Really worried about my daughters lack of hair growth (she is 4 and a half)

79 answers /

Last post: 04/02/2024 at 4:56 pm

LOUISE P(286)
Louise P(286)
06/06/2011 at 9:34 am
Hi Guys,
Hi Ladies,

I have posted on here before about my little girls lack of hair but I am really starting to worry now and not sure what to do or even if there is anything I can do.

My little girl is 4 and a half, 5 in Dec and still has very little hair. Her hair is as short as you would generally keep a boys hair and although it is quite thick on top she is no hair at the front where you would normally have a fringe and none at the back so there is no length at all. It has started to go curly but she only has half a curl so it tends to just stick out.

We have trimmed her hair once in the hope that it grow quicker but it doesnt and now I am reluctant to keep cutting the little bit of hair she has.

I tell her all the time that her hair is beautiful but she desperately wants long hair now as all the other girls in her class have long hair. She even puts t-shirts on her head now so that it hangs down at the back and then says she has long hair. She spends ages looking at her herself in the mirror with the t-shirt sleeves dangling down pretending that she is waving her hair about. It sounds funny but I am starting to get really upset about it, mainly for her.

We went to a party yesterday and a little girl who is normally one of her best friends said she couldnt be best friends with her anymorebecause she doesnt have long hair or hair that you can put bobbles in. What do you say to that???

I have booked an appointment at the doctors tomorrow. Have always put this off before but I hate the thought of children saying things to her at school. She simply doesnt understand why they have long hair and she doesnt.

Other than her lack of hair she is a very healthy little girl, very active, always on the go and her finger and toe nails grow well as we are always cutting them.

We have loads of lovely hairbands and small clips although most clips wont stay in her hair as there isnt enough hair to clip back and it ends up hanging off the end of a strand of hair and hurting her.

Just at a complete loss now. People keep telling me her hair will grow and it will come all at once but I have heard that for years now.

Sorry for the rant but the older she gets the most desperately we want her hair to grow.
xx
1
ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
06/06/2011 at 10:01 am
Mmmm,:hmmm: well, Im a hairdresser and I've seen lots  of children with what you would call "baby hair". My own son had very little hair untill he was 3. He was 13 yesterday and now has a big thick mop! I do think young childrens hair bares little resembalence of what there hair will be like as an adult:hug:

 I think your doing the right thing, having it checked out, I guess potentially she could be suffering from alopicia, It is even possible to have infections in the hair follicle. Can you see fine hair growth?

 I wouldn't put any hair clips or bobbles in the hair that she does have, as this can cause hair breakage in it's self.

 You know other children can be quite cruel. my son also suffered from protruding ears I taught him from a very young age to laugh at this. He called them his flappers! this worked very well, if anyone said " Cor! you've got big ears." He would reply. "yup,there my flappers":lol:.

He's since grown lots of hair and grown into his ears! lol
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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
06/06/2011 at 10:29 am
I would also take her to the doctors just to get checked. I only had baby hair until i was 4 and by the time i started school at 5 it was really long and thick! The photos go form one extreme to the other.

A friend of mine noticed her lo who is now 3.5 actually started losing hair. She had never had much but had started to get a couple of little curls then looking back at photos she realised the curls had gone and it was back to being a fine covering of baby hair. So she took her to the doctor and her lo had to have blood tests to check hormone levels (i think to see if she was deficent in anything) but everything was fine. We did discover that as her lo didn't have much hair and hated having her hair washed she hadn't been washing it that much. I think she was only washing it once every 2-3 weeks. She started washing it every few days as stimulating the follicles helps the hair grow quicker. And it really helped. She hasn't got long hair yet but it is much much better

I hope her hair starts growing soon x
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LOUISE P(286)
Louise P(286)
06/06/2011 at 10:35 am
Thanks for the replies guys.

Her hair is not really baby hair as it is quite thick, there is just no length at all and it is growing outwards rather than down.

We wash her hair every time she has a bath so it gets washed often.

Hopefully the doctor maybe able to suggest anything. I hate the idea of her having to have blood tests done but if that is what it takes.

Thanks again x
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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
06/06/2011 at 4:58 pm
They may say not to worry at all. But just to let you know my friend said the blood tests were fine. She did have to take her to the hospital. But on the morning of the test she had to apply some cream to lo's arm and wrap clingfilm round it so it was completley numb for the test and she said the nurses were so used to doing blood tests on children they were great.
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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
06/06/2011 at 7:45 pm
My daughter is a similar age and has equally short hair. It is definately thickening out and I guess thats where the growth is at the moment. Mine was similar as a child but now I have very thick hair that grows really well. What I do with my DD is every time I dry her hair, when I am done I say 'b, e, a beautiful' - say it enough times and she will believe it - or at least thats the plan ;-)
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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
07/06/2011 at 12:25 pm
My daughter was very similar.  She was born with a full head of dark hair, which fell out within a few months and she was completely bald until she was over a year.  From then, it's been just taking ages to get longer, whilst her body has been growing at double speed.  She's had a few trims to tidy it up, but I think people assume it's been cut short deliberately.  Anyway, since she started school last August, I've noticed it suddenly growing.  I looked at her this morning and it's past her shoulders, thick, wavy and stunning.  She says the other children touch it and I can see why.  I'm sure your daughter's will come in soon and it's really nothing to worry about.

Good luck
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LOUISE P(286)
Louise P(286)
08/06/2011 at 1:30 pm
In answer to
Louise P(286)
Hi Guys,
Hi Ladies,

I have posted on here before about my little girls lack of hair but I am really starting to worry now and not sure what to do or even if there is anything I can do.

My little girl is 4 and a half, 5 in Dec and still has very little hair. Her hair is as short as you would generally keep a boys hair and although it is quite thick on top she is no hair at the front where you would normally have a fringe and none at the back so there is no length at all. It has started to go curly but she only has half a curl so it tends to just stick out.

We have trimmed her hair once in the hope that it grow quicker but it doesnt and now I am reluctant to keep cutting the little bit of hair she has.

I tell her all the time that her hair is beautiful but she desperately wants long hair now as all the other girls in her class have long hair. She even puts t-shirts on her head now so that it hangs down at the back and then says she has long hair. She spends ages looking at her herself in the mirror with the t-shirt sleeves dangling down pretending that she is waving her hair about. It sounds funny but I am starting to get really upset about it, mainly for her.

We went to a party yesterday and a little girl who is normally one of her best friends said she couldnt be best friends with her anymorebecause she doesnt have long hair or hair that you can put bobbles in. What do you say to that???

I have booked an appointment at the doctors tomorrow. Have always put this off before but I hate the thought of children saying things to her at school. She simply doesnt understand why they have long hair and she doesnt.

Other than her lack of hair she is a very healthy little girl, very active, always on the go and her finger and toe nails grow well as we are always cutting them.

We have loads of lovely hairbands and small clips although most clips wont stay in her hair as there isnt enough hair to clip back and it ends up hanging off the end of a strand of hair and hurting her.

Just at a complete loss now. People keep telling me her hair will grow and it will come all at once but I have heard that for years now.

Sorry for the rant but the older she gets the most desperately we want her hair to grow.
xx
 
Hi Guys,

Just to provide you with an update.

I took my little girl to the doctors yesterday and she is now being referred to a pediatrician at the hospital and we have an appointment in July. The doctor said that she had never had this problem before and is not experienced to start to diagnose anything so it is better to refer her to a specialist in children.

I spoke to her teacher this morning and it seems that another mum has also recently spoken to her about the little girl who said she couldnt play with my LO because she had short hair as she has been excluding her little one from playing (obviously not because of the lack of hair thing though) so it seems like she is doing it one way or the other to many of the little girls in the class. It appears that she lines them all up and choses her best friend for that day! I didnt even realise a 4 year old would think like that.

Anyway, the teacher is going to keep an eye on them and give them another 'not all children look the same' talk. I am just worried that the little girl who said it might start saying it to the other girls and then they wont want to play with Evie either. Silly I know but its what I am worrying about.

Thanks for the replies, much appreciated. I just have my fingers crossed that it is nothing serious that is causing the slow hair growth when we go to the hospital. She is so healthy in every other way that I cant see how it can be but you never know do you?

Thanks again,

Louise x
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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
02/09/2011 at 7:44 am
hi ,
read this thread with interest, my daughter is exactly same age, 5 at christmas, and has very little hair, it's about 0.5 to 1 inch mostly and a bit longer on top - 2 inches maybe,.. i've never trimmed it. my older daughter was similar but had quite a bit more hair by 5.
she is about to start school, am hoping it goes ok.
not sure i want to pursue the medical tests

how is it going?
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LOUISE P(286)
Louise P(286)
02/09/2011 at 7:55 am
Hi Deborah,

Really nice to hear from someone in the same boat. I sometimes think people think you are very silly for worrying about a lack of hair.

We went to the hospital appointment in July and the doctor said that she too had never had a case like it, maybe at 2/3 years old but not when nearly 5. She said she could do blood tests but she would advise we waited another year or so before this and we completely agree, I would want any tests.

She did some little reflex tests and things and said other than her hair she is very healthy. She has left the appointment open for a year so that if we are worried it has got no better during that time we can go back again without having to get referred by the doctor.

It has grown quite a lot over the summer hols but there is still no length as it tends to grow outwards not down, especially as it is curly. Have bought her some headbands for school next week.

Would be great to keep in touch, see how everything is going. My e-mail address is louise.pink@networkrail.co.uk.

Take Care

Louise x
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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
02/09/2011 at 8:57 am
It's been about 3 months since I replied to this thread.  My daughter returned to school after the summer holidays to find that she now has about the longest and thickest hair in the class.  Not so long ago, I thought we'd never get to this stage.  When she started school last year, at nearly 5, she had very little and the longest part was at the nape of her neck.  Mummies, please don't worry.  It can't have been related to a deficiency.  If that had been the case, I'm sure she wouldn't be the tallest in the class (although she's one of the youngest) and it would have been apparent in her general physical health (which has always been excellent).
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LOUISE P(286)
Louise P(286)
02/09/2011 at 9:04 am
Thanks Amanda, thats lovely to hear.

We tell her all the time her hair is beautiful and she loves her curls like Grandma's.

My little girl is also one of the tallest in her class and is so fit and healthy she runs me under the table. She is like a duracell bunny as she never seems to get tired!

Hopefully this will be the year all our little girls grow lovely long maines

Thanks guys x
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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
04/01/2012 at 9:31 am
I was quite relieved to read your post. My little girl has bright ginger hair and is nearly 4. She hasn't got much hair, is resembles a short back and sides and although people are nursery keep saying "ooh isn't it growing", it really isn't all that much. When she was first born she had an orange glow so to be fair her hair has grown but nowhere near the length of some of her friends.

She also will get mistaken for a boy sometimes too as her hair is short.

I would be interested to hear how your LO is getting on and whether anybody else has had any issues with hair growth. Would it be worth taking her to see the health visitor maybe or the doctors?

any advice??
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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
27/06/2012 at 4:09 pm
Hi,

My daughter also is 4 1/2 and has very little hair.  It is almost as fine as a babies and has hardly any length at all.  My doctor refered her to a paediatrician.  We saw him yesterday.  I was hoping he would say it was hyperthyroidism or that he thought it would get there in its own time.  He has refered her to a genetisist as he thinks she may have ecto dermal dysplasia.  I find this hard to believe as I have researched it and it seems strange that she has such wonderfully long eye lashes and has normal eyebrows.  He is also concerned as she is quite small.  (personally I think all good things come in small packages)
 My eldest daughter took a long time to get a good head of hair but  she did have good length by this age.  I certainly hope he is wrong as the idea of my beautiful girl not having a full head of hair is very upsetting.  I don't care about the length.  I have a crop and I tell her she looks like mummy.  I just want it to thicken up.  Ren also puts blankets /towels on her head and pretends she has long hair. She also asks me to put it up for her after I have done my eldests hair.
Will keep you posted as to how we get on.
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ANONYMOUS
Anonymous
27/06/2012 at 4:22 pm
My 5 year old has lovely thick hair, but, it's been the same length ever since she was two, just never grown - until about 2 months ago and I noticed a definite difference in the length of her hair. I think it might be a hormonal thing ..

My two year old, on the other hand has hair nearly half way down her back :/

All so different but its not fair that your LO is experiencing trouble because of her hair. Cold you get her some pretty hair slides, or those hair twirler things which look like diamantes in her hair? She can have princess hair whatever length then x
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