He has really bad dry scalp. I give him a bath every night and use the simple J & J baby shampoo. Is there any way to treat his dry skin/scalp? I use lotion (Cetaphil) that works best on his skin, but I wonder what I can do for his scalp...if anything.
I'd like to keep bathing him each night, to keep a routine too.

By Trina~moderator on Monday, December 20, 2004 - 10:53 am:

Is it cradle cap?

DrGreene.com - Cradle Cap

By Trina~moderator on Monday, December 20, 2004 - 10:56 am:

Here's another article.

BabyCenter.com - Cradle Cap

By Missmudd on Monday, December 20, 2004 - 11:27 am:

Washing his hair everynight may be doing more harm than good. I would only use the baby shampoo as needed, like if he spit up. Just like all soap it can dry out your skin. I would just use plain water most of the time to keep up the routine. Also your house or invironment may be too dry and sucking out the moisture in the air. Consider a humidifer if you think this might be a problem. When my little guys got cradle cap I wet down their baby brush and lightly scrubbed w/ that to get the loose stuff gone.

By Mrsheidi on Monday, December 20, 2004 - 12:01 pm:

I will try the oil and also the baby brush! Thanks guys!

By Lauram on Monday, December 20, 2004 - 12:51 pm:

We were told to not bathe every night. That really helps. ALso, we used Neutrogena shampoo (adult version) and a lice comb to brush his head.

By Tink on Monday, December 20, 2004 - 01:05 pm:

Oil and a baby brush worked wonders on all of my dks' hair. Like the pictures I've seen of your ds, none of my dks had much hair so the dry skin really showed.

By Pixie on Wednesday, December 22, 2004 - 01:07 pm:

My dd was older when we started having those problems, something like 1 1/2 -2. Since we have a history of Psoriasis and dry skin on both sides I thought it might be a bit more of a problem than cradle cap. We used J&J when she was a baby but had switched to Aveeno, well when she got more hair the Aveeno just didn't cut it so we went back to J&J. It got so dry she had SCABS in her hair! (Psoriasis) We had to switch to an organice shampoo with no perfumes and dyes. We used California Baby but there are many out there. So if the problem persists it may be more than cradle cap, but I would try the Aveeno Baby first its less costly than the California Baby. Good Luck with it!

By Pixie on Wednesday, December 22, 2004 - 01:09 pm:

P.S. I agree with Missmudd, washing everynight can be excessive especially during the dry winter months. I think in most cases Pediatricians say that as well. If you love that fresh baby smell grab some lotion!

By Afox2004 on Monday, January 3, 2005 - 02:33 pm:

I give my kids a shampoo every two to three days. They don't need it as much as we adults do. If it's cradles cap, then put some baby oil on the entire scalp (slosh it on good) and leave it there for an hour or two. Then give them a bath and comb or brush shampoo in the hair. It will come up real easy. You may have to do it more than once if it's real thick. And the child's hair may be a bit oily for a couple more days, but it's worth a painless removal.