Baby Hair - How Do You Control It?
-
Estimated Read Time: 4 minutes
Summary: In this blog we detail and explore what baby hair is and how you can control it. We’ll discuss why baby hairs exist, what to do to reduce the appearance of baby hair and whether you can help that wispy hair look better. Read on to discover more about baby hairs, what they are and how to control them.
What Are Baby Hairs?
Baby hairs (or vellus hairs) are the finer, wispy hairs that grow at the front of the hairline, and around the nape of your neck and your ears. Baby hair on adults or “peach fuzz” is short, very fine and soft and occurs all over your body too (arms, legs, chest). Because they are so fine, it makes them very tricky to style and keep tame.
Why Do I Have Baby Hairs?
Baby hairs grow in during childhood and for good reason! Baby hairs are useful to the body – they protect the skin from irritation, they wick away sweat and help keep your body warm.
However, baby hairs around the head’s hairline can be quite obvious and for some people can be a completely different texture, and sometimes colour, than the rest of the scalp’s hair which some people don’t like.
How Can You Tell If It’s Baby Hair Or Breakage?
It’s actually very simple to tell whether you’re dealing with baby hair or damaged, broken hairs. If hair is in fact broken, the hair along the hair line will feel dry and brittle, and the line will appear to be uneven in length. Some hairs will also be split or frayed.
If it’s hair loss, there will be patches of smooth, shiny skin that is bald or nearly hairless. The scalp may also appear to be red or inflamed.
Baby hair is usually, fine, soft and wispy and present on the neck as well as the front of the hairline.
How To Get Rid Of Baby Hairs?
If you’d like to tame the appearance of your baby hairs you can try a variety of different things:
How To Flatten Baby Hair
You can stick down your baby hairs and flyaways with a strong hold hair spray. You can take a clean eyebrow brush or unused toothbrush and spray it with your hair spray of choice. Then, gently run the brush over the baby hairs you want to smooth down.
How To Use Baby Hair To Your Advantage
Opting for casual hair styles, which are popular and trendy right now, may amplify your baby hairs but can actually complement the look. A messy bun, or a half up/half down do can look extra cool and intentional with the presence of baby hair.
Get Creative With Your Baby Hairs
Sit down at a mirror, and instead of obsessing over how to disguise them, get creative and try twisting them with your fingers into spiral-like shapes against your forehead/temples. Then, use a hair gel to fix them down! This can work really well for an evening look against a slicked back pony tail.
Nourish Your Baby Hairs
Up the quality of your hair care products and make sure they’re enriched with proteins like keratin as this will help strengthen the hair’s cuticle and provide an extra layer of protection. And - always always always - use heat protection when styling.
What Shouldn’t I Do To My Baby Hairs?
Never Shave Or Wax Your Baby Hairs
Tempting as it maybe, waxing or shaving your baby hairs will not aid their appearance or stop their growth. The only thing that would support in their total removal would be laser treatment, which is a very expensive process, and can’t guarantee the riddance of all baby hairs and still won’t totally stop regrowth occurring.
Avoid Tight Hair Styles
Pulling the hair back into tight styles (like Ariana Grande’s infamous ponytail) can cause permanent hair loss and cause the hair line to become patchy and unsightly, and exacerbate the appearance of baby hairs.
Be Careful When You Colour
Baby hair is so fine, and because of this, is particularly delicate. When colour treating the hair, opt for a really gentle formula and be mindful of the damage dye can do to this kind of hairline. Get your hair dyed professionally? Have a frank conversation with your stylist about your baby hairs and their needs prior to dyeing.
Related Reads
The Science Behind Hair Growth And How To Boost It
