What Causes Dandruff
Dandruff is a common scalp disorder that results in an itchy and flaky scalp. Dandruff sufferers very greatly from one person getting a mild case for one week to another having a severe case for their entire life.
If you think that you suffer from dandruff, you should first examine your hygienic routine and nutrition levels. Some internal or biological causes could be hormonal imbalances, poor health, poor nutrition (namely over-consumption of fats or sugars), poor hygiene, allergies, lack of proper sleep or emotional stress. Some external or environmental causes could be cold weather, a dry home, a stressful environment, overuse of heat styling products, overuse of products like gels and sprays and improper and inadequate washing or rinsing of the scalp. If any of these are true of you or are part of your daily routine, try changing the behaviors and see if it affects your dandruff problem.
Everyone is constantly shedding dead skin cells. Dandruff results from an excess of the dead skin cells. Dandruff comes in two main types: oily or dry. With oily dandruff, the oil glands at the root of each hair are overactive. The oil combines with the skin cells and the result is a crusty scalp, oily hair and flaking. With dry dandruff, the oil glands are plugged with the dead skin cells. Hair becomes dull and the scalp is dry and flaky.
Another known cause of dandruff is a fungus called Pityrosporum ovale, or P. ovale for short. P. ovale is a natural yeast-like organism on the scalp and other skin. It normally does not pose a problem, but changes in environment, hormones and stress levels can cause the fungus to grow more on the scalp. The scalp is the main site for the fungus because there are more sebaceous glands there. The sebaceous glands produce a skin oil called sebum that helps the fungus grow. The growth of P. ovale irritates the scalp and causes the skin cells to be shed at a larger rate.
More severe dandruff, called seborrheic dermatitis, or seborrhea, will result also in moist red patches on the scalp and can also be found near eyebrows, cheeks and behind the ears. This type of dandruff should be looked at by a dermatologist to determine the proper treatment.
Treatment dandruff includes two things: topical treatments and dietary supplements. Most topical treatments come in the form of shampoos. Ingredients a good dandruff shampoo should include are coal tar, salicylic acid, sulfur, selenium sulfide and/or pyrithione zinc. These ingredients are recommended and have been FDA approved to be topically applied to a number of fungal skin problems. Avoid shampoos containing alcohol or other drying ingredients.
Some dietary supplements that are recommended are zinc lozenges, vitamins B6, E, and A, kelp tablets, salmon oil, primrose oil, beta-carotene and lecithin. These supplements promote healthy and normal skin growth or they inhibit fungus production. Because everyone’s case of dandruff is different, you will have to first evaluate your dandruff and figure out whether it is oily, dry or fungal and then experiment with treatment options for your type. A dermatologist will be able to provide comments and treatments for persistent or severe cases.