For anybody who has ever watched TV dandruff is a well-known problem. Commercials of different remedies promise to do wonder and rid you of abhorrent white flakes in your hair. But they tell nothing about the causes of dandruff; so many people are still unaware of them.
Dandruff is an aggregation of scaling greyish white cells in the hairy part of the head. They come off the upper layers of epidermis. When in small quantities it’s normal physical shedding, so you needn’t apply any special remedies. On the other hand, sometimes it is the result of inner malfunctions which can be the body reaction to external factors, as well as serious diseases.
Types of dandruff
There are two types of dandruff – dry and greasy, which are usually connected with the type of hair. If sebaceous secretion decreases, skin becomes dry, that causes the first type of dandruff. Small scales easily detach and shed, covering the whole scalp or parietal and frontal parts. In rare cases scales are concentrated in separate areas.
Intense sebaceous secretion leads to greasy dandruff. Large scales stick together because of oil excretion; they cling to hairs and are hard to remove. Hair looks poor, you can feel itching: excretory ducts of sweat and oil glands are sealed with oil which irritates nerve endings. Both types of dandruff can be caused by the same reasons.
Internal causes of dandruff
Not many people facing this problem, which leads then to hair loss, understand the variety of possible reasons. Nominally, they are divided into internal and external. The first group consists of malfunctions inside the body, for example, diseases or weakened immune system. The second group comprises all kinds of influence of the environment. Let’s name the possible internal causes:
- Lifestyle and eating habits. Frequent or regular exhaustion, as well as stress, can lead to occurrence of dandruff. Besides, risk factors include overeating high-fat and sweet food and bad habits, like smoking. Healthy eating, providing you with necessary vitamins, is an important part of dandruff and hair loss prevention.
- Metabolic disease. People with metabolic disorders often face this problem. The matter is that dead cells stick together and form hardenings which start scaling.
- Hormonal imbalance can also lead to dandruff. Usually, it occurs at the age of 15 to 25. It’s important to choose the high-quality cosmetics and to get enough vitamins to maintain body health and prevent possible problems.
- Microscopic fungus. “Good” microbes normally inhabit the head epidermis of every human being. Sometimes they can overgrow and make oil glands work more intensively, which results in dandruff appearance.
External causes of dandruff
They are also widely-spread. Every day scalp is influenced both by the environment and by the human himself. Such influence is more common to women, for sure. Many of them can’t help using hair styling products, thus increasing the risk of future necessity of using anti-dandruff remedies. These external conditions can cause dandruff:
– Bad choice of cosmetics. It’s important for skin health to choose the right shampoo sold at the specialty store or chemist’s to avoid fakes. Styling mousse and gel should also correspond to the individual features of your hair. Stop using them if you feel uncomfortable. Apply any homemade hair mask to reduce the risk of developing the problem. Another known cause is alcohol-containing sprays, which dehydrate the skin.
– Skin hypothermia. Cool temperatures have bad influence on skin. That’s why staying outdoors in cold weather without any hat increases both risks of catching a cold and having dandruff. Women must be aware of the fact that leaving home just after blow drying is the number one reason for dandruff.
– Climate change. Sometimes changing climate means serious body stress, which greatly influences the skin reacting by dandruff. Normal water can also affect negatively, for it is purified variously in different cities and countries. Moving to another town, be ready for unpleasant changes of your skin and take an anti-dandruff remedy with you.