Q: Will trimming or shaving my baby’s hair encourage more hair growth?

Answered by: Dr Hon Sai Kit, Paediatrics – General, Pantai Hospital Ampang (PHA)

The answer is NO.

It would not make any different to trim or not your baby hair to encourage more hair growth. It is a belief in many Asian cultures that shaving a month-old baby’s entire head will help hair grow fuller and thicker. In fact, some babies without shaving off their hair have their beautiful, long, and dark hair before turning their first birthday. On the other hand, some babies who had their hair shaved before their full moon might not see much hair growth later.

There are few factors to determine your baby’s hair growth. Of course, a genetic factor plays a major role here. It will determine the number of hair follicles that is present on your scalp and the rate of your hair growth. It also determines the texture, type and colour of the hair whether it is fine, coarse, straight or curly from your related descend. Other factors that influence hair growth are like nutrition, certain drugs such as steroids, hormones and chemotherapy or certain rare syndromic children where hair gets affected.

A malnourished child may have fine, thinner, less pigmented, and more fragile hair than the other healthy and well-nourished child. A balanced diet consists of macro and micronutrients such as amino acid, essential fatty acid, Vitamin A, B3, D & E, zinc, iron, and folic acid, which are all essential to promote healthy hair growth. However, over-supplementation of certain nutrients, including selenium, Vitamin A, and Vitamin E, has been linked to hair loss. Supplementation is recommended only when certain nutrient deficiency is suspected or confirmed.

If you want to see your child’s hair grow beautifully, apart from genetics which is a non-modifiable factor, you should encourage children to eat healthy with a balanced diet, live a healthier lifestyle to lower stress hormones to ensure a healthier hair growth.