Health, Diseases and Conditions
What caused dandruff: the causes and treatment
Dandruff is a visible manifestation of the renewal of the epidermis of the scalp. Normally, the cycle of cell development is about a month and occurs unnoticed for a person. With dandruff, it decreases to a week, and then flaking scales are clearly visible on the hair and clothing. Dandruff, the causes and treatment of which will be discussed in the article, is an early sign and the easiest clinical form of seborrheic dermatitis.
Symptoms and types of dandruff
This pathology is not difficult to notice. Light dry flakes of white or grayish color easily fall from the scalp, contaminate hair, comb, clothing. Hair can become dull, quickly grease, thin. Quite often, with dandruff, a person is concerned about the itch of the scalp, but inflammatory processes, as a rule, are absent.
Against the backdrop of hypersecretion of large sebaceous glands, which are quite a lot in such a section as the scalp, dandruff can become oily. The exfoliated particles of the epidermis are combined into sufficiently large yellowish flakes. They are greasy, difficult to separate from the surface of the skin, can form stratifications. Hair very quickly get dirty, weaken, begin to break and fall out.
Dandruff is a fairly common problem. In some people this pathology becomes chronic, others suffer from it only from time to time. One way or another, but with this phenomenon at least once in life, every person came across. Attempts to get rid of the problem will not be effective if you do not find the answer to the question: "What caused dandruff?"
Fungus is the main cause of dandruff
Most people perceive the appearance of dandruff exclusively as a cosmetic problem. Indeed, its presence is a little aesthetic and can ruin any outfit and hairstyle. However, the appearance of dandruff first of all signals the existence of violations in the body, although it is not an independent disease. The assumption that the main culprit for the appearance of dandruff is the fungal infection of Pityrosporum Ovale, was put forward about a hundred years ago. The same opinion dermatologists adhere to now.
Causes of active reproduction of fungus
It is interesting that the notorious microorganism is a representative of the normal human microflora and can inhale the scalp for a long time and not cause dandruff. The problem arises when the protective properties of the skin decrease, the composition of sebum changes and the conditions for uncontrolled reproduction of the fungus are created. And this happens under the influence of a number of factors, among which:
- Metabolic disorders ;
- Hormonal imbalance;
- Some diseases, and, as a consequence, a decrease in immunity;
- Overstrain, both physical and emotional;
- Malnutrition, hypovitaminosis;
- Mistakes in the care of hair and scalp: the use of aggressive chemicals, drying by a hair dryer, hypothermia due to neglect of the headdress in the winter;
- Hereditary predisposition.
The most common way to give an unambiguous answer to the question of what dandruff has appeared is impossible. Any of the above reasons, and sometimes their complex, can provoke its occurrence. Age is an additional factor. At children dandruff practically never happens, and at teenagers she can be the phenomenon transitory. There is a definite relationship between sex and the incidence of this pathology. So, in men dandruff appears more often than in women. In the autumn-winter period, the problem tends to worsen.
Treatment of dandruff: changes in lifestyle
To understand what caused dandruff, sometimes it is enough to analyze your own menu and the regime of the day. Perhaps the correction should be subjected to a food system, limiting the use of fatty, spicy and fried foods, alcohol and sweets. It is necessary to use a sufficient number of foods rich in fiber, vitamins A and B, and fermented milk products. It is important to normalize the drinking regime.
Absence of physical overloads, stress, sufficient time for sleep and rest will necessarily positively affect the condition of the body as a whole and the scalp in particular.
Proper care for scalp and hair
If there is dandruff, it is worth at least for the time of treatment to exclude aggressive hairdressing procedures: staining, chemical perm, drying with a hair dryer, using a varnish and a hair gel. You can temporarily replace chemical hair colors for natural hair: henna and basma, walnut shells. If desired, and means for styling can be used natural, based on flax seeds, gelatin, egg protein, sugar.
Special attention should be paid to the issue of hygiene. Combs are recommended to use from natural wood and regularly replace them with new ones.
Remedies for dandruff
Logically, to ensure a direct effect on the hair and scalp is easiest with shampoos, masks and lotions. It is not so important, from what appeared dandruff: effective means should always have an antifungal component in their composition. Even if the root cause of dandruff is not a fungus, then most often he joins the complex of problems later. In addition, it is good if the agent has regenerating and bactericidal properties, and also regulates the work of the sebaceous glands. In this case, the impact will be complex.
In any cosmetic store there is a wide choice of dandruff shampoos. Reviews of consumers about them are different: someone such tools helped once and for all to get rid of the problem, and someone was disappointed. But, as practice shows, special medical dermatological shampoos are more effective. Yes, and the composition of such funds, which can be purchased exclusively in the pharmacy, which is more natural.
Active components of anti-dandruff agents
Most often as antifungal components in anti-dandruff agents are ketoconazole, zinc pyrithione, selenium disulphide, cyclopyrox, bifonazole, climbazol. Have a pronounced exfoliating effect of tar, sulfur, salicylic acid. These substances well clean the scalp from skin scales. Slow down the vital activity of cells octopyrox, tar, ichthyol. Most of these components have an anti-inflammatory effect, normalize the activity of the sebaceous glands. Better, when the composition of the drug is not one, but several active ingredients, and additionally they contain natural supplements: extracts of herbs (nettle, burdock, chamomile) and essential oils (lavender, tea tree, eucalyptus). Sometimes such ingredients alone can defeat itching and dandruff.
Features of the application of therapeutic shampoos against dandruff
All the nuances of using this or that dandruff remedy are indicated in the attached instructions. There are some common points. As a rule, in order for the active substance in the shampoo to work as effectively as possible, it is recommended to keep it on the scalp for a while, while doing a light massage. Therapeutic means for washing hair are almost never foamed. This indicates their useful composition.
Shampoos for dandruff in the first month of use should be used at least twice a week, and then, for prevention, twice a month. You can alternate the drug with a suitable shampoo from the cosmetic series.
Medicinal dermatological shampoos for different taste and wallet set: Nizoral, Friederm, Fitoval, Sebazol, Dermazol, Keto Plus, Sulsena, Sebiproks, Vichy. Well and cosmetic is practically in each ruler of shampoos of the majority known to the mass buyer of brands. If dandruff has appeared, the causes and treatment of it is an individual matter. If there is no possibility to consult with a specialist trichologist, a therapeutic shampoo should be selected by trial and error.
Folk remedies
Many recipes offer folk medicine to those who encountered such trouble as dandruff. What should people do if they become disillusioned with pharmaceuticals or are afraid of side effects? Choose a variant of the recipe for the soul and try, the benefit of many, and they differ in their simplicity and accessibility.
Phytotherapy offers the use of decoctions and infusions of herbs: burdock root, nettle, tansy, chamomile, calendula, coltsfoot, oak bark. They can both rinse your head after washing, and rub into the scalp.
Oily masks are often offered as effective folk remedies for dandruff. Olive or castor oil can be used alone, or it can be combined with lemon juice. Of course, after half an hour of exposure to such a mask, the hair should be washed with shampoo.
Another interesting recipe: take a chicken egg, add a tablespoon of vodka and kefir and rub into the scalp. After half an hour, wash it off. You can combine the egg with natural honey.
It is worth trying to do peeling scalp with the help of fine food salt before washing. It is claimed that this is one of the most effective methods of getting rid of dandruff. But with salt it is necessary to be more cautious, if on a head skin there are the centers of an inflammation.
So, we must remember that this seemingly innocuous problem, like dandruff, should not be ignored, if only because there is a certain disorder in the body behind it. Running dandruff not only spoils the exterior, but can lead to more serious consequences, even to baldness.
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