Q&A:
What can I do to stop my 6-month-old's hair from falling out?

0 people commented
on this article

Answered by Anthony Mancini M.D.

Meet our authors

Dr. Mancini received his undergraduate and medical educations at the University of Arizona, and trained in pediatrics, pediatric dermatology, and dermatology at Stanford University. He is currently Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Dermatology at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine and Head of the Division of Dermatology at Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago, Illinois.

Dr. Mancini has served as a member of the AAP Executive Committee, Section of Dermatology since 2001. He is a member of the AAP Super CME Planning Group and the AAP Pedia Link Pediatric Dermatology Project Team, and is Secretary-Treasurer of the Society for Pediatric Dermatology. His teaching accomplishments include the Faculty Excellence in Education Award from the Department of Pediatrics at Northwestern, which he has received for the last eight years. Dr. Mancini is a peer reviewer and/or sits on the editorial board for several academic journals, and has published over 75 peer-reviewed articles, abstracts, and book chapters. He is co-author of Hurwitz Clinical Pediatric Dermatology, 3rd edition, and is an associate editor for the comprehensive dermatology textbook Dermatology. His special interests include infectious skin diseases and exanthems of childhood, vascular malformations and hemangiomas, and neonatal skin maturation and skin disorders.

Dr. Mancini is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Dermatology. He and his wife, Nicola, a neonatal intensive care nurse, have three children (Mallory, Christopher, and Mackenzie) and reside in Evanston, Illinois.

Read bio Hide bio Hide

Question

My 6-month-old baby's hair is falling out at the sides and back. What do I do to stop this from happening?

Answer

Most hair loss in babies is temporary and completely reversible. It's common for infants to go through a normal cycle of "hair shedding," and because of the fact that they are routinely placed on their backs to sleep (for SIDS prevention), the back of the scalp is often the most severely affected. Other areas (such as the sides and the front) may also show some hair loss. But in most cases, babies' hair will grow back on its own over a period of three to six months (in some babies it may take longer). If a baby has cradle cap (redness, greasy yellow scaling), treatment may help to encourage hair regrowth. This can be accomplished with gentle massage with baby oil (to loosen scales), and application of hydrocortisone cream to red areas. If your child has loss of other hair (such as eyebrows or eyelashes), or if hair regrowth does not occur spontaneously, have him or her seen by the pediatrician or a pediatric dermatologist.