Causes of Dandruff

In order to get rid of your dandruff, you must first identify what causes dandruff to grow on your scalp. From there, you can get a more solid understanding of why they appear in the first place and more importantly, how to prevent them from coming back.

When it comes to the causes of dandruff, there are a variety of factors that can initiate the process. The condition is characterized by white flakes of skin that are left behind on the scalp or in the hair when it naturally sheds itself. This shedding is what causes the flakes to move through the air and land on other surfaces.

Below are some of the most common causes of dandruff:

Dry skin: Dry skin is a primary cause of dandruff because the scales that form cannot lift from dry skin. When the skin is overly dry, it can lead to serious issues like cracking on the surface. Adding oils and moisturizers to help with skin health can reduce dandruff.

Over-washing: Over-washing your hair can remove a healthy amount of oil from the scalp and skin, which will cause additional issues by exposing hair follicles to other environmental pollutants that they wouldn't normally be exposed to.

Psoriasis: Psoriasis is a skin disorder that causes the skin to become flaky and red in patches. The patches are formed because of skin cells that are constantly being shed by the body. The scalp is one of the common places for psoriasis to occur. The reason for this could be the oil glands up in the scalp get affected and swell up. When this happens, you may lose clumps of hair that may look like dandruff or similar to dandruff.

Enzyme Deficiency: Enzyme deficiency could also be one of the reasons for dandruff. Sometimes enzymes that are responsible for producing oil may not be produced in sufficient quantities.

Haircare Products: A common cause of dandruff is a sensitivity to hair care products containing pore-clogging substances such as mineral oil, silicone and paraffin waxes.

Lemon for Dandruff

We have all had dreaded dandruff and spent so much money on different types of products that claim to work. Some may work temporarily but they all will leave you with a bottle of useless shampoo. We all have to wonder why the good old days of using lemons to clean our hair have now gone out of style. You see, lemons actually kill germs. The citric acid in lemons is very effective in killing fungi, bacteria and viruses.

When you think of dandruff, lemon is not the first thing that may come to mind. However, there are some benefits to using lemon in treating dandruff.

The first step to getting rid of your dandruff is you have to wash your hair with hot water and lemon juice. You can add a few drops of tea tree oil and castor oil to enhance the effect. Do this once a week or even more often if the dandruff is severe.

Another way is to squeeze some lemon juice into a cup, pour some into your hand along with some warm water and rub it on your scalp. Let it stand for about fifteen minutes to leave the acidic lemon juice on your scalp for about fifteen minutes, then rinse off with water.

How to Use Lemon for Dandruff?

Squeeze the juice from one lemon and apply on the scalp and leave it for 30 minutes. Then wash your hair with a mild SLS-free shampoo along with water thoroughly. Crush two lemons and mix them with about two cups of water. Now, soak your hair in this mixture for one hour. Again, you have to rinse it off with water after one hour. This treatment must be done at least once a week to find immediate results.

Lemon juice is acidic. It can be used as a natural alternative to detergents and shampoos that contain sulfates. Many shampoos contain toxic chemicals in their ingredients list. These chemicals are known to cause irritation of the eyes and scalp.

Possible Side Effects of Using Lemon for Dandruff

Many people turn to hair treatments like shampoo and lemon juice to get rid of dandruff because they are easy to use and inexpensive.

As with any product, applying lemon juice directly to the scalp may cause some side effects like burning, stinging, redness, dryness or increased dandruff.

Take Away

Dandruff is a very common condition that affects some people more than others. Dandruff affects people from all ethnic backgrounds and can appear at any point in your life. About half of the population has dandruff to some extent and it tends to affect more men than women.

Dandruff is caused by the flaking of dead skin cells from your scalp – which are normally shed naturally by your body. It can be caused by dry skin as well as by an overgrowth of yeast on your scalp (psoriasis, fungus) or even stress. Stress may play a role because it causes you to produce adrenaline, which can cause your skin to dry out.