Cradle Cap. « Back to Group Discussions

[CDsMom1031]

Any home remedies I can try? It grosses me out so bad, LOL. I just want to pick at it.

Also, is anyone else's LO sleeping a TON lately? My LO just turned 11 weeks and he's been doing nothing but sleeping the last couple of days. Normally I get 60-90 minutes of awake time for every 60-120 minutes of sleep. The last two days, I've been getting 60 minutes of awake time for every 2-3 hours of sleep. Not that I'm complaining, LOL... I'm just a little worried. I took his temperature and it's normal. Growth spurt?

One more question, LOL... Has anyone else's kiddo become Mr./Mrs. Independent? I used to have to bounce, bump, walk, and rock with him wrapped up tight in a blanket with a paci in his mouth to go to sleep. Now he'll only go to sleep if he's laying on his tummy with his paci. I'll just pat his back for a few minutes and he does the rest. Now I KNOW I shouldn't be complaining about this but it makes me sad. He's already a little grown up. =(

[jbk21]

Rub olive oil on his head, let it sit for ten minutes.  Rub a soft brush over it and it will come right off.  Shampoo.  Works like a charm.  

Maybe it's a growth spurt.  That's what I always say, lol.  Baby acting funny?  Probably a growth spurt, or teething. LOL.  

Dylan has always been a pretty independent little guy :-)  No complaints here!

[TalkToMeNow]

I hate cradle cap! I have no idea why, but I just can't stand it. I want it gone immediately. I have a friend who just leaves it alone (which is probably what you are supposed to do) and her baby's head is all cradle-cappy. Blech! I don't know how she deals with it... baby is 10 months old! 

Anyway, I second olive oil and brush. Jasper doesn't quite have cradle cap... he just has some dryness. I put some oil on his scalp after each bath. I'm sure that is wrong... I should probably leave it alone. But if I can prevent cradle cRap, I will. 

[Abraisme]

Ha ha, it's so true....
 

Originally Posted by jbk21 

Maybe it's a growth spurt.  That's what I always say, lol.  Baby acting funny?  Probably a growth spurt, or teething. LOL. 

My toddler still has cradle cap, so I'm not one to give advice.  I just ignored it and it's never really gone away.  That stuff is stubborn!

Around 3mo is when my babies have gotten a little more independent.  That's the age that my DD1 started napping alone and liked to spend more time by herself 'playing'.

[jbk21]

My toddler had cradle cap too  Nasty cradle cap.  Ick.  I had never done anything for it before so last week I did the olive oil trick.  I combed gently and now it's all gone!  Whew!  

[KayPea]

My toddler has cradle cap too (baby too) - I was told to just leave it and she had lots of hair to cover it up so it didn't bother me. Now I'm trying to get rid of it and it's horrendous. Kid won't even let me BRUSH her hair, let alone pick out a bunch of sticky gross skin flakes.  So now with the baby, I'm oiling his head on bath day and spend the next couple of hours gently trying to get rid of a small patch at a time. He's got so much that the soft brush doesn't actually work, I use my fingernails. It's kind of satisfying, in that peel-glue-off-your-finger kind of way.  I've heard that it can come back, and if it does, then it's likely an allergy that needs to be addressed (like dairy.)

[jbk21]

Yeah I wouldn't just leave it.  Never again.  I thought it would go away, too.  Nope.  His hair started getting matted in some spots!  So gross, I know.  We do bathe regularly, I swear :-)  That's why I decided to take care of it.  It wasn't terribly hard.  He hates getting his hair brushed too, so I bribed with a special treat and I told him there was "food" in his hair that I needed to get out and he needed to sit still for me.  It worked.  He didn't love it, of course, but he let me do it.  

We don't eat dairy, so I don't think it's an allergy issue for us.  I hope it doesn't come back!  I've heard it is fungal, so perhaps vinegar rinses would work.  

[vanni]

My daughter had cradle cap starting to show up and I used Calendula Cream on it - it cleared up immediately. As in after applying it! Now I just do a "touch-up" here and there. However, she had very little hair on her head at the time, which makes it way easier to apply.

Look for California Baby Calendula Cream (not lotion), or Earth'a Best Calendula Cream. It has kind of a funny smell, but it worked really well.

I also have trouble resisting the urge to pick at at - so gross!

Good luck!

[vanni]

I believe (but could be wrong) that cradle cap is caused by yeast. The calendula (which is from the marigold plant) actually inhibits the growth of the yeast. This is why cradle crap (as my mom calls it) can spread if you don't treat it. I imagine that the olive oil treatments are more for managing the flakiness than actually getting rid of the yeast.

[jbk21]

Olive oil is actually one of the most effective yeast treatments.  I didn't know that before- but I just googled it, lol!  That makes sense then why it would work.  Yeast is a fungus- so like I mentioned previously things like vinegar, garlic, yogurt, etc would work too.  We're going to have some stinky baby heads with these remedies, lol!

[Jaimee]

So cradle cap is an extension of the atopic ailments (eczema, asthma, and rhinitis).  It's very common in babies b/c their systems are maturing.  This is also why eczema is very common.  Some parents will find that these ailments go away and never return in just a matter of weeks/months.  Others find that they have to do something to make them go away and then they never return.  And yet others find that no natural treatments work at all and they linger for years or their entire lives.

Here are some natural remedies:

• Olive oil and the brush
• Baking soda paste and a comb
• The natural cradle cap shampoos
• Homeopathics
• Breastmilk
• Probiotics

Not so natural remedies:

• Dandruff shampoo
• Listerine and a cotton swab

Completely unnatural remedy:

• Hydrocortisone cream, leave on all night (put baby on a blanket you don't mind getting oily)

If your child's cradle cap and/or eczema lingers for months it is very likely that an allergy is involved.  I firmly believe that the first few vaxes I gave my dd taxed her already sensitive immune system and caused her atopic ailments to manifest and remain for a year.  We tried everything and the only thing that worked was the steroid cream.  Of course, I think that exacerbated her eczema, which was moderate to severe for her first year of life.  We eventually resolved the problem with a homepathic remedy.

[mamabelle]

Glad to hear that other toddlers have it too. My toddler also still has mild cradle cap and some mothers stare at me like such a freak when I admit that. It doesn't bother him so we mostly ignore it. I have done the oil and brush/comb treatment several times (like every 6 months) and it works great but then comes back. So, are all of our toddlers really dealing with an allergy? 
 

[Jaimee]

Originally Posted by mamabelle 

So, are all of our toddlers really dealing with an allergy?

The jury is out on that- there is much disagreement in the medical community.  My personal belief is yes, it is likely to be an allergy/taxed immune system response.  Of course, identifying the trigger might be quite difficult and it may be preferable to wait it out and see if the child outgrows the allergy.  But the reality is, that most of us are allergic to many things and may not fully realize it, thinking that certain things we deal with regularly are normal for us (head aches, insomnia, indigestion, eczema, rhinitis, asthma, etc.).

[CDsMom1031]

Boo to the vaccine comment because his popped up right after he got his.

[mamabelle]

I agree with you Jaimee in thinking that many chronic conditions people deal with are undiagnosed allergies. My sister and I both have allergies so are sensitive to that in our kiddos, but also agree with you that the trigger would be hard to identify and it might be best to wait it out unless it gets worse or further symptoms surface. 

[jbk21]

I agree Jaimee.  DH suffered from debilitating migraines his whole life- the only thing his doc ever did was prescribe him muscle relaxants, which he didn't take because he hated how they made him feel.  We went vegan and BAM no more migraines.  Even just a whiff of dairy incapacitates him for 24 hours. 

[Abraisme]

I so wish that everything is related to an allergy.  I've suffered from vertigo for years.  I lived on rice, pears and turkey for months and it didn't change anything.  :(  It would be so much easier to avoid a food, rather that being dizzy all the time.  After much research I'm pretty sure that my vertigo is hormonally related.  It gets worse around ovulation and my AF.  It was also pretty bad pp and now it's getting better.  Blah.

I do have to avoid eggs though.  I get awful tension headaches and achy joints when I eat eggs.  Which sucks because I love eggs and we raise chickens!  I think that I actually gave myself the allergy from eating too many eggs (sometimes 6 per day).  Booo.

My hubby struggled with IBS (chronic diarrhea) for most of his life.  When I forced him to address the cause, we found out that he's very allergic to gluten.  If he eats even one bite of something with gluten (wheat, oats, barley, all of it), he gets diarrhea within 30 minutes.  It never occurred to him (or his family) that it might be an allergy.  :/  Between his allergy and mine, we pretty much can't eat any dessert.  We call it our diet plan, ha ha.  Okay, we can both eat egg-free ice-cream and chocolate, but that's about it. 

It never occurred to me that cradle cap might be an allergy.  I just always assumed it was dead skin that was kinda stuck there.  I might do more to get it off of my DD1 now and see if it stays away for good.

[Jaimee]

Originally Posted by Abraisme 

I so wish that everything is related to an allergy.  I've suffered from vertigo for years.  I lived on rice, pears and turkey for months and it didn't change anything.  :(  It would be so much easier to avoid a food, rather that being dizzy all the time.  After much research I'm pretty sure that my vertigo is hormonally related.  It gets worse around ovulation and my AF.  It was also pretty bad pp and now it's getting better.  Blah.

While I definitely recognize that hormonal fluctuations can cause symptoms and that may totally be the case for you, there is also the possibility that around the time of AF your immune system is compromised, exacerbating an allergy.  While it doesn't appear to be linked to food, it could still be related to environmental allergens.  It sounds like you have quite the urban homestead... lots of allergens there or fluctuating weather, seasonal pollens, etc.  My cousin suffers from vertigo and hers is triggered by changes in weather, which causes sinus congestion leading to the vertigo.  She has to take allergy meds to avoid the congestion to avoid the vertigo (and repeat sinus infections).  Untreated rhinitis (even if it's not obvious) can lead to other chronic symptoms and cause a person to get sick more often.

[Abraisme]

Yeah, perhaps it's an environmental allergy, but WHAT is the question...?  I've had this for years, before I live in Oregon, before I had animals, etc.  I've actually tried decongestants, allergy medicine, even psuedoeffedrine to raise my blood pressure.  I've seen several drs, including a Naturopath and none of them were able to solve the issue.  Basically I was given a pamphlet on living with vertigo and sent on my way. 

Also, it's totally gone away for long periods of time when I was pregnant and breastfeeding.  Basically, when I'm not ovulating I don't get dizzy.  I wish I knew, it's annoying!
 

Originally Posted by Jaimee 

While I definitely recognize that hormonal fluctuations can cause symptoms and that may totally be the case for you, there is also the possibility that around the time of AF your immune system is compromised, exacerbating an allergy.  While it doesn't appear to be linked to food, it could still be related to environmental allergens.  It sounds like you have quite the urban homestead... lots of allergens there or fluctuating weather, seasonal pollens, etc.  My cousin suffers from vertigo and hers is triggered by changes in weather, which causes sinus congestion leading to the vertigo.  She has to take allergy meds to avoid the congestion to avoid the vertigo (and repeat sinus infections).  Untreated rhinitis (even if it's not obvious) can lead to other chronic symptoms and cause a person to get sick more often.

[jbk21]

Originally Posted by Abraisme 

My hubby struggled with IBS (chronic diarrhea) for most of his life.  When I forced him to address the cause, we found out that he's very allergic to gluten.  If he eats even one bite of something with gluten (wheat, oats, barley, all of it), he gets diarrhea within 30 minutes.  It never occurred to him (or his family) that it might be an allergy.  :/  Between his allergy and mine, we pretty much can't eat any dessert.  We call it our diet plan, ha ha.  Okay, we can both eat egg-free ice-cream and chocolate, but that's about it. 

It never occurred to me that cradle cap might be an allergy.  I just always assumed it was dead skin that was kinda stuck there.  I might do more to get it off of my DD1 now and see if it stays away for good.

Isn't it funny?  I guess we're more astute parents these days.  I can't believe DH's parents never addressed the issue more.  If my child was getting regular, intense migraines I'd try my hardest to make them stop.  We discussed it while they were just visiting a few weeks ago and they seemed surprised that he even had headaches ever.  Seriously?  He was totally out of commission on a regular basis and they didn't think that was weird?  Did they not hear him tell them he had headaches?  Do they not remember the doc prescribing muscle relaxers?  I was kind of shocked that they seemed surprised by it.  Weird.