Extremely dry skin on scalp

[ThorsMistress]

I am praying someone can help me!

DS (12) has extremely dry skin on his scalp. It cause him to itch it and of course the skin then falls and causes what looks like dandruff.

He has been in tears tonight as it’s bad at the moment and his peers at school are making fun of his ‘dandruff’

Can anyone recommend a good shampoo to help? It’s breaking my heart seeing him so upset

Poor lad. I find Nizoral very good, over the counter from the chemist. Elave shampoo is good too once under control.

Holland and Barrett have a host of different shampoos that would be good for this.

I think it's a case of trial and error which ones will or won't irritate your son. Personally i like the faith in nature ones. I'd also slather the scalp in coconut oil once a week before bed and wash off in the morning.

If those suggestions don't work, I trip to the GP might be needed. They can take scrapings of the skin flakes to test in case it's a fungal infection

Any other skin conditions anywhere else??
I've had eczema all my life and would get awful huge flakes of skin on my scalp. I tried all sorts over the years and a lot of the medicated type shampoos just made it worse. The only thing to work for me was to use nothing at all, no shampoo and no conditioner. It's not the best look for a few weeks, but my scalp cleared up and I no longer have a snowstorm on my clothing.

Head & shoulders is really good, clears and keeps dandruff away if used regularly in my experience, both my boys have always used it.

However, you maybe need to get him checked for other conditions such as psoriasis and/or eczema. Psoriasis affects more than 2% of the population many of whom think they just have dandruff or a dry scalp.

Camellia oil. Rub it in scalp and hair before shower, then shampoo as normal.

I've got psoriasis and I had similar at his age. He has my sympathy because I remember looking like I had horrible dandruff.

I've not had it in years but I used to use coal tar shampoo.

If it is psoriasis, it might help to get his hair cut shorter so he can get more sunlight to his head. I always get my worst patches on places that never get any sun.

T Gel or The Body Shop Ginger.

If it's dry itchy skin then maybe try Head & Shoulders Derma pro scalp serum along with the matching shampoo.

It's not too pricey so it's worth a go while you work your way through the options (the price of which are mind boggling for something which may or may not work).