What does cradle cap look like and how can I get rid of it?

Jennifer - posted on 01/05/2010 ( 40 moms have responded )

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I think my daughter has cradle cap, she is 8 weeks old today. I don't know what cradle cap looks like or how to get rid of it! Need advice please :O)

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~♥Little Miss - posted on 03/20/2012

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Locking old thread, feel free to start another!



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Rebecca - posted on 03/20/2012

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Also almond oil, apricot oil. Gaia organic baby products has a really good one - available online.

Kari - posted on 02/09/2010

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yes baby oil works great, my son had the same problem. I would put oil on his head, rub it in, then comb through it, and wash it out the next night. But i only did this every other day or so otherwise it can dry out their skin.

Wendi - posted on 02/07/2010

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For both of my daughters and their cradle cap we used head and shoulders shampoo, we used a tiny bit and then I would wash her head in her shampoo after wards and it helped after a few days you could see the difference. It was a simple fix and we were recommended it by a peditrician

Vanessa - posted on 01/10/2010

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If you don't want to use baby oil a more natural alternative is olive oil. Works just as good.

Sara - posted on 01/10/2010

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I, personally, am NOT a big fan of mineral oil (which is what baby oil is - mineral oil plus fragrance) and it doesn't absorb into the skin, but sits on top and interferes with the normal function of the skin.

I recommend a nut or fruit oil, which won't have any added perfume and are safe and healthy to eat, so you know they've got to be safe for skin! So olive oil, almond oil, etc. should be great. Burts bees makes a really nice baby massage oil that would work great for cradle cap. Otherwise, olive oil that you have in the house is just fine! My mother also swore by peanut butter for really difficult to treat cases... and although I know for sure it worked, I wonder if peanut oil would do just as well and be less messy?

Like the others said... put it on her scalp and let it soak in (you can let it go overnight if you'd like) and then comb out the flakes. You can shampoo after, or the next morning to try and get rid of the rest of the flakes. I only had to do this treatment once on my daughter, but she had a relatively mild case.

Good luck Momma!

Skie - posted on 01/09/2010

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baby oil... teat tree oil depending on the strenght might actually burn their head as it is quite potent. If you use TTO then ask the pharmacist what the weakest strength is.

Louise - posted on 01/09/2010

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i had tryed baby oil on my son, but it didnt seem to work for him. Then i tryed Almond oil, this work within a few days for us :)

Christie - posted on 01/08/2010

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I heard if you put some baby oil in the bath and gently wash their scalp with it, A leader told me this in one of the programs i am in.

Brittany - posted on 01/08/2010

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Cradle cap looks like dry scalp, or scaly, to get rid of it you can use baby oil in her hair. when my daughter started looking like she was getting it i put baby oil in her hair over night, it softens the dry scalp and if there isnt a lot it will wash right out and be gone. If she has bad cradle cap you may need to comb out the flake. ( cradle cap is from shampoo not being washed out of the babies hair thoroughly enough) thats what im told anyways. :) hope this helps

Sabrina - posted on 01/08/2010

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i used to dilute the shampoo with water and i found this got rid of cradle cap :)

Kimberlee - posted on 01/08/2010

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Another suggestion as far as product goes is Cradle Cap Care-By Gentle Naturals. I like it because it is all natural with jojoba and other soothing things for baby.

What i would do is shampoo my sons hair then with the shampoo still in brush the flakes out and rinse.Then put the Cradle Cap Ointment on. AND it smells very good.

Vannessa - posted on 01/07/2010

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Baby oil works great. Put it on his head over night if you have to, take a comb with close bristles and comb it out. It's going to look like dandruff. You might have to do it a few times to get it all but it works and it wont come back.

Jennifer - posted on 01/07/2010

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QUOTING LESLIE "It sounds crazy but hydrocortizne cream works for my baby I have used it twice now the night before a bath and it has almost taken it all away I am usin it tommorow and she should be rid of it after that....my dr is the one who suggested it and I am so glad."

I always thought this was harmful to the baby's liver? In adults the label warns to use very small doses.

Terina - posted on 01/07/2010

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cadle cap is a yellowy colour that can b flaky, best treatment is baby oil leave on for over nite wash off in morn should see an inprovement.

Jennifer - posted on 01/07/2010

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Wow!! Thank you all so much for telling me what cradle cap looks like and for all your advice. I am using the baby oil at the moment and it seems to be working quite well, thanks again!! :O) I have asked you all to join my circle of moms and I hope you accept so if I need more advice I know who to ask lol. Again, thanks for your advice and i'll keep you posted XxX :O)

Jennifer - posted on 01/07/2010

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My daughter has cradle cap on her forehead and I use vaseline twice a day. It seems to be one of the only things I can use without irritating her skin.

Ashley - posted on 01/07/2010

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I do like some of the other moms have said. Put in some baby oil, comb it loose with a comb and then I give my son a bath and wash his hair. He is 7 months old and it is gone now.

Jennifer - posted on 01/06/2010

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Cradle cap looks like yellow crusty skin on baby's head- gently massage in some oil (olive oil, almond oil, baby oil- whatever is natural and safe) You can lightly scratch with your finger nails and massage as the baby is relaxed and it will start to come off. Leave the oil for a day then wash it out. Repeat as required.

Kimberly - posted on 01/06/2010

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My daughter had it. I did the whole comb/brush/baby oil thing. One morning (at 2 mos) she woke up with most of her hair on the pillow. It was funny looking back because I was feeling my head wondering if it was mine. Now, she has a head full at 2yrs old!.

Darby - posted on 01/06/2010

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my daughter has it and i find that i'v bin able to keep it under control by gently scrubbing with shampoo and a cloth and using a baby comb instead of a baby brush. cradle cap is gross but will eventually go away

Jennifer - posted on 01/06/2010

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My doctor suggested Coraid for the Corizone. Works great! Just rub the lotion on his head and wash it out. Yucky dry skin is gone.

Bethan - posted on 01/06/2010

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My 14 week old daughter has got a bit of cradle cap, it looks like white scaly flakes on the top and back of her head, iv been using olive oil on her scalp for the past few days and then washing her hair in dentinox. I have just began to see results as the patches of flakes and scales are becoming less & less so fingers crossed that it should be gone in a few days.

Melea - posted on 01/06/2010

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Cradle cap looks white and flakey. It's best to use baby oil to soften it up, brush her head. Make sure you wash the baby oil out each time its used, and constantly brush her head! :)

Alicia - posted on 01/06/2010

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our dr prescribed selenium sulfide lotion, and it works fantastic. my daughters head was COVERED in it. i used it once, it just rubs on their head while theyre in the bath sits on for 2 minutes then you rinse it off, and immediately after i rinsed the lotion off there were little flakys in her hair. i brushed it and most of it was gone with one use, and no scrubbing her head or scraping.

Leslie - posted on 01/05/2010

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It sounds crazy but hydrocortizne cream works for my baby I have used it twice now the night before a bath and it has almost taken it all away I am usin it tommorow and she should be rid of it after that....my dr is the one who suggested it and I am so glad.

Ashley - posted on 01/05/2010

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mineral oil... put it on scalp then wash off.. works great use it for my son

Andrea - posted on 01/05/2010

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WOW! My 6 week old had cradle cap and my ped suggested something completely different and it was gone in a couple of days. Basically it was flaky dry skin. So moisture was what it needed. She said to use Vaseline - and to "massage" the dry skin off - not comb it off. Much less bothersome for the baby. Basically I just massaged her whole top of her head with Vaseline, and as I did the skin came off. I only had to do it twice in about 3 days, and it was gone, now her hair is growing back (week later).

Sara - posted on 01/05/2010

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it is almost like dandriff, i suggest using baby oil with a cotton ball, or aquaphor by eucerin.

Coleen - posted on 01/05/2010

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cradle cap looks ugly but that's it. My son had cradle cap and I just used baby oil. After his morning bath and washing his head, I used the towel with slight pressure to give it a bit of a rub. It loosens it up a little and then massaged baby oil on his head.I used a wide toothed comb on his hair and combed it. It was gone in about a month tops and never came back...he did lose a little hair but babies do that anyway. Hes 15 now and has a lovely head of hair....

Maggie - posted on 01/05/2010

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Both my son's had it, cradle cap looks like dry skin right around the top of there head. My dr told me to combe baby oil through his hair. It looked like dry skin peeling off his hea but it diden't hurt.

Shahida - posted on 01/05/2010

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You only need two things to get rid of cradle cap. A small comb and baby oil. Massage the baby oil throughout her hair and let it saok for a few minutes. then just comb out the scales. do it everyday until they are gone.

Katelyn - posted on 01/05/2010

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It looks like yellowy scales. My little one had it real bad from her forehead all the way back to her head. I used this cradle cap remedy from Gentle Naturals, it has a picture of Winnie the Pooh on the bottle & it's green. It worked alright, but not that well. What really worked for me believe it or not, was baby oil. I put a ton of baby oil in her hair & gently massaged it into her scalp & let it sit for about 15 minutes. Then, I used a fine toothed comb to loosen some of the flakes & combed them out. The oil does make her hair look greasy, but after two washes my daughters hair was back to normal. I hope this helps! Good luck!

Jo - posted on 01/05/2010

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im using dentinox cradle cap shampoo, i massage it in leave for a 5 mins then wash it off, also i massage oilatum in 2ce a day as i use this on her face anyway, she has only had it for 2 days ish so havnt seen any results yet but fingers crossed :-)

Christina - posted on 01/05/2010

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My 1 year old son had it once the doctore told me to to give him a bath, while in the tub take baby oil rub it into there head and let it set for a min or two. After that take the babys brush and cumb in circles to get rid of it. I did that and it worked really well. He never had again after that.

Jennifer - posted on 01/05/2010

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my son is 13m n still suffers frm cradle cap ive tried everything the best thing to use is a special shampoo made especially for it u cn find it in most supermarkets in the baby section.

Cori - posted on 01/05/2010

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i have heard that TTO (Tea Tree Oil) works the best. a lot of people use mineral oil (baby oil) or olive oil but my best friend used TTO on her son and it was healing better than when she used the mineral or olive oils. i know its hard to find, and kind of weird, but EMU oil works awesome. where i am from originally there is a lot of natural/home remedies and we had a close family friend that owned an EMU farm! and the emu oil was always being bough by moms for babies with craddle cap and supposedly worked better than anything else they could find on the market. also when you put the oil on the scalp brush a lot with baby brush or a soft bristly tooth brush!

Lyssa - posted on 01/05/2010

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oh cradle cap, such an ugly thing. It looks like dry skin on they're heads, or sometimes scaly looking. Some get it bad....(my son's head was completly covered in it) others get mild, some not at all. Put baby oil on her head and rub it in good.....wait about 5 minutes and go thru it with a comb....kind of scratching at the scalp with the comb. Don't be surprised if she loses hair, it's perfectly normal....and her baby hair will fall out cradle cap or not. It can take a while to get it completly gone. My son is 5 months and still has it on the top of his head, but i've gotten it taken care of on the sides and the back. the baby oil thing is about the only thing i kno of that works wonders. You wont get it all on the first try though, you'll have to keep repeating it.

Brittany - posted on 01/08/2010

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Cradle cap looks like dry scalp, or scaly, to get rid of it you can use baby oil in her hair. when my daughter started looking like she was getting it i put baby oil in her hair over night, it softens the dry scalp and if there isnt a lot it will wash right out and be gone. If she has bad cradle cap you may need to comb out the flake. ( cradle cap is from shampoo not being washed out of the babies hair thoroughly enough) thats what im told anyways. :) hope this helps

Sabrina - posted on 01/08/2010

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i used to dilute the shampoo with water and i found this got rid of cradle cap :)

Jennifer - posted on 01/07/2010

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Wow!! Thank you all so much for telling me what cradle cap looks like and for all your advice. I am using the baby oil at the moment and it seems to be working quite well, thanks again!! :O) I have asked you all to join my circle of moms and I hope you accept so if I need more advice I know who to ask lol. Again, thanks for your advice and i'll keep you posted XxX :O)

Jennifer - posted on 01/06/2010

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Cradle cap looks like yellow crusty skin on baby's head- gently massage in some oil (olive oil, almond oil, baby oil- whatever is natural and safe) You can lightly scratch with your finger nails and massage as the baby is relaxed and it will start to come off. Leave the oil for a day then wash it out. Repeat as required.

Bethan - posted on 01/06/2010

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My 14 week old daughter has got a bit of cradle cap, it looks like white scaly flakes on the top and back of her head, iv been using olive oil on her scalp for the past few days and then washing her hair in dentinox. I have just began to see results as the patches of flakes and scales are becoming less & less so fingers crossed that it should be gone in a few days.

Melea - posted on 01/06/2010

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Cradle cap looks white and flakey. It's best to use baby oil to soften it up, brush her head. Make sure you wash the baby oil out each time its used, and constantly brush her head! :)

Maggie - posted on 01/05/2010

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Both my son's had it, cradle cap looks like dry skin right around the top of there head. My dr told me to combe baby oil through his hair. It looked like dry skin peeling off his hea but it diden't hurt.