Vomiting vs Spitting Up

Hi Holly,
For the cradle cap, both of my son had/have it. I put baby oil on his head at bath time. Wash the rest of his body, then with a child's soft toothbrush, I go over his scalp in tiny circular motions. Then I wash his head like normal. It took about 2 weeks with my first son. My second (8 weeks), has had this done twice and it is almost gone. My doctor said that olive oil also works well. Good luck.

Both my kids had cradle cap too. My oldest's went away on it's own. The younger one had a bad case and it would not go away. I don't remember it bothering him though. My friend put veggie oil (may have been canola but it doesn't matter) on his head and let it sit. Massage it in. Then she took a fine tooth comb and the combed all the scaly stuff off his scalp. I had to shampoo him 3 times to get rid of the oil but the cradle cap never came back. It was disgusting, the flakes flew all over so wear a shirt you don't care about. She said she had to do her kids more than once.

I remember wondering whether my kids were vomiting or spitting-up because it was sooo much spit-up. I think, it was in how it came up. If I remember correctly, the spit-up is more gentle and vomit is more the entire stomach contracting. Hope that makes sense, it's been a while.

:)

HI, Holly:

Spitting up is when the milk curds are coming from
the mouth.

Vomiting is when the contents are coming from the stomach.

Cradle cap is helped by putting baby oil on the scalp to loosen the dead skin.

Good luck. D.

Hi Holly,
Vomiting is just that--you'll know it. Spit-up is that little bit up milk babies bring back up right after they're done eating or when they burp...there's not too much there.

My one twin had a very bad case of cradle cap and my dr. informed me it was a very bad idea to actually try to remove the bits from her head. She told me the best thing to do for that was to use lotion on the affected area and then to gently wash over it when we bathed them; don't pick at it or scratch it off, that it's actually a necessary process for some babies and is perfectly healthy. Don't use adult items on him--they're waaay too harsh. Perhaps use a hat on him for a few days until he clears up some, that way his little hands are free to suck. It does get better! Promise! Good luck!

For the cradle cap, I recommend coconut oil. Its healed so many skin issues with our son, including cradle cap. I put it on every time I thought of it, or looked at his head, haha, but it cleared it up in days. Also, try not to wash the area with hot water, make sure its lukewarm or cooler.

For the vomiting, I can only say that my son's reflux (from hiatal hernia) was clearly something other than spitting up. It was painful, projectile (often across the room), and he would scream afterwards. He had his first projectile-free month this past December, but had some spitting up, which was smaller amount, pain-free and he didn't even seem to notice until I cleaned it up:)

Good luck!

You can purchase over-the-counter cradle cap treaments. They are displayed with the baby shampoos. You can also treat the scalp with baby oil, scrape off the scales, then wash as usual.

Holly,

My mom passed on this advise to me and it worked for both of my children. Give them a bath and lay a wet washcloth over their scalp for several minutes. Put a little bit of soap on a soft brush (I use the baby brush that they came home from the hospital with). Gently massage their scalp with the brush. Rinse. When drying off the baby, try not to touch the top of the head with the towel. AFter the baby is dressed, spread Mary Kaye Night Cream (pink stuff) onto the baby's head...it doesn't take much. Put a cap on the baby's head to keep the moisture in. With in days I saw a HUGE difference in my children's head and the craddle cap was complely gone in less than two weeks.

I hope this helps.

I cannot answer your first question but as for the cradle cap:
1. before you wet his hair put a little baby oil on a brush (not too soft bristles) and scrub his head with it.
2. wet his hair and put Aveeno baby shampoo on it and lather.
3. take same brush and scrub with shampoo still in hair.
4. rinse and towel dry.

this worked wonders for me and my sons cradle cap was gone in 4days and he wasn't itchy cause the baby oil makes the scalp soft.

hope this helps.

Spit up smells sour and there isn't too much. Vomit smells really bad, usually comes out in more of a projectile fashion and there is lots.

It sounds like you're washing your baby's head too much. I'd put olive oil on it, rub in, leave for a few minute and then remove with a baby comb. Then wash his hair gently. I'd only wash it twice a week. If the cradle cap keeps coming back you might have to wait until he's bit older to get rid of it. I didn't get rid of any of my kids cradle cap for good until they were at least 2.

Hey Holly,

Can't answer your vomiting vs spitting up question. However, I have a question for you about the cradle cap?

Are you sure it's cradle cap? I ask this b/c I took my son (second child) to the doctor's b/c I thought he, too, had cradle cap. The doctor confirmed that this is what it was, and he gave me some things to try. I tried EVERYTHING and his head kept getting worse and worse!!! Two months later, I had him back at the pediatrician and because eczema was identified (he started scratching at his skin and started getting red areas behind the knees, etc...), the doctor changed the diagnosis from cradle cap to eczema! That meant that EVERYTHING I was doing was completely counterproductive: I was drying out his scalp that was already too dry! As a side note, I never suspected eczema b/c neither my husband or I have it. After asking around, I found out that my first cousin's had it.

Once I started treating his scalp for eczema, my son was a new boy in a few days.

I recommend you bring your little guy to the doctor to see what he/she has to say. Also, be wary if eczema runs in your family.

Good luck!
T. :)

Hi Holly!
Try only washing it every 3 days. Also try "Mustels" foam "Newborn Shampoo". Or, if it is bad (it can get infected) go to your Ped and they will write a prescription for a special shampoo, which really really helps. :)

Hi Holly,

I agree with all that's been said here about spitting up. The scent and appearance would be different. My ped. also told me once that it's normal for spit up to be as much as 2 tablespoons of fluid. I was worried about how much my son was spitting up, so we discussed it. Two tbs. is actually quite a bit!

I also had trouble w/cradle cap w/my boy, too. My mom and ped. both recommended that I only bathe him a couple times a week at most. One of those baths, I would massage olive oil into his scalp and lightly scrub w/a soft baby brush, then shampoo out with a mild cleanser. Good luck, Momma!

The best treatment I have found for cradle cap is called "Cradle Cap Care" and it's made by Gentle Naturals. The bottle is like a teal color and has baby Pooh and Baby Eeyore on it. my daughter's cradle cap was gone 100% in 2 treatments. the baby oil worked a bit but was taking a lot longer and left her head/hair very oily.

Spitting up is usually just a little bit of liquid (though sometimes a lot can come out). Spit up smells like sour milk and it usually just trickles out or comes up with a burp. Vomit is more projectile and there's usually more of it.

My daughter had cradle cap several times. I used "Cradle Cap Care". It has Baby Pooh on it. I found it at BRU and Target (though they might sell it elsewhere). Massage it into the scalp where the cradle cap is and let it sit for a few minutes, then comb out the scales with a baby comb. You do really have to comb a lot to get the scales out, but after a few applications it was mostly gone. It did make her hair really oily, but after a couple washes it was fine. Good luck!

its possible that you could be drying out his scalp even more by washing it every day. Maybe try every other day, or every 3rd day?

When my daughter had cradle cap, I poured olive oil onto her scalp and rubbed it in with my fingers or a soft tooth brush for a couple minutes before I shampooed it out, that seemed to help break up the cap, too.

Good luck!

Hi Holly,
I think spitting up will be more immediate after eating and will basically look just like what the child ate--probably Breast milk or formula at this age. Vomiting will look more like curdled milk? (Sorry if gross, but like little nuggets of white stuff)
As for the cradle cap, try baby oil or Neutrogena Sesame oil applied with a cotton ball. baby oil is dangerous if ingested, but maybe apply before bedtime?
I'd wash his hair less often and use the oil very frequently--he'll look like a little greaseball if he has lots of hair, but it will help.
My ped rec'd Selsun Blue, but be very very careful of his eyes and I would only use about once per week. Good luck!

Usually spitting up happens relatively close to after they have ate.....also Vomit has a strong odor to it and is thicker.

As for the cradle cap my son had it too, we used olive oil. just put it on him and rub it into his scalp it really helped!

Good luck :)