by Senior Reviewer Maytal Wichman
When you bring a newborn home from the hospital for the first time there is a huge learning curve, especially if it’s your first. One of the things you have to figure out is bathing your newborn and washing her hair. Elizabeth Cunnane Phillips, Philip Kingsley hair expert and mother of two, knows first-hand how important scalp and hair health is for babies. Here are some tips she shares for how to keep babies’ hair and scalp healthy.
Babies’ Hair Background:
Hair follicles begin to develop on an unborn baby at 9 weeks gestation, with scalp hairs appearing at 20 weeks. Within the first 4 months of life, the first coat of scalp hair is shed in a wave pattern, and hairs then begin their normal daily growing and falling cycle.
How to Shampoo the Hair:
As children get older and their hair begins to grow, a little shampoo will help to cleanse more effectively – this can be used around 4 weeks. A baby’s head is so small that you only need one hand to shampoo with.
How Often Should You Wash Babies’ Hair:
It is safe to shampoo your baby’s hair every day, provided you are using a mild shampoo. For a sensitive scalp and delicate hair another great option is the Extra Gentle Shampoo from Noodle & Boo.
Cradle Cap:
Daily shampooing helps to prevent the occurrence of cradle cap, the infant form of an adult scalp condition, pityriasis amiantacea.
Cradle Cap most commonly occurs in babies up to three months old. If your child has cradle cap, this kit from Frida Baby may help.
Conditioning the Hair:
It is not really necessary to condition a baby’s hair while it is relatively fine and fluffy, however once the hair starts to grow longer and thicken up, applying a little conditioner will help to keep it in tip top condition.
If you’re bathing a newborn, something like this bath cushion is perfect.
If your baby is a little bit older, this bathtub, that can go in your tub and fold up better is a great choice.
Photo Credit: Image by Pavel Kraus from Pixabay
I was not compensated for this post. I received a sample. This post contains affiliate links.
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Senior Reviewer Maytal Wichman is the owner of Mama’s Bites and has also written for The Huffington Post. She has been living in New York City for twelve years and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature as well as a Law Degree, but blogging is her true passion. Maytal is a stay-at-home mom to three kids (ages 6, 4 and a baby) and loves finding great products that make her family’s life easier.
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