Can Dandruff Cause Hair loss | MYTH DEBUNKED!

Do you know what else comes with those embarrassing white flakes that signal dandruff asides from the general assumption that you are unhygienic? The assumption that you are on your way to a hairless future.

While dandruff is detrimental to your overall hair growth, having it doesn’t necessarily spell doom for your hair.

Dandruff doesn’t directly impact how much hair you have left by the time you turn fifty - Genetic factors, medical conditions such as androgenic alopecia, hormonal changes, and other factors are responsible for the amount of hair you have or lose.

As common as dandruff is, there is a lot of misconceptions out there about the condition. One of the most common is that dandruff equals hair loss. In this article, we shall be examining what dandruff is and how it affects our hair, what causes hair loss, and how to prevent it.

What is Dandruff?

Dandruff is a common skin condition that affects one in two people. Dandruff causes the skin to flake and itch and causes redness and swelling in extreme cases. While dandruff may occur in other parts of the body, it is commonly found on the scalp. Dandruff is not contagious, meaning it cannot spread from one person to the other through contact.

Dandruff is an easily treatable condition that requires professional help except in rare cases. Simply shampooing daily or using anti-dandruff shampoo and conditioner can help get rid of dandruff. Anyone can get dandruff, but it is more common in the younger male population.

How Does Dandruff Affect Our Hair?

Many people often assume that as the flakes come off their scalp, so does their hair, but this is not true. Dandruff doesn't lead to hair loss, at least not directly. One of the most common symptoms of dandruff is itchiness. Hence, in cases where the dandruff is severe, scratching incessantly might damage hair follicles, causing hair loss. The cause of the hair loss is not dandruff in itself.

Where dandruff is a result of an underlying condition, there may be a resultant hair loss from that condition; that is, the cause of dandruff also leads to hair loss. Conditions such as psoriasis can cause both dandruff and hair loss.

It should be noted that having dandruff in your hair will not prevent it from growing, but such hair is likely to be less healthy and may break easily.

Hair Loss

Hair loss, also known as alopecia, can occur in men and women, although it is more prevalent among men. The older you get, the more likely you are to lose hair. Hereditary hair loss is the most typical type of hair loss, and it is often untreatable. You have inherited the genes, and there’s nothing much you can do about that.

Hair loss can also be a side effect of specific medical procedures such as chemotherapy for cancer treatment. Hormonal imbalance from PCOS  or other factors can also cause the hair to fall out.

Whatever the cause is, hair loss can be pretty distressing and embarrassing, making people experiencing it self-conscious and unsure of themselves.

How to Prevent Hair Loss

Except in cases where genetic factors occasion hair loss, hair loss is preventable or at least treatable. Observe the following practices to keep your hair full and shiny.

• Conditions such as dandruff and its underlying causes that may cause loss of hair should be treated as urgently as possible

• If symptoms persist and there is an observation of abnormal hair breakage or loss, it is advisable to seek professional help.

• Make grooming your hair a lifestyle. Carefully curate and make use of a range of products that would make your hair healthier without compromising your general well-being.

• Avoid practices such as over combing the hair and stretching of hair too tightly as this may damage hair follicles leading to hair loss.

Many other conditions may present, like dandruff, causing you to ignore other symptoms, including hair loss. Where dandruff treatment isn't yielding any results, and you keep experiencing hair loss, it might be time to start ruling out other causes because it is unlikely that dandruff is the reason for this.