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Dealing with dandruff

RISINGBD DESK || risingbd.com

Published: 04:58, 13 July 2013   Update: 15:18, 26 July 2020
Dealing with dandruff

DHAKA, July 13: Dandruff is a very common skin condition that nearly all people experience at one point of time in their lives, regardless of age or ethnicity. It affects not just the scalp, but any hair-bearing area or an area with even very small hair follicles.

So, what causes dandruff?

Contrary to old wives’ tales, dandruff isn’t caused by too much shampooing or dry skin. Hence, some people avoid washing their hair, believing that the drying effect of shampoo will worsen their dandruff! Due to this, the scalp is not cleansed enough and the scales build up into larger and more noticeable flakes, before they fall off the skin. Not many are aware, that dandruff begins with an unbalanced diet and poor nutrition. It is further triggered by overactive oil glands, food allergies, stress, excessive perspiration, harsh shampoos and dust. Emotional stress can also worsen the condition. Even the seasons of the year can contribute to the problem. For instance, cold and dry winters are notorious for bringing on dandruff or making it worse.

How to prevent flaking

- Avoid fried, greasy and spicy food, alcohol and caffeine. Eat more food containing zinc, such as brown rice, oysters, ham, red rice, chicken, pasta, milk and eggs.

- Do not pour shampoo directly on the head. It will cause irritation of the scalp. Also, shampoo daily and switch between two different brands of shampoos.

- Don’t scratch your head. Scratching your itchy scalp may make you feel better for that moment, but it could injure your scalp and make the dandruff worse.

- Once in a while, wash your hair with powder of green gram to prevent dandruff.

- Massage your scalp with warm olive or sesame oil and then wrap a warm cloth or towel on the head for few minutes.

- A hot steam head bath is highly beneficial.

- After washing your hair with shampoo, rinse it with apple cider vinegar. The vinegar will help clear up a flaky scalp. Pour equal parts apple cider vinegar and water in your hair and leave it on for several minutes before rinsing it out.

- Rinsing your hair with fresh lime juice is another option. You can also apply a peel of lime (dried in the sun for 10 days) immersed in coconut milk or warm oil. Lime juice mixed with curd and amla before going to bed is good too.

- Beetroot crushed in henna paste is good not only for dandruff but also hair fall. Beetroot juice mixed with ginger juice is also very helpful.

- Soak fenugreek (methi) seeds in water overnight. Grind into a paste and apply on scalp gently. Leave it for 45 minutes. Then, rinse off with the help of shikakai or ritha.

- To treat dandruff, you can also massage your scalp with almond paste and olive oil for five minutes, leave it on for some time and then wash off.

- Giving sufficient exposure of sun to the scalp is another important method of getting rid of dandruff.

Debunked!

Myth: Dandruff is contagious

Fact: Dandruff is not contagious, as it’s simply dead skin. Some people falsely believe that dandruff is a fungal infection that can be caught from people that have an abundant amount of dandruff. You cannot contract it by using someone else’s comb or brush!

-The Times of India

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