Aussie influencer Ruby Tuesday Matthews has staunchly defended her unusual decision to shave her 3-month-old baby’s head. The Byron Bay beauty was slammed by followers after admitting her ‘mum fail’ on Instagram.
“I got two hours sleep last night. Working whilst having three sick kids home isn’t a vibe. Silly me shaved Holiday’s head and yep, forgot we have Santa photos tomorrow,” she told fans on her Instagram story. Her decision quickly sparked outrage and the media personality was forced to address the backlash.
She explained on her Instagram story that shaving a baby’s head is nothing new, and suggested that her followers were unaware of the age-old cultural tradition.
“Lol everyone is losing it that I have shaved Holiday’s head. I’ve actually shaved all my children’s heads at about four months.
“My kids are born with dark hair that slowly falls out and ends up looking crazy patchy and the new hair holds off growing,” she said.
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The mum of three claimed that shaving babies while they are young can help their hair grow faster and evenly. The social media star said that she learned the interesting technique from her Indonesian aunt.
“This is also done by a lot of cultures for tradition and some for looks,” she wrote. “It’s crazy, I can already see her tiny blonde hairs coming in now her baby fluff is gone.”
Ruby Tuesday’s decision divided people on social media, with some finding it horrific.
“What the heck is wrong with her?? Who does that?? She shouldn’t be allowed to raise a child,” one person wrote.
“Oh you poor baby. Who does she influence?” another asked.
“Shave a baby’s head? That’s barbaric!” a third chimed in.
“She’s already worried about the vanity of her child. That’s disturbing! This new generation I tell ya,” another added.
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Others pointed out that the act doesn’t harm the baby at all, and many people shave their baby’s head.
“This is not a ‘crazy’ thing to do. In a lot of cultures it’s considered a healthy practice. You shave a child’s head when they’re little, and they have very thick healthy hair as they grow up,” a fan explained.
“My sister has done this to all her kids when they were babies. Now their hair is thick and beautiful!” added a second.
“I did this to my baby a few weeks ago, not a trend, a hairdresser told me about it seven years ago! Her kids were [over] 20 years old,” another remarked.
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