Hi,

Does anybody have any good tips for getting rid of cradle cap? My daughter has it really bad over a good portion of her scalp. I remember trying a shampoo with my son but it didn't work and his wasn't anywhere near as bad as my daughters. I have tried olive oil as this is what the health visitor suggested but it isn't really getting any better, apart from where I've picked it which I know I'm not supposed to do!

Any ideas?

Thanks.

I tried all the potions n lotions with mine n none of them worked. The best thing i found was just a normal anti dandruff shampoo. Start with a good one like head & shoulders, use at least 2 or 3 times a week to start with, then when it starts to clear, cut down to once a week to stop it coming back. HTH :)

Dentinox shampoo and picking worked for my youngest within a month. Ew, I am not the kind of person who likes picking at such things, but it did do the trick. Obviously not where it's raw, but where it's peeling off.

I used only the Dentinox with my oldest, and it took weeks of washing it regularly with the stuff to make a difference. He won't let me pick it. Thing is, I prefer not to wash their hair too regularly, it doesn't need it and dries the skin, but if you use dentinox and want it to work, you have to use it very regularly.

I know several people who swear by olive oil, too. Pretty much all of them also advocate picking.

And don't think they'll just grow out of it. I realised my nearly 5 year old still had it a few months ago (he has very thick hair) and had to take decisive action - don't want him teased at school.

Good luck. Ew, gone icky thinking about all that picking. Bleh.

Coal tar shampoos also work well in adults who have seborrheic dermatitis (which is the same as cradle cap in all but name!), so as long as you remember that the shampoo isn't the usual mild stuff used for little ones and is likely to make their eyes very sore if it gets close to them, there's no reason why you can't give them a try if necessary.

If I remember right, I think I made a paste from water and bicarb and then rubbed that on to the scalp.

I wouldn't touch the coal tar shampoos personally, my kids had a bad time with skin issues and I found that all the usual prescribed junk, including E45 made it worse, mostly because they have silly ingredients which often exacerbate the issues.
Out of the ordinary we found Dentinox shampoo worked brilliantly well and got rid of it, permanently, despite all other efforts.

My girls take after their father who had terrible psoriasis and had been using all the dumb stuff the docs gave him with no joy, they contained alcohol and some other really idiotic ingredients, which made it wors so we didn't dare try those on the girls. In his case we blended evening primrose oil with lavender, rosemary, tea tree, orange, benzoin and frankincense and he hasn't had a reoccurrance for over 7 years.

So, in my experience I'd recommend oil or Dentinox.

Thanks for the replies. Olive oil is definitely not working. Even where I've picked it's now coming back. Dentinox is the shampoo I tried with ds which didn't help at all but if other people have had success with it I'll try it again with dd.

I'm not sure about the anti dandruff and coal tar with her just being a baby (nearly 15 weeks). I use coal tar shampoo every day for eczema and it does help me but I'm not sure I'd want to try it until she's a bit older.

i used the anti dandruff when mine were very young. Just mind the eyes, but you dont need to use a lot

Having 5 children i found that the best thing was to use baby oil leave it on for a bit and then wash it of this may be your best bet with the baby only being 15weeks it wont work straight away but keep at it and it will just remember to gently rub the childs head after shampooing and gentley comb it with a baby comb and it will eventually go

shes not old enough for anti dandruff or coal tar if still worried talk to you health visitor is what i recomend

I get that now! It's worse if I go to bed with really wet hair or if it's humid weather - summer is a nightmare of picking scabs off my scalp :gag:

My lad had it and I tried a number of things, but dabbing olive oil on his scalp with a cotton wool ball and gently helping any softened 'scabs' on their way with my clean fingernail or the edge of the comb seemed to clear it. You have to be careful though, and it may take a few weeks of persistent use.

Baby shampoo is crap, it won't shift anything. Our lad now has his hair washed and conditioned with Pantene and his scalp has been good ever since.