Dear mommy, try these natural tips to remove your baby's body hair

Arrival of a new born brings a whirlwind of activity and joy to your life. But this joy also brings along a sense of responsibility; you want to be the best parent in the world. Although being a parent is no less than an uphill task, but every step forward you take for them adds more joy to your life. That said, your entire focus revolves around taking care of your new born.

You may be under the impression that a newborn baby's skin will be as smooth as it gets, but that’s not the case. The skin will be dry and flaky along with some body hair. Seeing body hair could be a cause of stress for some parents, but there is nothing to be worry about because you can easily get rid of body hair naturally. But, lets first understand about the newborn baby’s body hair.


The hair that you see on your baby’s skin is known as lanugo, a word which has been derived from the latin word lana, meaning wool.

• The hair is fine but you can clearly see them.
• They mostly grow on the back, shoulders, forehead, ears and face of the baby.
• They begin developing at 18-20 weeks of gestation.
• Body hair is commonly seen in premature babies.
• The hair may shed naturally in few weeks or may take few months.
• Sometimes babies start shedding body hair while still in the fetus, while some may be born with lanugo intact on their body.

Role of new born’s body hair

There is a definite reason why new born babies have body hair.

• Lanugo provides protection to the tender skin of the baby while she/he is in your womb.
• It also averts any damage that can be caused by the amniotic fluid.
• It also holds together the vernix caseos, greasy wax like layer that covers skin of the baby in the womb to keep it warm and moisturized.
• So, even if it does not look so nice, this initial body hair is actually very helpful.

How to treat newborn baby’s body hair

As mentioned above, it may take up to four months after birth to shed these hair naturally, but using the below given tricks you can hasten the process:

• Apply olive oil on your baby’s body and gently massage at least twice a day.
• Apply gram flour, turmeric and milk on your baby’s and give him/her a massage before bath.
• Prepare a soft dough of wheat and gram flour and rub it all over your child’s body slowly. Doing so will help soften the roots of the hair and remove them gradually.
• You can prepare a paste for massage from lentils, almonds and milk.

These massages will not only help you remove the body hair but also give you quality bonding time with your little one.