Do you know what causes dandruff? and can dandruff cause hair loss? Get all the information you need to find out if your dandruff is leading to hair loss.

Dandruff and hair loss are not necessarily related, but there is a possibility that dandruff can accelerate the process of hair loss. Severe cases of dandruff—sometimes called seborrheic dermatitis—caused by an overgrowth of Malassezia, a yeast-like fungus that naturally lives on the scalp, can cause inflammation. And when the scalp becomes inflamed it can lead to alopecia, or hair loss.

What is dandruff?

Dandruff is not a hair problem but a scalp issue which can become a hair problem by being a cause of excessive hair loss and bald patches. Dandruff can be triggered by cold and dry climate in winters and also can be caused by stress or sickness. Besides being irritating and causing damage to the hair, dandruff can be embarrassing as well when it falls out on the hair and shoulders. Sadly, it affects an integral part of the adult global population and is very common.

Now the question arises, where does dandruff comes from? Scalp , out of the whole body, is the area where the process of producing and shedding skin cells is the fastest. The condition of dandruff causes this process to get faster. For those who do not have dandruff, this process takes a whole month but on the other hand, on dandruff prone scalp it takes up to 2 to 7 days only to complete this process. The dead cells are then accumulated in the form of clumps and become visible flakes of irregular shapes and are usually in yellowish color. 

Causes of dandruff:

The dandruff can be caused by;

• over shampooing / not enough shampooing
• Exposure to dust and dirt
• Oily scalp
• Dry scalp
• The yeast-like fungus
• Dirty hair brush or combs
• Sensitivity to certain hair care products
• Other skin conditions

Dandruff and hair loss:

Can dandruff cause hair loss? Dandruff is basically an inflammation in the scalp which makes it unhealthy and leads to generation of unhealthy hair from the scalp along with causing hair fall if left untreated. Furthermore, the dandruff can also cause itchiness and upon scratching the scalp very frequently, the hair starts to fall off. Frequent scratching of hair damages the follicles as well reducing their ability to hold the hair strands. Sometimes, the cause of dandruff becomes the cause of hair loss as well. This leads to hair thinning.

It is very crucial to know that the hair generated from a healthy scalp and those generating from an inflamed scalp survive differently. The ones generated from an inflamed scalp are more prone to protein damage, are weak and have lesser ability to survive on scalp. 

According to research, the shedding of 50-100 strands per day is completely normal but a dandruff affected scalp sheds around 100-300 strands per day causing hair loss and bald patches in the scalp. It also shrinks the hair follicles gradually leading to thinning of hair and eventually stopping hair growth.

Basically any condition that shows the following signs is dandruff and keeping it untreated can lead to hair loss.

Signs of dandruff:

To distinguish dandruff from other scalp conditions, these points must be kept in mind. The dandruff is in the form of dry flakes in irregular shapes and different sizes and is yellowish in color. Dandruff is in the form of flakes and on running fingers through the hair, the dandruff falls out from the scalp onto the hair and shoulders. 

Risk factors of Dandruff

When the dandruff is caused upon dry skin, the flakes are smaller and less oily. This is when it is more itchy and prone to hair loss. When your skin is naturally oily, there is a higher risk of dandruff in the scalp. The males are at higher risk of dandruff than females. People around the age of 20 are more prone to dandruff than older people but sometimes the untreated dandruff can be long lasting. According to statistics, dandruff affects around 50% of the adult population worldwide.

How to prevent dandruff and hair loss:

The hygiene of the scalp must be taken care of to avoid the dandruff and hair loss. If the scalp is washed with suitable shampoo and the dandruff is not severe, chances are that it will wash off the dandruff flakes completely within a few washes. Finding the right shampooing balance is very significant to avoid dandruff as over shampooing and not enough shampooing can cause dandruff.

Pre-wash oil treatments on the scalp are as important for the scalp as any anti dandruff shampoo. The oils having rosemary essential oil, Amla and other ingredients that are antibacterial, antifungal and anti dandruff properties are the most crucial treatments for the dandruff.

Reducing stress, brushing hair twice daily, and massaging scalp can also help in prevention of dandruff.

How to treat dandruff and dandruff driven hair loss:

In order to get rid of dandruff;

• Use the products that have anti inflammatory properties in them
• Use Signature hair oil of hairaffairs by MS as it has rosemary essential oil
• Consult a doctor if the dandruff is caused by any medical condition and is very severe.
• Use a scalp massager to make sure that the dandruff is removed from the scalp and clean the hair follicles.

Conclusion

In a nut shell, the two are not necessarily followed by each other, but hair loss may