OT- Cradle Cap?

[Addicted2TheMouse]

Anyone have any suggestions for getting rid of cradle cap? My 2 year old has a yucky case of it. I've tried putting oil on his head and letting it soak but he won't let me comb it out after. Just washing his hair is a battle, picking away at his scalp is pretty much impossible. Are there any products that actually work to get rid of the scales with a minimum of picking and combing??

 

[Manda]

I noticed this happen around 12 months with my son. I switched to California Baby shampoo and conditioner and it cleared up within a few washes. I made sure to let the conditioner sit on his hair for a few minutes at least and I'd do a really good scalp massage while it sat there. I never had to pick or peel or comb anything - it just cleared away by itself after a week or two. I wouldn't use any other shampoo and conditioner now.

 

[macmahony]

When I was in the hospital with my first baby, the nurse said to use head and shoulders. We used it a few times, and cradle cap was gone. Just be careful of there eyes. We have since used it with all three of our girls when needed.

 

[susancl]

Any kind of dandruff shampoo will get rid of it as a previous poster said. It's pretty much baby dandruff.

 

[monorailsilver]

My ds had a bad case of it (it was yucky yellowish orange oozing ick).

I tried baby oil, veg. oil, the Gerber cradle cap stuff & they didn't work.

He finally went to a dermatologist (he has bad excema too on his face) & he gave me a scrip for dermasmooth & it cleared up with in a week or two.

I also found out he had/has food allergies.

 

[Robmom]

My DS had it when he was about 5 or 6 months old. I bought a special scrubbing brush for babies and I used it every time I gave him a bath. It finally scrubbed out. Look in the baby section in stores maybe you will see it.

 

[#1 Pocahontas]

I was going to suggest a brush as well.

I didn't have a special one. My pediatrician recommended just using a regular baby brush. I would brush it each time I washed her hair, doing circle motions. That would loosen it up and eventually it washed out.

Good luck!

 

[castle_now_please]

My ds had a bad case of it (it was yucky yellowish orange oozing ick).

I tried baby oil, veg. oil, the Gerber cradle cap stuff & they didn't work.

He finally went to a dermatologist (he has bad excema too on his face) & he gave me a scrip for dermasmooth & it cleared up with in a week or two.

I also found out he had/has food allergies.

My DS is 3 and we still have this problem. Ours too is eczema. We had to try different shampoos. (T-gel a couple of times a week works for us.) Also, I put Protopic (a perscription medication for ecamema) that will keep it clear for a while, but we are still dealing with it after 3 years.

Just keep in mind it might not be simple cradle cap.

 

[emma'smom]

We bought a "cradle cap" kit in the shampoo section at Babies R Us. It is just the gel/shampoo/comb/brush together. However, we followed the steps and it seemed to clear up. However, just as others have mentioned, dd18 months also has eczema and we have prescription cream for her arms/legs when they become dry and scaley. They also recommend Eucerin as a preventative measure.


Wow...my 500th post- on cradle cap!

 

[jcemom]

My DD has it too, and she's almost 4 years old. I just asked her doctor what I could do about it. He said not to scratch it off, I could scratch her scalp. He recommend Head & Shoulders, but not more than twice a week, being careful not to get it into her eyes. We've only used it twice so far, but I think it looks better. He told me that if it wasn't gone in 4-6 weeks to call him.

 

[KirstenB]

We use Tegrin and a brush to scrub while we're washing her hair. Unfortunately, I still need to use a very fine comb over the scalp after to "pick" it off. I know you said your child won't sit still, sorry. This will probably be us in 6 mths or so!

 

[trvlnut]

If you are having trouble with him sitting still while you comb it, wait until after he goes to sleep. I gave my baby a bath so that his scalp was nice and soft and moist then I put him to bed. After he went to sleep I combed it out. It took about 3xs, but it worked.

 

[sskem96]

My oldest DD had this at 3 mo. old (the same time she developed eczema). I was told to put baby oil on her head, let it sit for 30 min, then shampoo and massage her scalp. Well, guess what, ALL of her hair came out along with the scales! I was mortified! She was going for her 3 mo. pictures a couple days later, and I just washed away all her hair!

This probably isn't a concern for older kids, just babies because they lose their baby hair anyway, but usually it is gradually and as their new hair is growing in, so it isn't noticable. But if you are doing this on a young baby, beware! My daughter still only had about as much hair as a newborn at age 2.

When my younger dd got cradle cap, I just ignored it. It didn't seem to bother her and she had enough hair to cover it so other people couldn't notice. I wasn't taking any chances with her losing her hair. It cleared up on its own in a few months, and she had beautiful curly pigtails by the time she was 2.

 

[camouseketeer]

Cradle Cap at age 2 could be eczema and a possible sign of food allergies. Does your DS have any other dry, red, flaky spots on his skin? If so, you might want to talk to an allergist.

 

[Addicted2TheMouse]

Thanks so much for all the suggestions. I don't think DS's problem is related to eczema or anything because we have no problem with the rest of his skin. His cheeks sometimes get a little chapped but I think that's normal. We do have a check up on Monday so I will mention it to his Dr. just in case.

I'd like to try a dandruff shampoo but he resists getting his hair washed so bad, I'm really scared I'll get it in his eyes.

He does have enough hair to cover it but I have to do something about it because I find it has a funky smell.

 

[Alex2kMommy]

My oldest DD had this at 3 mo. old (the same time she developed eczema). I was told to put baby oil on her head, let it sit for 30 min, then shampoo and massage her scalp. Well, guess what, ALL of her hair came out along with the scales! I was mortified! She was going for her 3 mo. pictures a couple days later, and I just washed away all her hair!

I did exactly the same thing. It was especially hard to treat because DS's hair was long and somewhat thick from birth. The baby oil and scrubbing just made him look like a '50s greaser, but the flakes in addition were really gross! DS's hair also fell out, but only where I'd been vigorously scrubbing with a brush. Poor little guy looked like he had a bad rug for his 3 month pictures.

I thought cradle cap was basically a yeast infection? I find it very interesting that, at least most of those who have posted here, there seems to be a connection between cradle cap and eczema. (My DS also has eczema.)

 

[Alex2kMommy]

Duplicate post deleted.

 

[ribbot]

My son had this when he was a baby--Dr. recommended we use Selsun Blue and it worked like a charm!

 

[sassymom]

Our DS2 has the same problem but the shampoo he was prescribed had warnings like avoid eye contact and a warning about wearing jewlery that it might damage it so we only used it once. His Dr. had mentioned it could be ring worm if it didn't go away so you may want to make an appt. just to be sure. Sad to say he still has it on and off. He is a sweater in the summer and it tends to get worse as it gets hotter. I have tried several things to no avail it seems to just come and go and he is not very happy when getting his hair washed so I just try to remove the bigger pieces that show and use creative combing to cover the rest. I will be trying some of the tips I read on here thanks :0)

 

[mom2grace]

We used cortaid. Put it on about 15 minutes before bath, then washed it out. Worked GREAT!