All About Dandruff

What are the key symptoms?

Approximately 40% of the population will suffer from dandruff symptoms at some point in their lives. The signs and symptoms can include the following

• White, transparent flaky scales that may be dry or greasy on the scalp and collar.
• an itchy scalp which may be red and inflamed.

What causes it?

There is plenty of evidence today that shows that the main cause of dandruff is a microscopic yeast that occurs naturally on everyone’s scalp. Normally, as dead skin cells are shed, they would be washed or brushed away without trace. However when these otherwise harmless skin yeasts start to increase, they irritate the scalp and trigger an inflammatory immune response. When this happens, the turnover of the scalp skin cells increases, which causes them to die more quickly, and clumps of immature sticky skin cells are formed. The skin starts to itch, peel and visible flakes develop. This is known as dandruff.

Why do yeasts start to overgrow on the scalp?

The exact reason why yeasts start to multiply on the scalp is unknown, but several factors are thought to be capable of tilting the scalp skin out of balance, such as stress, hormonal changes, puberty, excess humidity and perspiration

How do you treat it?

We would recommend brushing your hair regularly to loosen flakes and stimulate blood supply to the scalp. It may be a good idea to avoid mousse, hairspray and instruments such as heated hair straighteners. Regular washing will help to control the pH balance of the skin and limit the risk of dandruff. We would also suggest that you use a shampoo such as Nizoral anti-dandruff shampoo for moderate to severe dandruff or alternatively for mild dandruff, Nizorelle^TM Dandruff Control Shampoo.