Daughter 4 with bad cradle cap

[BlueMumma2018]

My daughter has had cradle cap ever since she grew hair which only grew through when she was around 2! Since then she’s had it quite bad on the top and front of her scalp.

the rest of her hair has grown so lovely and thick but it is soo sparse where the cradle cap is and hair comes out with the cradle cap flakes. I have tried olive oil, head and shoulders etc but it doesn’t budge. She’s become concious of her hair not growing and I feel awful!

does anyone have any advice? Tia

The dr prescribed DN Nizorel shampoo. It cleared it up in just a few washes after suffering for ages.

You can buy it in boots £7

You can yes, and I almost wrote that it’s available OTC but, for a child, better to have a Dr say it’s safe for them to use. It’s strong stuff, I managed to burn my scalp with it.

I used the cradle cap shampoo aimed at babies that you just buy in the supermarket (when my daughter was about 8 and developed what seemed to be cradle cap) and it seemed to work.
I was told by a pharmacist that Head and Shoulders can be too strong for young children and create more of a problem than actually clearing it up.

Maybe you’ve already tried this, but I had some success with loads of baby oil, applied at bath time and left on overnight, then you comb in the morning when it’s really softened up the cradle cap. Be prepared to write off a pillowcase with this method!

Alternatively, nit shampoo did the trick once too. Nukes everything, I guess. Either way it’s about soaking and softening up the flakes, before very gently brushing them out.

Selsun blue - never known to fail.

We had the same with DD - over 20 years ago. The thing that moved it was to smother her head in vaseline overnight, and it then lifted off in the morning. Gross but effective.

I covered my sons scalp in coconut oil. Left it over night as the scabs came out easily. He lost some hair - but not noticeable. He was about 3 or so I think.

I was about to ask this for DS who is 4 too. Feel so bad that we havent kept on top of it, his hair is thicker and I hadn't noticed it came back. The baby shampoo for cradle cap isn't touching it at all. So worried all his hair is going to come out with it

After the soaking and softening we used a metal nit comb to lift the crusts, gross but effective also. Distraction with Ipad and biscuits helped!

I did the baby oil thing too, left it on for a few hours then scraped at the cradle cap and picked off all the soft flakes, it was oddly satisfying.

Have you been to the GP? My son had this issue at a similar age. I smothered in double base over night and then the next day used a nutty gritty comb to carefully get the excess old skin off. Worked a treat. I had already been to GP though to check what’s going on. His was just a type of eczema really. You’ve got to be careful not to make it worse or get it infected.

My 6 Yr old DD was the same, thick orangeish cradle cap in the front hairline and back towards the top of her head.
Very thin hair at the front and it would come away with the cradle cap.
Then when she had hair lice around Christmas after a couple of treatments using the nit lotion the cradle cap cleared up too!
So far it it hasn't returned, if it does we will be using the lotion again to see if the same happens.

Go to the doctor. It could be eczema, psoriasis, fungal infection, anything really. Nizorel is excellent if it's fungal, but it might not be that. Don't fanny around endlessly with oils and all that - she's got a skin condition and you need medical advice.

use this device. brilliant. removed my daughter's and my nephew's cradle cap completely after a couple of goes.

www.fridababy.co.uk/product-page/dermafrida-the-flakefixer?gclid=Cj0KCQjw6pOTBhCTARIsAHF23fKeesBDl6cb-5tws9s0TPOwQlB0gs1iPuncwfUvdRRTy_ZfPteC3IwaAuxMEALw_wcB

Before you apply any medicated shampoo, it's a good idea to remove the scales/scabs/flakes as much as you can first. However, this has to be done REALLY gently. If you pull too much it hurts horribly and can leave raw skin exposed.

Gently warmed olive oil or coconut left in for a few hours or overnight and then a slow process the next morning of easing the flakes off.

We were the same with DS1. Three washes with Head & Shoulders about age 5 and it was gone.

Sorry - just saw you tried that already!

Hi everyone,

thanks for your replies! I went to the GP today who, frustratingly, said she would prescribe the shampoo but then decided not to because it wasn't severe enough.. pretty annoying as nothing will budge it! going to carry on with the oils today 🤔

Johnson's baby oil cleared my little ones up in a few days.