Can dandruff cause hair loss?

Losing your hair is distressing, but there are plenty of treatments available right now to help you. Prevention is better than curing hair loss, so it’s worth figuring out what is causing you to lose hair. Is dandruff a cause of hair loss?

Hair loss is a normal part of life, and humans lose between 50 to 100 hairs a day without even noticing.

Some hair loss– including male and female pattern baldness– is permanent and runs in the family.

However, other types of hair loss may be temporary and your hair may grow back.

Contact your GP if you have sudden hair loss, you develop bald patches, you lose hair in clumps, your head itches and burns, or if you are worried about your hair loss.

READ MORE- Hair loss treatment – Dr Sara explains the best type of shampoo

What causes hair loss?

If your hair loss isn’t caused by a genetic condition, it’s often temporary.

It could be caused by:

  • an illness
  • stress
  • cancer treatment
  • weight loss
  • iron deficiency

Can dandruff cause hair loss?

Dandruff is not a cause of hair loss, but the two conditions are linked.

Dandruff is a common skin condition that causes white or grey flakes of skin to appear on the scalp and in the hair.

It might cause your scalp to feel dry and itchy, which can lead you to scratch your scalp.

Scratching can damage your hair follicles and make you lose more hair.

In this way, dandruff can cause hair loss indirectly but it would not make you go bald.

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Dandruff is not caused by poor hygiene, contrary to popular belief.

Dandruff is caused by lots of conditions such as seborrheic dermatitis, ringworm, and eczema.

It may be made worse by stress and cold weather.

It is worth noting that both hair loss and dandruff can be made worse by stress.

This means if you are losing hair due to stress and also have dandruff, you may think the dandruff is causing your hair loss instead of the stress.

How to treat dandruff

Try to destress to limit your hair loss and calm your dandruff.

If your dandruff still doesn’t disappear, contact your GP for advice.

You’ll often be told to use an anti-dandruff shampoo containing one of the following ingredients:

  • zinc pyrithione
  • salicylic acid
  • selenium sulphide (or selenium sulfide)
  • ketoconazole
  • coal tar

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