The human body is constantly shedding old, dead skin cells. If hundreds or even thousands of these particles hang together, they become visible as dandruff to the naked eye. Often, a disease or simply predisposition is responsible when an excessive amount of dandruff forms on the head.
What helps against dandruff on the head?
The use of birch hair tonic or a yogurt mask can reduce the appearance of dandruff. If a fungal disease on the scalp is responsible for the dandruff, it can be recognized by comparatively large, slightly moist and sometimes sticky dandruff. In this case, frequent hair washing with a special anti-fungal shampoo from the pharmacy often helps. This is to withdraw the yeast fungus the basis of life. The anti-fungal substances ketoconazole and bifonazole are contained in most dandruff shampoos. In order to develop their full effect, the shampoo should act for at least 5 minutes. To prevent the hair from becoming greasy so quickly, it should be thoroughly brushed before washing and, if possible, air-dried after washing. If the dandruff is smaller, drier and trickles, a dry scalp is often responsible, which can come from the wrong care products or be the congenital skin type. If the dandruff is due to overuse from washing the hair too often, the hair should be washed less often and if it is, it should be with a product that is formulated for dry skin and hair. In contrast to the infestation with sticky dandruff, in the case of dry dandruff the application time of the shampoo should be kept as short as possible in order not to stress the scalp unnecessarily. Too hot water or a too hot hair dryer should also be avoided. Special dandruff shampoos should be used in any case, especially if you wash your hair frequently. Those who have tinted hair are usually less likely to use them, because dandruff shampoos often have a discoloring effect. Here, washing hair with egg yolk and rinsing with birch water is recommended as an alternative.
Quick help
The appointment is imminent and the dandruff trickles – now quick help is needed. In any case, the hair should be brushed out thoroughly just before washing, because that already removes a large number of the dead dandruff. An oil mask for the hair would take too long and cause greasy hair. Therefore, it is better to use a yogurt mask instead. The natural yogurt is simply massaged into the scalp and requires only a few minutes of exposure time. The longer the hair is rinsed out, the more residue is washed out. The temperature during hair care should only be lukewarm, never hot. This applies to both the water and the subsequent hair dryer. Cosmetic products such as hairspray or similar should be avoided as much as possible, because an unrecognized allergy to the ingredients of these products can also promote the formation of dandruff. Even the shampoo normally used may contain allergenic substances. Switching to a different product or brand can quickly clarify this. Gentle baby shampoos are the least risky.
Alternative remedies
A mixture of egg yolk and lemon juice is applied and the hair is washed as usual. The lemon juice also makes the hair still shiny. As rinses have proven themselves for head dandruff especially birch water, tea tree oil or burdock seed oil. For homemade rinses, nettle tea or chamomile tea are recommended. Nettles boiled in fruit vinegar and strained make an effective hair tonic against dandruff. Olive oil soothes the scalp and ensures that the itching subsides. It should be left on for some time before washing it out. Regularity of care habits sooner or later reduces the dandruff problem. Proper diet can also play a role, as dandruff can also be a result of zinc deficiency. Zinc-containing foods such as whole grains, fish and oatmeal in the diet will counteract this in the long run. Observation of daily environmental conditions can also provide information about the origin of dandruff. For example, if you notice that you are particularly affected in winter, you can check whether excessively dry air, the air conditioning system or caps worn too tightly are linked to the condition.Close observation of one’s own habits and environment is important, because only those who know the reasons for their head dandruff, can effectively combat it.
