Hair Loss in Newborn Babies

All babies are beautiful and they are all special and unique.

They come in all shapes and sizes, some small, some large, some skinny others are pudgy and squishy. Genetics determine blue eyes, brown eyes, light skin and naturally dark skin, and even this can change as they get older. Some newborns have no hair, others have a full crop of hair, but one thing which all babies will experience at some point is hair loss.

It is natural for you as a mother to be concerned– especially if your newborn had a full head of hair at the time of birth but here are a few reasons why it happens and what you can expect.

Reasons for Hair Loss in New Born Babies:

Often hair loss occurs in newborns because the first hair growth cycle has fallen out before the new growth cycle has had a chance to take over. Some babies may even be completely bald for the entire first year.

Fortunately, these babies that experience hair loss or have no hair in their first year will eventually develop new, stronger hair growth as they mature. Other reasons your newborn may be experiencing hair loss include a drop in hormone levels as well as the position your baby is consistently sleeping in.

Drop in Hormone Levels

Just before delivery there is a drop in hormone levels as once the baby is born it no longer obtains hormones from the mother. This causes the baby’s hair to enter into the resting phase of the hair cycle meaning the babies hair ceases to grow.

Eventually the resting phase also falls out as your baby’s hair enters a new phase of growth. The new growth of hair will then push out the resting hair, causing the existing hair to fall out and the new hair to grow gradually; leading to the baby’s hair appearing patchy. If new hair growth is taking longer than you think it should just be patient, before you know it, healthy locks will appear on your baby’s scalp.

Baby’s Sleeping Position

In addition to suffering hair loss due to drop in hormone levels, bald patches may appear on your newborn’s head due to consistently sleeping with their head in the same position. If your baby develops a bald patch at the back of their head, or on either side of the head this may be due to sleeping on one of those areas for extended periods of time.

If hair falls out completely due to this reason, it is because the hair is still at the resting stage and was mean to be shed. The new hair will begin to grow when your baby starts sitting up. As long as the scalp is healthy, there is nothing to fear. However, if the baby’s scalp is experiencing severe cradle cap (excessive scaling of skin), oozing or redness, you should discuss the problem with your baby’s doctor.

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58 Comments

- - ChiWren said
  - 02 Jan 2024
    2:15 am
So interesting, I didn’t know this was a thing. My baby has such little hair to begin with, he can’t lose it just yet haha.

- - mom94125 said
  - 18 Oct 2015
    4:55 pm
cheers Andrew. lovely to see input for the males on here

- - Carolineb said
  - 09 Aug 2015
    7:14 am
Bubs lost most of his hair as a newborn and now is growing back lighter.

- - mom94125 said
  - 06 Jan 2015
    9:37 pm
i think that the bald patch is not from laying on the same spot (which would result in a flat spot) but rather the looking from side to side and rubbing it off especially when they are hungry and seeking the boob

- - june11 said
  - 13 Dec 2014
    12:44 am
I have seen a few babies with thin patches on the back of their heads, often where they move and in the process rub their heads against the sheets in their cots. It happens more with babies who have very fine fair. Babies tend to move around in the warm/hot weather. The best mattresses are made of latex which is firm but tends to retain baby body heat. Babies seem to move away from the hot spots where they have been while they are sleeping. I have put a baby at one of the cot and found her lying the opposite end or some other strange position as they gradually move about…..I had very little hair for over a year. So did my brother.
As I grew older my hair grew, was wavy and not fine at all. In fact it is still very “wiry”, thick (like my Mums)but gradually lost its natural waves(Dad’s was wavy) . My brother’s hair is finer than mine and not as thick either.(Dad’s hair was fine). Sometimes it is also genetic.

- - neddie said
  - 09 Aug 2014
    12:11 am
Good article and good advice there! Thank You.

- - skbou said
  - 31 Jul 2014
    12:10 pm
At first I was alarmed at seeing all that soft downy hair on the sheets :(…. then quite amused at the monk like look it produced…. all good now though. I didn’t realise there would be other reasons that the hair would fall out.

- - mggarner said
  - 26 Jul 2014
    6:43 pm
My first and second lost their hair but my third didn’t

- - mom71845 said
  - 16 Jul 2014
    8:42 pm
Interesting read. My bub has just started losing hair. Nice to know the reason why.

- - crumbles said
  - 13 Jul 2014
    4:18 pm
i hope my lil girl gets hair soon. shes still bald at 6 months hahha

- - mom61907 said
  - 27 Jun 2014
    12:26 am
That is a very interesting read, I never knew why babies first hair feel out, thanks for that

- - crowydevil said
  - 25 Jun 2014
    4:11 pm
I hope my little gets hair soon.

- - mom61924 said
  - 18 Jun 2014
    5:34 pm
Ah interesting! Never heard of this before.

- - Mum2Belle said
  - 12 Jun 2014
    5:43 pm
Glad I read this article…I had heard of this happening and I have an 8 week old little girl. I can’t wait for her locks to come in

- - mom56299 said
  - 03 Jun 2014
    12:04 pm
I have heard of bald spots (and cradle cap) but not an entire year of no hair and I knew nothing about hormone levels causing hair loss so thanks for an interesting read.

- - Caley said
  - 01 Jun 2014
    7:31 pm
My little one’s hair newborn hair slowly fell out and has been replaced with fairer hair. Unfortunately she has the signature bald patch at the back from lying on her back when asleep and turning her head side to side (I find bits of hair on her fitting sheet). Although cleared up now, for a while she had little pimples on the back of her head. As far as I could tell, she was ending up with ingrown hairs. The hair was trying so hard to grow but for now it has given up.

- - Emilyypamela said
  - 30 May 2014
    11:35 pm
Mum said I lost my hair when I was a baby. Due to rolling though.

- - maureen3 said
  - 29 May 2014
    1:34 pm
An informative and interesting read

- - Gracelow said
  - 29 May 2014
    12:41 pm
I was pretty bald when I was a baby… Thanks for this wonderful article!

- - mom57522 said
  - 28 May 2014
    9:27 pm
My bub had a big thick combover.