Hair Care For Newborn Babies

Hair care for newborn babies is very important so let us try and understand what you can do to take care of your newborn baby’s hair. When the baby is born the hair are very delicate and some babies are born with a lot of hair while some do not have much hair.

You will be given a lot of advises and you will have a variety of products to chose from. So you need to know what best you can do to take care if the hair of your new born baby. The hair that the new born is born with will slowly fall off and new hair will take its place. The new hair that grows will be thicker and different from the hair that the baby was born with.

Baby Hair Care

Tips for Newborn Baby Hair Care

#1: The first tip about new born hair care is that you have to be gentle. The shampoo and soaps used or the hands used for new born hair care should be extremely soft and gentle. The scalp is soft and so are the hair this is why you have to be very careful. You can shampoo the hair of a new born baby once a week.

#2: There is a part in the scalp which is extremely soft. You must ensure that you do not put much pressure on this area as this may harm the baby. This spot will stay till the baby is five years of age.

#3: Before you put water on the head of the new born baby, check that there are no tangles in the hair. If there are tangles remove them and then apply water. Move your hands slowly and gently as you wash the head of the baby. It is easier to remove the tangles and then give a head bath rather than the other way round. A strong pull in the hair may really hurt the baby.

#4: Buy a gentle shampoo that will not cause tears. The babies do not like to wash their hair and may start crying every time you try to wash the hair. However, do ensure that you wash the hair regularly and the child gets used to this process.

This will ensure that the child understands the importance of head wash. There are a lot of shampoos available in the market that you can select from. You can consult your doctor before you pick one for the baby.

#5: You can also look at picking up a bath hat so that the shampoo does not enter the eyes of the baby. Take a little shampoo in your hand and apply it on the scalp. Then slowly rinse the same slowly and gently.

You can use the same water that you use for bathing the child. The temperature of the water again should not be too hot or too cold for the baby. You must be extra careful that the water does not enter the ears at any cost. As soon as the head bath is done you must rub the head well so that no water is left. If water is left it can cause cold and cough to the baby too. Let the hair dry a before you put a cap or a hood on the head of the child.

#6: For a very small baby comb may do more harm than good. Just use your hands to set the hair in place. As the child grows you can start combing the hair. Always use a baby comb as the hair of the child and the scalp is extra soft. Some babies sleep either on their right more or on their left as a result the hair is not even. As the baby grows and spends more time sitting this problem can be solved.

#7: Many Indian parents ask if they should oil the hair of the child. Well this maybe a tradition in India to oil the head of the new born but we do not recommend it. You may land up doing more harm than good. You can massage the body. In our next articles we will discuss about how to massage the body of a toddler. However, you avoid putting any oil on the head and the hair.

#8: We have mentioned that you must be soft with the handling of the scalp and baby hair. If you put oil then you will have to use more force to remove the same from the head and the hair which is not good. Oil can also cause cold to the child. As the child grows up and the scalp becomes tough you can oil the hair before you shampoo it. Oil is a good natural conditioner and it will add to the shine of the hair.

#9: Another common question that parents ask is when should they shave the head of the baby? In India there are a lot of rituals that are associated with the first haircut of the new born. Some wait for a year and some opt for an early haircut. Some even wait for five years.

Well you can look at six months as a good time for haircut. We say so because the scalp is a little tough by now. The hair that grows post a haircut is always better than the hair that was. We do not recommend haircut for very small babies as it may harm the scalp. You must take good care of the hair of a new born till the first haircut is done.

#10: Many people ask if shaving the head a lot of times can ensure better hair. Well the answer is true. If you can shave the head of a child at least two or three times then the hair that grows is of better quality. As the child starts going to school getting them a haircut can get more difficult. In India as summers are very hot haircut can reduce the head for the child and also reduce the problem of lice.

Important: As a baby always try not to accessorize the hair a lot. Too many clips and bows can increase the pain of the child. If the child tries to pull these then he or she may damage the hair and the scalp.

Another problem with these is that they may fall off and when they do they can enter the eyes and the mouth causing damage as they have sharp edges. Ensure that the accessories are tight enough always. Maybe occasionally you can do up the hair as the child looks very cute in these. Some parents say that you must start putting these accessories really early this will allow the baby to get used to them. Maybe you can but try to keep them on only for a few minutes and then remove them.

Sometimes babies cry as soon as these accessories are put. The parents may think that this is usually the way the child behaves. Nevertheless, the truth maybe that these are hurting the child as a result she is crying so much. Babies cannot talk so we have to understand why they are crying and what it is that is bothering them so much. As the child is about two years old she will herself tell you to accessorize her hair.

Change of Shampoo: As far as possible try not to change the shampoo you are using too often. This can only cause more damage than good. You can give good haircut to the kids. Fancy haircut for the children is becoming a new trend. There are parlours that specialise in haircut for toddlers. You can take your bundle of joy to these parlours for the haircut that they need.  Never tie the hair of the baby too tightly. This may reduce the circulation of the blood. Many a light pony tail or bun. You can tie the hair tight once the child starts going to school.

We hope that the simple tips that we have given on new born hair care will help you to take a good care of the baby and its delicate hair. The points that you need to follow are simple. Just a little care and patience can help you a great deal.