Stinky Hair

Hi my name is A. and I'm a hairstylist and mommy of 2. I started to use the Paul Mitchell baby shampoo. ITs great for their hair and it ph balanced to be tear free (none of those numbing chemicals) the stuff from the grocery store usually has a lot of wax and/or acrylic in it and it doesn't really clean the hair very well. If that shampoo doesn't work you can also try the Shampoo 2 by Paul Mitchell. Its more of a deep cleanser and it smells like lemon. IF my 5 yo is really smelly I use it on him and it does the trick. All of the PM products are really gentle and lightweight for kids. I hope it works:)

Hi S.,

Try putting a little water oh like a 1/4 cut, put your shampoo in that, you can actually use less shampoo by adding water to it anyway, then stick you pinky finger up to the first joint in baking soda and use that finger to mix up the water and shampoo. This a an old clarifying trick, you know when you get build up on your hair from shampoos and conditioners. I can't guaranty it will help, but it is worth a try. I would try it a couple of times then once a week after that, it can be drying to the hair if used too much. I use this on my hair all the time. You will see a wonderful lather by doing this and save on your shampoo bill at the same time!

L.

I've never heard of this kind of thing, S.. It sounds like it may be a medical issue. I know my son had that stuff that makes his breath stink all the time, and I had to take him for an antibiotic. Sounds kind of serious, I would just take her to the doctor. Good luck.

How often do you wash her hair? My mom lets by younger brother and sisters take baths on their own and she never makes them wash their hair (unless they want to). Whenever they come up to visit me and we wash their hair it stinks like no other. If we wash it every day for a couple of weeks we finally get the smell gone. But that is the only way we have found to get it gone.

"Stinks" is a pretty broad description. In addition to hair care products and washing (make sure to scrub her scalp with your fingertips), you should check out if it's something in her diet that's causing the smell. I only suggest this because when my daughter was a baby and drinking formula, there were certain brands of formula and ingredients that would make her just smell funny. I would notice that she smelled even after a shower or bath, especially her head and hair, and finally realized it was the kind of formula I was giving her (the smell of the formula, and her head were very similar). When I switched to a different one, the problem was gone within a few days. There are certain foods that are naturally smelly anyway like garlic, soy products, onion, certain spices, dairy for some people, and lots more. It just depends on how her body reacts. If hair care products aren't working, there's an underlying problem.

My little sister had this problem while growing up and when my tried everything she could think of she did start looking into her diet. My mom discovered my sister was eating a lot of dairy she cut her back of that and that seemed to help and eventually solve the problem for her. Our bodies react differently to things and although this may not be your daughters problem, if hair care product aren’t working there may be another underling problem that is not so obvious. Perhaps dry scalp that is over producing oil to compensate? I'd try the bathing every other day instead of every day as well. Good luck!

I make sure that my kids get conditioner at every bath, even my 2 year old. And I use Boilage on them. It helps with the tangles and the "wet dog" smell that my kids sometimes have. My kids also don't get a bath every day, only every other. The nice smell lasts from bath to bath.

Try adding conditioner into her shampoo routine too.
Bath and Body has a American Girl brand that smells wonderful.
What I realized is my kids hair smells when it is wet, but when it dries it smells great.
There is tangle spray too that smells good.
If you don't mention it I doubt that she will notice nor with other kids. Don't make her feel self conscience about it.
If it continues, take her to see a dermotologist as it could be something else skin related or scalp related.
Hugs.

I swear by Tea Tree Oil based shampoo/cond. My little guy had some trouble too and dry scalp. This helped clear it all up and leaves a refreshing smell. Tea Tree is very healing and will help clear up any scalp irritations, etc. she might have. Great for conditioning and keeps hair shiney and smelling fresh. Buy it at any good/whole foods store.

Make sure you are completely blow drying her hair after a bath. Sometimes if you just go to sleep with wet hair or put it up in a ponytail, it will actually mildew and get really stinky.

When washing it, rinse and soak with apple cider vinegar. It will take out all musty / mildew smells from her hair. Don't use white vinegar...it works for smell but can bleach her hair color.

Do you put her hair up after she gets out of the bath? Is it still wet when she goes to bed? I had a similar problem with myself. If I put my hair up or went to sleep with it wet it would get a dirty dishtowel smell to it that woul dcompletely gross me out. I changed shampoos and stopped putting my hair up and that seemed to help a lot. Good luck:)