Influencer Ruby Tuesday Matthews has defended her controversial decision to shave her newborn daughter’s head.
Matthews took to her Instagram Story last week to apologise to her fans for not responding to them as she’s been focused on her family. She then discussed her holiday plans and how she recently “shaved” the head of her newborn, Holiday.
“I got two hours [of] sleep last night. Working whilst having three kids home isn’t a vibe,” she wrote in her story, at the time. “Silly me shaved Holiday’s head and yep forgot we have Santa photos tomorrow. So that’s one for the memory books. Oh and it’s patchy.”
The influencer faced backlash for her decision and hit back at critics, writing: “Lol everyone is losing it that I have shaved Holiday’s head.”
The mother of four went on to confess that she’s shaved all of her children’s heads in the months after they were first born.
“I’ve actually shaved all my children’s heads at about four months,” Matthews wrote. “My kids are born with dark hair that slowly falls out and ends up looking crazy patchy and the new hair holds off growing. I find shaving it makes it grow faster, thicker and so much more even.”
She also noted that a lot of people from other cultures do this “for tradition” and “for looks” before adding that her “auntie who is Indonesian told [her] about it”.
Matthews then detailed how Holiday’s hair was already growing faster: “It’s crazy, I can already see her tiny blonde hairs coming in now [that] her baby fluff is gone.”
In a follow-up Instagram Story, Matthews shared a screenshot of all the messages she’s received from other people, noting that it “turns out a lot of [them] have done the same”.
Many people seemed to agree with Matthews’ point and detailed why they also shaved their children’s heads.
“I did this too and everyone lost their mind. But I’m a hairdresser and it actually works,” one message read, via The US Sun. “This way all the hair grows back evenly.”
“I did this to my daughter for the same reason and it works amazingly,” another person wrote. “Does look absolutely horrible for a few weeks but well worth it.”
A third person said: “Omg I did this!! My son’s hair grew so beautifully after!! My other son didn’t do it too and his hair is s***.”
Matthews and her fiancé, Shannan Dodd, welcomed Holiday in September, sharing a video of the newborn on Instagram to announce her arrival.
“Holiday Dodd - 20.09.22 - 2.56kg - 8.41 am at 36 weeks,” she wrote in the caption. “Our hearts are overflowing and we are completely in love.”
Although Matthews said that shaving her children’s heads has helped their hair grow, this isn’t necessarily the case for everyone. According to the Healthline, shaving one’s head “has no effect on new growth and doesn’t affect hair texture or density”.
Speaking to Allure, hair loss specialist Lucinda Ellery further emphasised this point and explained the factors that impact one’s hair growth.
“It’s the makeup of your body and cells that decide the quality of your hair,” she said. “It can be affected emotionally through stress and anxiety and from lack of the correct nutrients within the body, but shaving [off your hair] won’t make it come back better or stronger.”
The Independent has contacted a representative for Matthews for comment.
