Why are some babies born with thick hair? And is it dangerous?

Hair appears around the face, shoulders, back and head

Babies are born with soft, downy, short, lightly pigmented hair on the body called "lanugo". In some babies, the hair is barely visible, while in others, there can be a lot of hair, especially around the face, shoulders, back and head.

This lanugo disappears on its own, a few weeks after birth.

The lanugo appears on the fetus around the third month of pregnancy. As the fetus grows in the womb, this hair grows thicker by the seventh month. It ends up covering most of the baby's body, except for areas that do not have hair follicles.

Getting rid of hair within weeks

According to "Medical Express", most babies get rid of this hair between the 33rd and 36th week of pregnancy, as it mixes with the amniotic fluid and is swallowed by the baby.

However, babies who are born prematurely tend to have a lot of body hair, because the lanugo has not had a chance to fall out.

Up to 30% of babies may have lanugo during the first few weeks of life.

After the white, sticky substance on your baby's skin at birth, called vernix, is removed, small amounts of lanugo may remain on your baby for a few weeks.

No need to worry

Babies are born with roughly the same amount of hair, which is replaced by thicker hair that stays on them throughout life.

Three months after birth, the lanugo on your head will be replaced by permanent hair. This hair grows and falls out between 12 and 24 months.

After this loss, most of your baby's hair will be permanent.

There is no need to worry about your baby being born with a lot of body hair, as it will disappear within a few weeks.

Hypertrichosis

Hypertrichosis is a rare genetic disorder that causes excessive growth of lint or down-like hair.

You may be born with this genetic condition, or it may develop later in life. It can be caused by a health condition, an eating disorder, or as a side effect of some medications.

The purpose of the hair coat is to protect the baby’s skin, regulate body temperature and is associated with the coat.

The coat also protects the baby’s skin, prevents water loss, plays a vital role in temperature control and contributes to natural immunity.

The hair coat will appear differently in different babies. Depending on the length of the pregnancy, it may be absent or abundant.

Family genes will also play a role, making the hair lighter or darker.

Heartburn in Pregnant Women

There may be some truth to the belief that heartburn during pregnancy is linked to an increased chance of the baby being born with a lot of hair.

A study published in 2006 found that “women who reported moderate or severe heartburn gave birth to babies with average or above average hair.”

The severity of symptoms was not related to the sex of the baby or the mother’s age or weight.

The researchers suggested that it was possible that pregnancy hormones, which are involved in relaxing the lower esophageal sphincter, were also involved in fetal hair growth. Another study published in 2012 concluded that most women who reported heartburn gave birth to babies with an average or above-average amount of hair.