Dandruff
Dandruff is made up of small flakes of dead scalp skin. Normally our dead skin is continuously shedding from scalp as well as other body. Dandruff occurs when the cells on the scalp are being shed more quickly than normal. The cause of dandruff is not fully understood, however, fungal infection in the form of yeast, Pityrosporum ovale is considered a major factor
The signs and symptoms of dandruff are:
- Itchy scalp
- Most people have flakes fall onto their shoulders and dresses.
- Rarely scratching of the scalp can cause secondary inflammation and infection
- In severe cases, the scales may be visible on the face, behind the ears, on the eye lashes (blepharitis) and front and back of chest.
- Cold weather during winter makes your skin drier than usual, which causes worsening of dandruff and an itchy scalp.
Some aggravating factors for dandruff are:
- Excessive use of hair sprays and gels
- Excessive use of hot hair curlers or curling irons,
- Cold weather
- Dry indoor heating
- Stress and Anxiety
- Infrequent shampooing of the hair
- Inadequate rinsing of the scalp and hair
The treatment of dandruff includes regular cleansing of the scalp with an antidandruff shampoo containing antifungal medications like Ketoconazole, Zinc Pyrithione, Ciclopirox, Selenium Sulphide, etc. along with tar and salicylic acid shampoos help to get rid of dandruff. If problem still persists, you should visit your dermatologist.
Unlike the common myth, dandruff cannot cause someone to go bald. For years that was a common belief with dandruff but in reality there is no correlation with dandruff and hair loss.