What a joy it’s been to follow Amy Childs’ journey through some of the biggest baby milestones: weaning, teething, and thumb-sucking.

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But now we’re quite curious about (and a bit flummoxed by) her latest mum update ?

It turns out Amy’s being using coconut oil on her 5-month-old daughter Polly’s hair to help it grow.

Writing on Instagram, she explained:

“I've been doing this since Polly was born! ?? coconut oil has been making Polly's hair grow and it smells so good too ?? also works on cradle cap.”

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Some mums shared their own stories of doing similar things to ensure their child’s hair was growing.

One of the mums on our team even admitted that she and her husband often used caster oil on their daughter’s hair to help it strengthen, though not when she was as young as 5 months.

However, some of Amy’s Instagram fans were a bit cautious, even going as far to warn her not to use any sort of oil on Polly’s head – in case it dries out her scalp.

(If you're not sure about Amy's old trick, check out our guide to the best, award-winning toiletries for babies and newborns, as well as our guide to caring for your baby's skin and washing your baby's hair)

Seems to us like the coconut oil thing's one of those home remedies that can’t really be proven either way, right? Because we don’t know how our little one's hair would turn out without use of the oil.

Well, hair expert Iain Sallis, Consultant Trichologist at the Institute of Trichologists, told MadeForMums that coconut oil – or any kind of oil - is totally safe to use on your baby's head, but that it's not proven to make your baby's hair longer or stronger.

"There is no evidence to support oil of any kind helps hair growth, or even makes it stronger for that matter!

"Oil is quite a big molecule and for it to be effective it would have to first get way down into the hair follicle, which it cannot do.

"However nothing makes hair grow quicker than it naturally does... oil (any oil) makes our skin and hair ‘feel’ nice, but not much else I’m afraid!"

Very interesting, indeed.

Have your say

Did you use oil on your baby’s hair to make it nice and strong, or to help it grow? Share your stories on Facebook!

Images: Instagram/Amy Childs

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