Don't Be A Flake

How to handle dandruff

- Dilia Narduzzi

ESTIMATES VARY, but between 10 and 50 per cent of the global population develops dandruff at some point in their lifetime. Marked by an itchy, irritated scalp and the obvious flakes that come along with it you know dandruff by sight. But what is it exactly, what causes it, and what can you do to control it?

“The medical term for dandruff is seborrhoeic dermatitis, and it’s a type of inflammation of the skin that’s associated with oily or greasy scales,” says Dr Peter Vignjevic, a dermatologist in Ontario, Canada, and an assistant clinical professor of medicine at McMaster University Medical School. While it most often affects the head and scalp, it can also occur on the eyebrows, eyelashes, eyelids, on and around the nose, the ears and sometimes behind the ears, says Vignjevic.

“In India, studies have shown that dandruff is more common in men than women and it is more prevalent during winter. People in the age group of 15 to 45 years appear to be most severely and frequently affected,” says Dr Apoorva Shah, founder, Richfeel Trichology Centres and Spa Clinics across the country.

Core Causes