Styling your hair using straighteners or curlers can be a part of some people’s everyday routine. Having chic straight hair or even those dreamy mermaid waves requires you to use heat on your hair. While these heaty styling tools do shape and add flair to your tresses, they can also worsen your dandruff.
Dandruff is caused by a naturally occurring microbe called Malassezia, which feeds on your scalp oils. Using tools to style your hair can’t directly cause dandruff to occur, but heat can cause your dandruff to worsen. The heat from these hair styling tools damages both your hair and scalp, resulting in flare-ups.
How Does Heat Damage Your Scalp?
For your scalp and hair to remain healthy, it needs to be moisturoised. Your scalp naturally remains moisturiozed by the natural production of oils, known as sebum. Dry scalps have less sebum production compared to healthy or oily scalps. Those with dry scalps should use a moisturizing shampoo to restore your scalp’s natural moisture balance.
When you use heat on your hair, the heat damage from blow drying or straightening hair can reverse the moisture level of your scalp. When you apply heat to your hair and scalp, the water in your skin starts to evaporate. Excess heat means essential moisture found there can be lost, making your skin dry out.
How to Avoid Dandruff While Applying Heat to Hair?
Here are some things you can do to minimise damage to your scalp and hair while using heat!
- While opting for styling tools for your hair, make sure that the heat settings are low. This would take more time to style the hair, but it’s better than blasting high heat directly at your roots and drying them out.
- When you step out of teh shower with freshly wet hair, wait for your hair to air dry for a few minutes and even dab it using a towel. While blow-drying, try to maintain a distance of at least 6 inches from your scalp and make sure that the dryer keeps moving. Also avoid holding the blow dryer in one spot for too long.
- For heat styling tools like straighteners, curling irons, and wands, try to keep them away from your scalp as much as possible! Keep them focused on the mid-lengths and ends of your hair.
Remember to take good care of your hair! Ensure that you always use a good heat protectant while using heat tools. For your dandruff, don’t do anything that will cause it to flare up more!
