Daughter with dandruff

[Inarutneedhelp]

She feels like the only 17 year old with dandruff . It’s not actually that bad but she had tried everything. Makes it difficult to wear her hair up or braided . Anyone amy tried and trusted remedies ?

I presume that she's tried the ordinary Head & Shoulders, Coal Tar etc.. Have you consulted a dermatologist? I'd do that with a teenager, because it must be so embarrassing for her. I think sometimes it can be a sort of fungal infection. Does her hair smell?

Head and shoulders used everyday worked for me (use it with a good conditioner as its quite stripping). If nothing is working then definitely see a dermatologist x

Vosene works well if regularly used, me and my children all use it as have same problem, H&S just seems to make it worse.

My daughter used Alphosyl when hers was bad. She also had me rub oil into her scalp every so often, but hers was definitely dry skin as opposed to fungal.

Hi I was told by my hairdresser to brush my hair often something that I didn't do very much as I mostly use my fingers. Also from time to time I leave some coconut oil in my scalp overnight then wash in the morning.
The brushing has done the trick. No shampoo did the trick.

Body Shop ginger shampoo is amazing for this.

Selsun or Nizoral both worked on me when nothing else had. Both are behind the counter I think.

Nizoral, tried everything but was more fungal then dandruff. Used to be on prescription only but you can buy off amazon. Worked after one wash? Use it once a month to stop return. Absolute godsend

My husband and daughter both swear by Elvive dandruff shampoo - the orange one that says "for men" on it. Apparently the Elvive green "refreshing" dandruff one is good too, but for some reason it's really hard to get hold of. Tbh, Head and Shoulders proved pretty useless, as did the other off the shelf dandruff shampoos.

It's trial and error. I tried every anti dandruff product on the market before finding success with L'Oréal low shampoo. It's non-foaming so I think it was the foaming agent that was the issue for me. It literally took me 20 years to find the answer!

You need to establish the type of dandruff and treat accordingly. Dandruff can be caused by;
-a dry scalp
-a greasy scalp with an overproduction of sebum
-a yeast infection
-eczema

Using a product for dry scalp dandruff if she has seborrheic dandruff will make the problem worse. It's worth reading up on the different types of dandruff. If regular anti dandruff shampoos don't work then I'd recommend trying Neutrogena T Gel therapeutic shampoo which treat scalp psoriasis and seborrheic dermatitis of the scalp.

This might sound patronising but are you/she sure its dandruff? I thought I suffered for dandruff for years, and hated school blazers because of it - actually I suffered for Psoriasis of the scalp (itchy flaky scalp, lots of white 'dandruff' on shoulders and in hair) Made worse by the fact I had dark brown hair

Initially dying it blonde made it go away - as the bleach nuked my hair follicles so much, but now I am older and have no wish to fry my hair as much, I find products not containing SLS work best for me. They are everywhere - just look on the back of the packets!

Make sure she is rinsing properly, once she thinks it's done keep going for another minute or so. I think this stops any residue from irritating the scalp, all I know is that it can help and is probably try trying before buying expensive shampoo

I had an itchy sore scalp since childhood and tried all the dandruff shampoo available. They were usually v foul smelling and I sympathise as it embarrassing for a teenager.

I use Redken Dandruff shampoo now. It is the only thing that doesn’t make my head itch and stops flaking.

I also recommend the Body Shop ginger anti-dandruff stuff.

Does she wash her hair daily? If not, perhaps that would improve things. I rarely see dandruff these days and I think it might be to do with the frequency of hair washing.

I get little spots of eczema as well as inflamed follicles on my scalp and use Lush's Rehab shampoo a few times a week. My head it itchy without it. It also cleared up dds cradle cap gently. It is sold as a shampoo for scalps. Smells nice and keeps my hair healthy looking too.

Having mentioned Selsun and Nizoral, I should add that these days an SLS free shampoo is mostly all I need. It took a while bottle to work, but the Aubrey Organica one on here did clear it after about two months. Now I use either a Jason or Avalon, also on this list.

www.gentlebubbles.com/buy-phthalate-free-products/sulfate-paraben-phthalate-free-shampoo/

Thank you all for the replies .

She has tried a lot of those. The H n S , L’Oréal , neurogena , body shop ginger , lush , Home made masks .
I was thinking too of seeing a dermatologist. Perhaps that’s the way to go . She has biggish flakes sometimes more so on top and the little white specks sometimes. It’s not horrendous but she is conscious of it and is upsetting her on and off .
Have tried the oil . She spends ages rinsing it . She washes twice a week , huge head of hair , doesn’t get greasy and no it does not smell .

So looks like I will try to work out exactly what it is first and maybe go from there .

Oh I must ask her how often she brushes it. I am not sure

Sounds like you’ve tried an awful lot, might worth seeing the doctor for it

I would suggest that she tries increasing the washing. Scalps produce sebum without the hair getting greasy. A mild shampoo and more frequent washing, perhaps with a good brush when its wet might help to clear her scalp.

I'm going to recommend Nirzoral as well (a couple of other posters have recommended it above too). I was prescribed it but you can get it without prescription from Boots/Superdrug etc. It is medicated and is the only thing that cleared mine up. If that doesn't work then consider talking to your GP, but try the Nizoral first as that is most likely what any doctor/dermatologist would prescribe.

Yes to the green Elvive (and cheap)

Also Davines Natural Tech Purifying is excellent. (it's the only shampoo I have ever found that has eliminated my flakey scalp) it is expensive, but I buy it in big bottles and only use it once a week/sometimes a fortnight. (and just use a gentle shampoo or the green Elvive in between)

I use Uno which I buy from Sally's. It's expensive but works well x