Cradle Cap - Chatsworth,CA

Use Vaseline. It's super greasy, but works well, cake it on their head at night time...then softly comb away dead skin in the morning.

Hi Janette,

Lots of responses...but here's an easy, inexpensive one that my pediatrician recommended and has worked for both my boys as babies in about a week's time or less. Try using Dove soap (I used a sample of the liquid kind--that's all it took--a few washings). It's safe and also leaves a nice scent. Good luck!

Y. :-)

My daughter's cradle cap was really bad and and aunt told me to comb her hair with the baby comb given at the hospital. I did it for about 30 minutes combing out the flakes. I thought it would never come off but eventually it did. I combed her hair for about a week.
Hope this helps.

Are you putting a warm, damp washcloth on the head to "steam" it with the baby oil on? I did this repeatedly and used a fine comb to get off all the flakes. It got rid of the initial cradle cap, and I continued it and had almost no trouble after that.

My son has it right now for the first time. It's actually part of a larger outbreak of eczema. I bathe him every other day and use Aquaphor Gentle Wash to wash his hair and body. It does not have any soap. I use Aquaphor in his hair if it is mildly itchy (per my pedi/allergist) and if it is really bad, I've got a prescription foam that I use. Brush the hair often, then just wait it out.

I used T-Sal from Neutrogena. It was recommended by the dermatologist,when my son was 4-5 months old. The first time I used it, the cradle cap was significantly better and almost gone within a week.

We used baby oil and a small soft tooth brush each night to gently brush the area and get rid of the crusty skin. You have to do this for a few days. If it comes back you may want to get cradle cap shampoo and change your shampoo to something that is more moisturizing.

Good luck.

Do you also scrap the cradle cap flakes with a gentle toothbrush once you have let the oil settled down a bit on the scalp? try, it worked well for my baby. But even then it took about a month to be fully over...
wishing you the best with the new babies.

Hi Janette,

Both my daughter and my son had HORRIBLE cradle cap. The kind that actually smelled... I know what you are going through!

With my daughter, I used a baby oil gel. You can get it at Target, Walmart, etc. I put it on her at night right before I put her down and when she woke up the next morning, I combed her hair to loosen up the scales and washed it off. Now, it's messy and you'll have to wash their hair a few times, but it really worked and the scales didn't come back. The only down side was that she has sensitive skin and it irritated her a little. That was 5 years ago.

Now with my son, who is 7 months, I used Gerber's cradle cap solution. It comes with a great comb too! I think you can find it at the same places. With this, I put it on him about 2 hours before he took his bath. I'd let it sit on his head and comb it periodically. When I gave him his bath, I would comb n the opposite direction of how the hair was growing (against the grain if you will) and the scales came right up! I'd have to do it couple times, but he's cradle cap free.

Good luck!!!

When my son had cradle cap, a friend told me to use a little bit of "Head and Shoulders" when I washed his hair. I was very careful when rinsing it out of his hair. I just used a damp washcloth to remove all the shampoo. I also gently exfoliated his scalp with a fine-toothed baby comb. This combination of treatments helped get rid of the craddle cap in about one week.

One thing I learned from my hairdresser (besides all the lotions) is to stop using baby shampoo. It is VERY drying on their skin. Use a regular adult shampoo AND conditioner. I use Dove on my babies only because it seems to be very gentle yet moisturizing. Good luck.

You're pretty much stuck with it. The weather right now isn't helping either. Just don't over bathe your sons...the soap and water just dries the skin out even more. It'll go away in time.

Please check out my book that has a few tips on getting rid of cradle cap. The title is What Haven't They Told Me? Practical Tips for Surviving and Thriving During Baby's First Year. It is available through our website - www.OffRampPublishing.com - or on Amazon. It can also be purchased at retail stores across the country.

Best of luck.
L. E. Fisher
www.OffRampPublishing.com

Our son had terrible cradle cap and we used olive oil and a fine tooth comb and combed the olive oil through his hair before gently (but very thoroughly)washing his hair. The cradle cap came off in big flakes and within a few washings, it was gone. Anytime it started to come back, we immediately combed through the olive oil and it was gone. He outgrew it and now has a head of gorgeous curly hair. The olive oil conditioned his hair as well as his scalp and was safe to use since it was totally organic with no harsh chemicals. Good luck! :)

All the baby classes I took through Hoag Hospital told us to use a little olive oil. never had to use it but supposed to be better for them then baby oil.

Head & SHoulders shampoo does the trick....I PROMISE!! My daughter had the worst case of cradle cap!!

have you tried head and shoulders? I was told it works. I tried it and it worked. especially while they were little and I could control the shampooing...

Hi Janette,

The problem with baby oil is that it is pure mineral oil, which will just pull any moisture back out and cause more dryness. It's a vicious cycle. Arbonne has a botanically based baby oil without fragrance or mineral oil so it won't cause any irritation or clog pores. We have seen it do wonders for cradle cap and ezema. Arbonne also has a full baby line that is gentle and works great! If you need help getting it at a discount, let me know and I can assist. Have a great day!
J.

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My son had cradle cap FOREVER!!! His "cradle cap" ended up being a milk allergy....so once we put him on soy, no more cradle cap. Here are a few things that I tried (suggested from other mom's)

Head and Sholders (don't get it in their eyes)

Cradle cap conditioner from BRUS and this special brush from BRUS--ask the employees about it, they should know

Hope it goes away.

My mother had me place a warm towel on the dry spots and then use olive oil... like the kind you cook with, not baby oil, im not sure that it matters. I believe its one of those things you kind of have to wait out...

Gentle Naturals cradle cap care really worked for my daughter. I only used it once overnight, I combed her scalp, and then washed.
S. G.

Olive oil! I tried Johnson's baby oil, Arbonne baby body oil, vaseline, Aquaphor, plus a few different dandruff shampoos (Selsun Blue, Neutrogena) and a lot of combing through the hair. The only thing that worked (and in just a few days) was extra virgin olive oil. Rub it gently onto your babies' scalps, then shampoo out with regular baby shampoo (the dandruff shampoo is harsh on the eyes/face).

My son had cradle cap at about that same age. I used Gentle Naturals Cradle Cap Care by Disney Baby. I found it at Target. Just follow the directions and you should have good results. Also, try brushing their hair often throughout the day. This will keep the circulation going to their scalp and help keep it at bay.

Keep using the baby oil just step it up by gently scurbing the area with a soft toothbrush. Then very carefully wash the head with dandruf shampoo. Make sure you avoid the eyes. It might take a few times but it should work. We are in the same boat with my youngest and we are just working through it. Hang in there and Good Luck.

Hi Janette,

I use Gentle Naturals Cradle Cap Care by Baby Orajel - found it in the supermarket and gave it shot - and it works great! I followed the directions and used it with a soft bristle brush (like the ones that come in those baby care kits. I had tried the oils etc and nothing like that ever worked.
Hope this helps! Good luck!

I used petroleum jelly (suggested by my Dr). It is messy and takes a couple of days to fully wash out of the hair but after one try it was gone and never came back.

Dear Janette,

I kind of do the combination of the other comments you have gotten. I use organic coconut oil from Whole Foods (they have a cooking kind and then a cosmetic kind -I used the cosmetic but either will work). Its cheap for a large tub and it has great uses. I dab it on a Q-Tip and use it to remove gunk from behind the ears and in the belly button. The oil loosens the dirt and comes away easily.

Coconut oil is the closest to our natural oils in our body (its solids are used in formula for fat) so it wont dry out their scalp. Dab on a small amount and rub it in well. Then I took one of those foot brushes (its sort of a soft-medium bristle) and rubbed the scalp to loosen the scales. You can use a toothbush as well -soft bristle.

Then in the evening when I would bathe my baby I would use a baby fine toothed comb after washing her hair with shampoo (I use Method baby shampoo as its harsh chemical free). Run the comb in the opposite direction of the hair growth and most of the scales should go away. I did this twice and she has been scale free.

Hi Janette,
Both of my girls had cradle cap but it never bothered them or itched them. We used baby oil and a soft tooth comb. I know you said baby oil didn't work for your boys. I do recall my Pediatrician recommending an anti-dandruff shampoo but be very careful because it could be too sensitive for them and burn the scalp. If you haven't already, I think you should take them to the Pediatrician to rule out anything else and/or perhaps there is something they can prescribe when it's a bad case, bothering them so much. Especially if nothing seems to work. Let us know how it goes. K.

Try Gentle Naturals cradle cap care. It's about 7 dollars at Wal-Mart or CVS. It has Pooh & Eeyore on it in a thin green bottle and it's great! I used it once and it hasn't come back.

Just wondering, are you putting oil on and leaving it on? You don't want to do that. You want to put it on for a bit for it to soak in (like an hour tops) and then use a plastic baby comb to get it off. The rinse the oil off completely. If you are leaving the oil on all the time, you are causing the problem.

Hi Janette,

We used the Arbonne Baby Oil as well. Rub the oil on your babies heads and leave it on for a good 15 minutes. Then during their bath, gently "scrub" their head with a comb or a dry cloth. Get as much lifted off their scalp as possible before washing their hair. Our OB had also said we could Selsun Blue Shampoo twice a week. We never had to use it though since the Arbonne Baby Oil and "scrubbing" worked. His cradle cap was gone within a week or so.

Good luck!

-Char

My son just had cradle cap again (last time he was 6 months old too) I also saturated his head in baby oil at night and washed it off in a morning bath. I changed his shampoo - and that really worked for us. I did see the doctor though, and he said to use a medicated shampoo like Selson Blue. But I know that Disney and MD Mom Baby Silk have baby no cry versions. Though I haven't used them so am not sure if they really work.

Hi Janette, my son had cradle cap too. I put baby oil on his head just before his bath and then while bathing him, I would run the tooth comb through his head. The baby oil would help loosen the cap and then the brush would help get it off. Its perfect when they are in their bath that way you can wash all the gunk, oil and cap..right off! Hope this works for you.

good morning
when my son had cradle cap my doctor said to use head and shoulders once a week with his brush that really helped...
hope it works....
steph

Janette : Arbonne baby oil does not have any mineral oil (as does baby oil) so it can penetrate the skin , moisturize the skin and loosten up the dead skin cells . You can use the little comb they give you at the hospital to loosen the dead skin cells . It worked great with my two babies . Hope it helps !!!

Another good way is olive oil. Put it on thick, let it set for 5 minutes then brush out in a warm bath.

This may take a while to take effect, but try using SAFEGUARD soap. Rite-Aid carries it. My son had pimples on his face, a friend suggested this soap and I've used it on his face and hair for his first year. Never had cradle cap. I'd also suggest going to a beauty supply store and getting a baby/kid brush with boar bristles. Brush hair two to three times a day. Hope this helps!!!

my youngest had a cradle cap like condition that kept coming back. then it spread to the rest of his body. it turned out he has celiac disease (an intollerance to gluten). i dont want you to be affraid of that maybe being the situation with your boys, but it would be wise to do a full health history of you and your husbands families to look for any kind of allergies. good luck!

HI Janette,

Baby Oil and a comb works somewhat, but its very hard to get rid of, I think some babies are just prone to getting it and they grow out of it eventually. Do they have dry skin or eczema, they kind of go hand in hand? My grandson had all of those and he is growing out of them with some help from a presciption with steroid in it from the doctor....good luck!!

M.

There is homeopathic treatment for cradle cap in the baby aisle of every grocery store. I used it on my daughter and it worked great.

dandruff shampoo every night or every 2 nights and then comb through to get the flakes out. It only took 3-4 washings with our son and his cradle cap was gone for good. Careful with the eyes!

when my daughter had it i scrubbed her head really good in the bath and would lotion or baby oil her hair at night. also lotion their hair and take a baby comb and gently scratch the loose skin off. give it time the weather is probably making it worse.

both my kids got cradle cap. I didn't treat it at all...just let it run its course and it went away naturally eventually. It never bothered them, but then, I never put anything on it so that may be why they never scratched at it or anything. The pediatrician said just to let it be.

Tar shampoo.
Stinks (yep, it's made from tar)!
My daughter had it; the DR gave her some topical steroid med that helped, but it didn't get rid of it. Tried the tar, and no more flakes EVER!

I tried every cradle cap product on the market and the ONLY one that actually worked was Mustela's line. It's expensive but worth it. We used the scalp cream before washing and then the infant shampoo (you leave the shampoo on for a few minutes before rinsing).

It came back when my daughter was 1 1/2 and we used the product again and it still worked like a charm. I now will only use that shampoo on her. One bottle lasted almost an entire year!

They say that it will eventually go away on its own. But it's hard to see your beautiful baby with a flakey scalp! Good luck!!

I used golden salve, it is a product from Nature's Sunshine. The doctor wanted to give her a steroid cream, but after reading the side affects, I said no way. After praying about it, I remembered the salve. But I also know of a story of someone using Chinese food herbs for her son that was older. I think it is caused from overuse of antibiotic and overgrown yeast or candida.

If you want more info, please let me know.

J.
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My 7 month old twins had thick cradle cap.You bet we want to get rid of this cradle cap before their hair gets thick! I tried Burt's Bees Apricot Oil & brushing their hair. I've tried Olive Oil and brushing their hair, but it always seemed to come back. For this past month, I've been using Melaleuca's Original shampoo. My husband & I are amazed at how it is flaking off rather quickly. The shampoo is really inexpensive-- and I like to use it myself. The best part is, we don't have to subject them to hormones or chemicals. We try to keep everything as natural as possible in our house.

Since Melaleuca is a wholesale club, it does require a membership, but it's only $1 to join until the end of the month. It's definitely worth checking out. Just let me know.