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Persistent dandruff.

bananabas

Senior Member
Messages
133
I'm not sure this is ME-related, but it seems that when my symptoms flare up, so does my dandruff. And I'm talking big flakes, which pruduce itches bad enough to wake me up in the middle of the night scratching. Anyone else experience this? And what remedies did you guys find?
 
Messages
21
For me only thing that has helped is Vichy Dercos anti-dandruff shampoo. If I do not use it for a couple of days, my head start itching. For some reason no other brand has helped. I have been using it for a couple of years now.
 

bananabas

Senior Member
Messages
133
For me only thing that has helped is Vichy Dercos anti-dandruff shampoo. If I do not use it for a couple of days, my head start itching. For some reason no other brand has helped. I have been using it for a couple of years now.
That seems to contain selenium disulfide as the active ingredient, can you confirm?
 
Messages
15,786
I'm not sure this is ME-related, but it seems that when my symptoms flare up, so does my dandruff. And I'm talking big flakes, which pruduce itches bad enough to wake me up in the middle of the night scratching. Anyone else experience this? And what remedies did you guys find?
It might be due to inflammation. The best thing that has helped for me is avoiding shampoos with Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (or alternatives with Sodium ____ Sulfate) and other irritants. Anti-dandruff shampoos tend to be highly irritating, and are designed to penetrate the skin somewhat, which is also not helping.

I import Hugo's Naturals from the US, though there are some decent European shampoos as well. Shops specializing in organic/biologic foods and other items will usually have something that works.
 

ChrisD

Senior Member
Messages
472
Location
East Sussex
I know this is an old thread but my dandruff is so persistent that I wanted to talk about it. I think it has got worse since I went on a Ketogenic diet, but as it is one of few negative effects compared to many positive, I have persisted with that way of eating.

Once a week I have to do a hairwash with Olive oil and Apple cider vinegar and this seems to help a lot on the surface level. I also have a special wooden wide-toothed comb to stop me scratching and therefore it protects the scalp.

I wonder why it will just not end though? something going on in the gut? an autoimmune reaction? deficiencies?
 

Lisa108

Senior Member
Messages
675
Anyone tried pirocton olamin? In Germany, there are "anti-dandruff shampoos" using it and I have major improvements with it. Completely normal scalp, but I have to use it continously, as the effect wears off after a few weeks not using it. It's also available as a powder, so you can mix it in your favourite shampoo. (I take an ultra sensitive, fragrance free shampoo.)

The theory behind pirocton olamin is that it works against a certain yeast.
(and it is said to stimulate hair growth, what a nice side effect...)
 

ljimbo423

Senior Member
Messages
4,705
Location
United States, New Hampshire
I wonder why it will just not end though? something going on in the gut? an autoimmune reaction? deficiencies?

I had really bad dandruff and eczema for years. The dandruff is gone and the eczema is about 80-90% gone. They both have been slowly improving over the last few years. The biggest improvement though, has been in the last year.

I started a fairly aggressive dysbiosis/intestinal permeability protocol, about a year ago. My guess is that the improvement in my gut is what caused the big improvement in my skin issues. Especially since skin issues are so often linked to the gut.

Jim
 

Eastman

Senior Member
Messages
526
I know this is an old thread but my dandruff is so persistent that I wanted to talk about it. I think it has got worse since I went on a Ketogenic diet, but as it is one of few negative effects compared to many positive, I have persisted with that way of eating.

Once a week I have to do a hairwash with Olive oil and Apple cider vinegar and this seems to help a lot on the surface level. I also have a special wooden wide-toothed comb to stop me scratching and therefore it protects the scalp.

I wonder why it will just not end though? something going on in the gut? an autoimmune reaction? deficiencies?

Some people seem to have success treating seborrheic dermatitis with biotin (see here and here)

Also, since you said you got worse on a ketogenic diet: Consumption of a low-carbohydrate and high-fat diet (the ketogenic diet) exaggerates biotin deficiency in mice
 
Messages
53
Once a week I have to do a hairwash with Olive oil and Apple cider vinegar and this seems to help a lot on the surface level. I also have a special wooden wide-toothed comb to stop me scratching and therefore it protects the scalp.

Im not sure what severity you have but if it is closer to SD then
If you have bumps you can spot treat them with steroid creams.

2% salicylic acid shampoos and coal tar shampoos work the best for me.
Nobody should ever make the mistake I did and use them everyday for 3 years because they worked so well....lord, it took me 6 months to get my scalp regulated again when I figured out what happened.

The shampoos with selenium sulfide and p. zinc did squat and may have made me worse.

There is a product called DermaSmoothe is an steroid in a peanut oil base. You'd put some on your scalp an sleep one night with a shower cap on. This would stop things for 7-10 days if nothing else is working.
Need a script from a derm though unless you could find it 'elsewhere'.

There is a company called Dermarest that is really the absolute best as far as non-prescription

They have a gel that can be used for spot treatment, a cream and a shampoo.
The gel is 3% salicylic acid ,the shampoo 2%..........but I think there is something with the "inactive ingredients" such as zinc, etc. that makes them superior.

It says psoriasis but its all on the same spectrum, just different degrees, IMO. Treatments all work the same. I believe on the back of the packages, it mentions SD and dandruff.

Gel:
https://www.amazon.com/Dermarest-Ps...qid=1524640895&sr=8-6&keywords=dermarest&th=1

Shampoo:
https://www.amazon.com/DERMAREST-Ps...UTF8&qid=1524640895&sr=8-5&keywords=dermarest

ACV didn't do much for me. I used a spray bottle at 10-20 percent in the shower and was also drinking it mixed into grapefruit juice to kill the taste.
 
Messages
53
Im not sure what severity you have but if it is closer to SD then
If you have bumps you can spot treat them with steroid creams.

2% salicylic acid shampoos and coal tar shampoos work the best for me.
Nobody should ever make the mistake I did and use them everyday for 3 years because they worked so well....lord, it took me 6 months to get my scalp regulated again when I figured out what happened.

The shampoos with selenium sulfide and p. zinc did squat and may have made me worse.

There is a product called DermaSmoothe is an steroid in a peanut oil base. You'd put some on your scalp an sleep one night with a shower cap on. This would stop things for 7-10 days if nothing else is working.
Need a script from a derm though unless you could find it 'elsewhere'.

There is a company called Dermarest that is really the absolute best as far as non-prescription

They have a gel that can be used for spot treatment, a cream and a shampoo.
The gel is 3% salicylic acid ,the shampoo 2%..........but I think there is something with the "inactive ingredients" such as zinc, etc. that makes them superior.

It says psoriasis but its all on the same spectrum, just different degrees, IMO. Treatments all work the same. I believe on the back of the packages, it mentions SD and dandruff.

Gel:
https://www.amazon.com/Dermarest-Ps...qid=1524640895&sr=8-6&keywords=dermarest&th=1

Shampoo:
https://www.amazon.com/DERMAREST-Ps...UTF8&qid=1524640895&sr=8-5&keywords=dermarest

ACV didn't do much for me. I used a spray bottle at 10-20 percent in the shower and was also drinking it mixed into grapefruit juice to kill the taste.


Edit: I should mention that I'm all but cured now for the first time in nearly 10 years. I've been supplementing heavily on my SNPs, and I am also Keto.
I think one think that might for sure be helping is taking enzymes with my meals. I have low stomach acid and low carb/ keto you really need to digest well.

I like the shit out of this one. It covers all the bases...protein, fat, carbs... whereas before I was only using Betaine HCL by itself which was mainly just for protein. It has no lipase or amylase.

NOW Super Enzymes
https://www.amazon.com/NOW-Super-En...=1524649803&sr=8-4&keywords=now+super+enzymes

Has amylase, lipase, protease, papain, betaine hcl, pepsin, cellulase, bromelain, and Ox bile extract....covers all the bases!
 
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