, I would call your doctor just to make sure, but my guess is that everything is fine and you have nothing to worry about.

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