Things you need to know about dandruff

Dandruff is a very common condition characterized by flaking skin on the head and itching, and can occur at any age. Although it does not affect health much and is not contagious, the white patches and itching have made many people confused and lose confidence in communication.

Dandruff is a very common condition in both men and women, and can occur at any age, especially in 20-30 years old. Flaking skin on the scalp and itching creates its characterize. According to normal physiology, the outermost layer of the scalp will die after about a month, and the hair will form tiny scales. These cells will be replaced by other new scalp cells. However, when you have dandruff, the time it takes for the scalp cells to peel off and reattach is only 2-3 weeks, the scalp is replaced too quickly, the scales fall off a lot, sometimes forming larger patches that stick to the hair and shoulders. . Although it does not affect health much and is not contagious, the white patches and itching have made many people confused and lose confidence in communication.

There are many causes of dandruff such as:

• The scalp is overstimulated by factors such as brushing, shampooing or massaging the scalp too vigorously. Dry weather, environmental pollution, dust, drying, dyeing, straightening hair too often,…
• If you wash your hair infrequently, oil and scalp cells are not removed promptly, which can cause dandruff.
• The scalp is sensitive and irritated by hair care and styling products.
• Dandruff is a common symptom and condition of seborrheic dermatitis. This is a common dermatological disease. In addition to affecting the scalp, the disease also affects the skin in other locations such as the ears, eyebrows, upper eyelids, forehead, and folds extending from the nose to the corners. mouth. Seborrheic dermatitis occurs when the sebaceous glands are overactive, creating an opportunity for certain inflammatory dermatitis reactions to appear. The cause of this phenomenon may be due to genetic factors, the incidence rate in the population is 2-5%, if someone in the family has seborrheic dermatitis, the risk of the disease in the next generation is very high. Characteristics of dandruff caused by seborrheic dermatitis are that the scalp is often red and flaky with white or light yellow scales. The disease is usually mild in the summer, progressing strongly in the fall and winter.
• Psoriasis: The disease causes accumulation of dead cells to form thick silvery scales. Psoriasis often occurs in locations such as elbows, knees, etc. but can also affect the scalp.
• Eczema: If eczema appears on the scalp, dandruff may develop.
• Scalp keratosis

Dandruff can appear in anyone, but it will develop more favorably in people with the following factors:

• Gender: Studies show that dandruff appears more in men than women, this is because men have larger oil-producing glands or it is also possible that male sex hormones play a role in the mechanism production.
• Diet: A poor diet lacking foods rich in zinc, lacking in B vitamins and certain fats will increase the risk of dandruff.
• People with very oily skin will easily develop dandruff.
• People with neurological diseases such as Parkinson, people recovering from heart attacks, strokes, damaged immune systems are prone to developing dandruff, the cause of this phenomenon has not been clearly explained.

It is an extremely common disease, so dandruff treatment is a matter of concern for many people. Luckily, we can control most dandruff with consistent, proper treatment. If you have mild cases of dandruff, you only need to wash your hair regularly with anti-dandruff shampoo to reduce oiliness and accumulation of dead cells on the scalp. If the case of dandruff is more severe, conventional anti-dandruff shampoos are not effective, you can use specialized cosmetic. There are many types of cosmetic shampoos such as:

• Shampoo containing Zinc pyrithione: contains antibacterial and antifungal zinc pyrithione on the scalp.
• Shampoo containing coal tar: slows down the death cycle of scalp cells, thereby reducing this disease, seborrheic dermatitis and psoriasis.
• Shampoo containing Ketoconazole: ketoconazole is a broad-spectrum antifungal agent, shampoo containing Ketoconazole is especially effective in treatment caused by fungus.
• Shampoo containing Selenium Sulfide: Slows the death cycle of scalp cells while reducing Malassezia fungus.

Sometimes people have to test many shampoos to find the one that best suits their condition. You need to wash your hair with anti-dandruff shampoo every day until it is controlled, then wash intermittently 2-3 times a week. Then wash once a week alternating with other regular shampoos to maintain effectiveness. When using cosmetic shampoo to treat head skin, wash for at least 5 minutes so that the active ingredients have time to affect the scalp.

Water helps slow down the proliferation of keratinocytes in the scalp, so increasing water intake can help to treat head skin. Changing your diet, increasing green vegetables and fruits, providing minerals, especially zinc (found in foods such as seafood, soybeans, peas, radishes,…) can help. Very effective in limiting dandruff, as well as cracking and peeling skin.