Hair suddenly 'smelly'!!

[val4]

I'm 46 and have normally quite dry hair as I've been colouring it for 20 years. Over last few months I've noticed that 1 day after washing it seems greasy and has a distinctive 'off' smell. I used to get away with washing hair twice week(shower daily !), as it was very dry and it never smelled! Is it hormone related (maybe approaching menopause?) I've tried various shampoos and have stopped condioning hair as use colour protect shampoo which I feel doesn't fully clean hair, but still ,persists.Any advise please....

Could it be your hairbrush? Give it a wash

Could it be your hairbrush? Give it a wash

Have you tried using dry shampoo on the no hair wash days?

It could be that your hair is fine and its just your sense of smell that has become more acute owing to hormones.

Wierdly though there is apparently something called Smelly Hair Syndrome which you can Google. I think in those cases the smell is strong enough for others to notice though.

Or it could just be a build up of products that something like cider vinegar could help clear.

I'm no expert on this BTW but my dd had really bad scalp issues when she was younger so I researched the subject a bit. It turned out she had a form of scalp based eczema.

What shampoo are you using?
I tried a Redken product a year or two back and it smelled disgusting. I showed the bottle to my hairdresser who agreed. Don't know if it was just a random error or if they're all like that.

What kind of smelly? Nasty chemical product smelly? Sweaty? Or absorbed smoke/cooking/something else smelly?

Thanks for your replies. I regularly change my shampoo...at moment it's Herbal Essence for coloured hair. It's fine straight after blow drying but by next morning it's smells 'off' . It's difficult to describe but just doesn't smell fresh! As I said I never had this problem before. I noticed it about 6 mths ago. I have started using dry shampoo inbetween days as don't like to wash hair daily as it affects my colour.

I have shoulder length , thick hair and it was always on dry side.

I'm following this as my hair smells greasy before it looks greasy if I don't wash it every other day and if I touch my scalp it smells of wax crayons

Herbal essence does this to me too as does tresemme.

Tresemmme makes my scalp itch after a few washes.

Could it be your pillow case or your hair towel that's causing the problem?

I think it's a change in hormones making your hair more greasy and you possibly more sensitive to it's smell.

I'd advise washing your hair more frequently and start using conditioner! Just comb it through the mid lengths and ends and rinse with your head upside down so you're avoiding the roots.

I love the CoCo Loco conditioner in Boots, it smells amazing.

Colour protect products can build up in hair and coat each hair so every 4 washes try a clarifying shampoo to strip out the product and any built up grease and dirt.

It is a skin yeast, very common. Head and Shoulders will get rid of it.

I was going to say it could be a yeast or some type of fungal infection on your scalp causing bacteria that is making it smelly. Not really sure how you treat it though as iv never had it. Nizorol or homemade tea tree based hair mask as it's anti bacterial could do the trick I think.

Actually yeah some sort of yeast infection makes sense. That's good advice.

The yeast thing is interesting, sounds like a good possibility.

I was going to suggest a clarifying shampoo for your scalp to get rid of any oil build up like Lush Big shampoo or Redken cleansing cream.

I will never forget one afternoon at school when I was 14, and my friend leaning over my head and telling me I smelt mouldy!!!!
I have always put this down to having greasy hair that needs washing daily( obviously hadn’t washed it that day!!)
Anyway, I am now 45 and my hair still needs washing daily. It even effects my make up choices as any liquid foundations make me feel even greasier!!!!
I think some of us are just greasy and need daily washing.....and yes I have tried on numerous occasions to ‘leave my hair for longer between washes......it will adjust itself......’ oh no it won’t!!!!!!

I use yes to carrots scalp relief which is good. Can't comment on the shampoo as I only wash with conditioner
When you shampoo, rub your scalp really well - because I co wash I actually scrub my scalp for around 7-10 mins!

Good advise .....thanks folks. I don't think it's a yeast infection as scalp seems fine . I will try a clarifying shampoo as there possibly is product build up. I sometimes use root lift so that might be adding to the build up.

I changed my washing powder on a whim and my hair started to smell funny. When I washed my duvet and pillow cases at the laundrette with my original washing powder (on sale next door the laundrette)when our washing machine was out of action I noticed my hair didn't smell!

Sometimes I'll use an old pillow case (I change my pillow cases every other day because I use a topical treatment) from my huge pile and use one washed in the old powder without realising and my hair smells funny again overnight.

i have shoulder length thick hair too and went through a phase of about 2 months of my hair smelling like off yoghurt and getting really greasy, i started leaving it an extra day before washing ( every 3 days rather than every other day ) and it stopped!

Schwarzkopf liquid express spray in conditioner (use on wet or dry hair) should make your hair smell nice.

Sorry GLISS liquid express spray