by Vivianne Ellis

Created on: March 18, 2009

If you have a dandruff problem it can often be debilitating and it is certainly irritating and embarrassing in many ways. The constant itch is tiring and not socially acceptable. Other people can be very turned off if they see you are constantly scratching your head. It reminds them too much of head lice or implies that you are in some way not clean. The 'snow' that accumulates on the shoulders of any clothing you may be wearing also sends the wrong impression to many of the people you meet. It is very hard to portray yourself as a professional when you are constantly having to brush dead skin flakes off whatever you are wearing. What many people don't realise, is that a lot of what is classed as 'dandruff' is not dandruff at all but exzema, an auto-immune disease often linked to stress. Regardless of the cause of your dandruff, there are things you can try that will help you have the glorious head of hair you know you were meant to own. Some of them are -

1. Do not overwash your hair. Twice or three times a week is plenty. There is no need to wash your hair every time you have a shower unless you are working in an extremely dirty environment. Even then you should only use a very gentle cleanser such as baby shampoo. Many times dandruff is caused by people stripping the scalp and hair of the oils the skin and hair needs, and overwashing just encourages your scalp to produce more and more oil. People with snow-like dandruff can tell that their hair and scalp is very dry, so they try to overcome this with more moisturiser but this just makes the problem worse. Lessen the frequency of your hair washing and allow your scalp to normalise it's oil production. It may seem very oily at first but if you persist and use a gentle shampoo it will improve.

2. If your dandruff produces large flakes of skin you probably have exzema. This is often stress related so you will need to reduce your stress levels in order for your scalp to improve. A balanced diet will also help improve your immune system and this in turn will help get rid of the flakes. Try not to pick or scratch at the scabs that are often associated with this condition as they can get infected and touching your scalp encourages oil production once again.

3. Do not overbrush, use a hairdryer or use styling products on your hair until your dandruff clears up - and then only sparingly. Every time you touch your head or hair or use a product on it it can encourage the overproduction of oils. Let your head and hair have

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