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Rakime Elmir, Associate Professor in Nursing and Midwifery, Western Sydney University

Why are some babies born so hairy? Lanugo is more common in early babies but is nothing to worry about

Ivan Lonan/Shutterstock

Babies are born with fine, downy, short, and slightly pigmented body hair called lanugo. The term comes from the Latin word “lana,” meaning wool.

In some babies, the hair is barely visible. In others, there can be quite a lot of hair, especially around the face, shoulders, back and head.

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