Recurring cradle cap in older child

Call me Al

Well he's 6 and twice or three times a year we have the usual sit down where I have to soften and then comb out chunks of cradle cap that seem to accumulate right around on the top his scalp and none at the sides. It's always the same area, and worse in the same spots too. It used to be bad when he was a baby. We tried some shampoos specifically for it but they didn't make any difference, but it did clear on his older brother as a baby.

How can our youngest still be getting this at 6? I thought we would have passed this stage by now.

The Princess Bride

I guess everybody has a different skin type, maybe he's just different to his brother.

I'd recommend lots of warm olive oil massaged into his scalp daily - should loosen the cradle cap. Gently combing should remove it afterwards.
Out of curiosity, has he dry skin?

I worked in Paediatrics for years and this is only method I ever saw working.

Call me Al

Hi, Thanks for answering. No he has perfect peachy soft normal skin. I never need to cream it or do anything with it. It's always been like this even as a baby. It has always just been this cradle cap that was the problem. He used to even have it encroaching down onto his forehead and in his eyebrows when he was under 6 months but thankfully he doesn't get this anymore.
I actually use olive oil and find it great at getting rid of the gunk but I've been told that this makes it worse as it feeds the condition (is that even possible!?!), so I don't know if I'm doing right for wrong.
Everytime we clear it I think maybe this is the last time I have to do this with him, and when it isn't the last time I wonder if the oil I've used earlier is the cause, as these people tell me. And then I think it's just an old wives tale.
Maybe I should use an anti-dandruff shampoo on him. I wash his hair about twice a week. If I used something like this more often it might help. Or just stick with the olive oil and hope he grows out if it before he is so old that he won't allow me to touch his hair.

bp

We use anti dandruff shampoo on our 2.5 year old with the same problem and made no difference in our case

sillysocks

What shampoo do you normally use?

My youngest had terrible cradle cap for 2 years, the oil would clear it but always came back. We were using johnsons baby shampoo which was fine on his sister, but someone suggested changing it so I now use a Simple one and within a few weeks the cradle cap cleared by itself. The johnsons just didn't seem to agree with his scalp it seems!

The Princess Bride

I wouldn't use anti - dandruff shampoo yet - not sure how it works,might be too harsh on his scalp.
Olive oil definitely the way to go you couldn't ask for more natural than this.
Warm oil massaged into hair and left for as long as he'll tolerate -use a swimming cap.
Only comb it out when soft enough to do so.

My son had it for most of his toddler/preschool years and he's almost 16 now with no problems with scalp or hair.If you're unhappy perhaps seek advice of a dermatologist?

Call me Al

I used a variety of shampoos (including halo and horns, dentinox, Tesco own brand, Johnsons, boots) when he was younger and none seemed to make any difference. We still ended up with cradle cap.

Eventually I just stuck with the Johnson and Johnson as they all seemed to be the same.
Maybe Simple is the way to go.
Do they a children's line? Do you use a children's shampoo?
I'd change it if I thought it'd make any difference.

sillysocks

I don't know if it's a coincidence that it cleared up with the Simple, and it took a few weeks for the cradle cap to disappear so it may have been but might be worth a try for a while. We used dentinox too but didn't have much joy and because he was younger I was afraid it'd get in his eyes and sting.

Yes this is the Simple one I use. Just got it in baby aisle in Tesco. I used it on my 4.5 year old who has a huge head of hair and it washes her hair just fine too even though it's billed as baby shampoo.

http://www.superdrug.com/Simple/Simple-Baby-Shampoo-300ml/p/205530

Diamond Doll

I've often heard coconut oil is better than olive oil - it's easier to manage, too, as you can rub it in while it's still solid and let it melt as you're rubbing. It smells gorgeous too!

LegacyUser

My 2 1/2 yr old was getting recurring cradle cap and the chemist suggested that we weren't rinsing his hair properly. I realised that when he was playing in the bath with his brother his hair would get soaked with bubbles etc which we weren't rinsing off properly (like we would when we were washing his hair).
It actually completely solved the problem for us.
Not sure how helpful this will be for you OP but just thought I'd share my experience

cbyrd

More than likely it's simply inadequate washing/rinsing. You need to give the head a good scrub using the pads of your fingers. not the tips as this can scratch the scalp and cause infection. Rubbing the palm is usually the quickest way but it doesn't wash the scalp properly.
I've seen so many kids over the years with this, also men who don't rinse the shaving foam or soap off their faces properly get this in their sideburns.. It's very common.
I also would not recommend using Anti-dandruff shampoos on children (I wouldn't recommend it for adults either)

Call me Al

http://m.kidshealth.org/parent/infections/skin/cradle_cap.html

Just thought I'd post this link above after my couple of weeks of research. Just a little explanation of the link between cradle cap (which is a form of dermatitis) and later dandruff.

Not caused by not rinsing thoroughly, although if you don't wash and rinse properly it'll obviously not help.