I have dealt with cradle cap on every single one of my kids. Ashley was my first experience. I had never seen cradle cap before, so when those ugly scales started showing up all over her head, I freaked out! I called the doctor in a panic. Being the very kind, patient doctor that she was, she brought us in and took a look at Ashley's head. She prescribed Denorex shampoo, 3 times a week until it was gone. It cleared up pretty quickly - thank heavens!
Zander also had cradle cap, but it wasn't too bad. It only lasted a few weeks, and regular old baby shampoo and baby oil worked on treating his.
Jace, however, had the worst case of cradle cap that I had ever seen. It was all over the top of his head, all over his eyebrows, and even on the tops of his ears and behind his ears. It was gross. We tried everything to get rid of it. The doctor would give me things to try, and absolutely none of them worked. Jace was almost 5 months old before the cradle cap went away. I don't think I ever took him anywhere without a hat. It was just awful.
Lucy also had cradle cap, but like Zander, it wasn't too bad. She had quite a bit of hair, and she always had a great big bow on her head, so no one could ever even see the cradle cap. After a couple of treatments with baby oil, her cradle cap cleared up.
Parker has cradle cap now. It started right before his 2 month check up. I asked the doctor what to do about it, and she said to use the Selsun Blue shampoo (the one with the red cap) a couple of times a week during his bath. Well, I did that, and the cradle cap got worse. It moved down to his eyebrows and my husband nicknamed him "Leopard head." I started looking online for ways to treat cradle cap, and I came across an article that said to put vegetable oil on the baby's head, let it soak for 15 minutes, then scrape it off with a soft brush. (I don't remember where I saw the article - I looked at so many! Sorry!) Anyway, I tried it tonight. Only, I don't cook with vegetable oil, I use canola oil. I rubbed some on his head, left it there for 15 minutes, used the brush to scrape off the flakes. Then, I rinsed his head, put on regular baby shampoo, rubbed it in with the brush, and rinsed it again.
I absolutely cannot believe the difference! After *one* treatment, the cradle cap is almost gone! His head looks amazing! I think after one more treatment, it will be completely gone. I am quite impressed and wish I had known about this trick a couple of kids ago! ;)
So, there's my parenting tip for the day. Use vegetable oil (or canola oil) to get rid of cradle cap!
Friday, January 30, 2009
I've found a great way to get rid of cradle cap!
at 9:37 PM
Labels: advice, cradle cap, parenting, tips and tricks
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4 Super Cool Replies:
It does work. I used the same technique and the difference was noticed after first treatment.
Holy Moly! Look at Parker in your new profile pic! Do you have some new photos of him posted somewhere? You haven't been putting any up on the board for awhile so I'm not sure where to find them if you have. Anyway, he is getting SO big and changing so much! Yup, he's a Vinez boy all right ;) Cutie patootie!
Anyway, Kyle is the only one of mine that had bad cradle cap. I don't think it was as bad as what you describe, but it was kinda gross. I had this cradle cap stuff I bought at the store called Gentle Naturals Cradle Cap Treatment. It's got that Calendula stuff in it which is supposed to be really good. I used it just like you explained using the oil and it seemed to work really well on him. After a few treatments, the scales were pretty much gone. But that's an awesome money-saving tip! Glad its working for him.
Just had to add that now that I think about it, I don't really remember if it was Kyle or Lauren that had it! LOL! The last 3 all kind of run together for me ;)
That sounds easy and wonderful, Angie. I wish I had known that when my son was little...he had cradle cap pretty bad....I tried many things and it seemed like it was a constant battle.
Great parenting tip!
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