Let’s get straight to the point: dandruff is annoying. I know first hand how much it impacts your self-confidence and how darn stubborn it can be. But, instead of attacking your scalp further (with harsh products and resentment), adopting a softer approach and giving it a little extra TLC is the way to go. Kill it with kindness. Healthy, shiny hair (that’s flake-free) relies on a balanced scalp so it’s important to detoxify the skin, eliminating impurities and restoring hydration and oxygenation. We’ll talk you through it.
By Beth Ludolf
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1 Why do we get dandruff?
Why, oh why? Well, it’s basically when the cell turnover happens faster than normal. That could be because of a dry scalp, as a reaction to a certain product, washing your hair too often (yep, that’s a thing) or excessive sebum production. And, that’s without taking the fungus that naturally occurs on our scalp into account, that can cause irritation and speed up cell turnover for some people too.
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2 Try: a scalp scrub
Facial scrubs and body scrubs we’ve used hundreds of times, but a scalp scrub is our new thing. Exfoliating the scalp helps keep it balanced and nourished (a good environment for healthy hair growth). It stimulates circulation, removes dead skin cells and flakes and rids your hair of stubborn product build-up.
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3 How to use a scalp scrub
Don’t go reaching for your body scrub, you’ll need a fit-for-purpose product. If your scalp is generally quite oily, look for cleansing and detoxifying scrubs. If it’s more on the sensitive side, a soothing scrub is best. Don’t be too vigorous with your scrubbing either. If a scrub feels too abrasive, try a silicone scalp brush. It does the same job, just gentler.
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4 Can't I just use shampoo?
You’re thinking of how full your bathroom cupboard is, aren’t you? It’s definitely worth the shelf space (and the investment). Scrubs are made to exfoliate so are full of naturally exfoliating ingredients, shampoos are only made to cleanse. Plus, you’d have to be much more vigorous using just shampoo which would probably lead to some pretty bad breakage.