What’s up guys? Ever since I can remember I had dandruff. I mean going back to 5th or 6th grade, and I am now in 11th. Through all these years, I have never fully gotten rid of it. I’ve used about every single dandruff shampoo on the market, none of them completely working, and now have started up with the Nizoral AD about 3 weeks ago. I talked to my dermatologist about my problem and he said that Nizoral AD is the best stuff I could be using. I used this shampoo once back in 9th grade, and it worked… very well. The only problem was that I think I missed the whole “use every 3 to 4 days” in the directions on the back of the bottle when I used it back then, so I’m pretty sure I was using it everyday. Maybe that’s why it worked so darn well.

Anyway, my dermatologist recently gave me a sample of a shampoo called DHS dandruff shampoo. He said it’s a very good shampoo to use in the days I’m not using the Nizoral. The shampoo’s active ingredient is 3% Sayalic acid. I’ve been using this shampoo for about a week now or so, minus the Nizoral 3 to 4-day cycle, and I like it a lot. Just like the Nizoral, it leaves my hair and scalp feeling very clean. I’m noticing though that I can STILL rub my head just slightly and a lot of flakes fall out. They’re not huge, they’re kind of small actually, but nevertheless, there are enough of them. Is this normal? I know its early in the Nizoral treatment, for it says to use for 8 weeks, but its just I've had my problem for so long, without any let up in it. What I mean is that I’ve have dandruff since 5th grade till now consistently. Never did it really get better, and I’ve been bound to dandruff shampoos all this time.

Most people will go through their bouts with dandruff at some point during their lives, but eventually it will go away. My parents even said they’ve never heard of such a severe case of dandruff! My dermatologist recommended getting my hormone levels checked, for they could be leading to my somewhat severe and stubborn acne condition also. But would they account for my dandruff starting at such an early age?

I cannot count how many times my parents would accuse me of not properly washing my hair. But I assured them, and I’ll assure you, that it is NOT how I wash my hair. I lather and scrub my entire scalp thoroughly. I rinse just as intensely as I wash. Then I rinse, and repeat. What I’m thinking now is… maybe… just somehow maybe, could I be scrubbing TOO hard, un-intentially irritating my scalp and indirectly causing my dandruff? If so, where’s that happy medium that lies in between scrubbing too hard and not scrubbing hard enough? It sounds crazy to me, but I’m at a loss. I can’t begin to understand why I have such a bad and uncontrollable dandruff problem! Please help. Thanks.


[This message has been edited by MachOneMustang (edited 12-13-2002).]

I, too, suffer from dandruff. I'm not sure what causes it. I do not use anything in my hair (hair spray gels, etc.) so I'm left to wonder how I'm affected by it, too. I've used all of the dandruff shampoo/conditioners and they never work. I guess you and I are in the same situation.

[This message has been edited by miss_understood (edited 12-11-2002).]

Same here, I don't use any hair products either. I can maybe see why I would have more dandruff this time of year because its really cold around here and the air is dry, and me... I have sensitive skin. My lips and hands get chapped very easily. I'm constantly using lip balm and hand lotions. But that doesn't count for the rest of the year when I STILL do get considerably bad dandruff. Humph...

A deficiency in Omega 3 Fatty Acids can cause dandruff. You can try taking flaxseed oil and see if it helps.

Where are Omega 3 Fatty Acids found normally that I may be getting a deficiency of?

Here's a really good article about dandruff. It explains how and why it happens. It includes comparisons of different types and brands of shampoos and other treatments.
http://www.sfsu.edu/~shs/skinclinic/dandruff.htm

Thank you, Lindarella. That is a really good article, I found it very useful. I reccomend it to whoever has any form of a dandruff problem. Thanks again.