When excessive dried skin flakes or dandruff fall from the scalp, a person experiences severe itching which, apart from causing inconvenience, becomes irritating and frustrating. Not only this, dandruff can be the cause of hair loss/ baldness too. As such dandruff treatment is very essential right at its first stage so that it doesn't become a serious dandruff disease. The symptoms of dandruff include white colored skin flakes all over shoulder, severe itching, inflammation, and red blisters on the scalp (only in cases of severe dandruff).

Dandruff Causes

There are many causes of dandruff that range from malfunctioning of the body mechanism and stress to unhealthy food habits.

• • Improper and high calorie diet.
• • Stress and tension, overexertion.
• • Prolong diseases such as jaundice is also one of the dandruff causes.
• • Application of harmful hair care products including hair oil, shampoos etc.
• • Improper cleaning of scalp leads to dandruff as also hampers dandruff treatment.
• • Chronic skin disease, in case of severe dandruff where dry red patches occur on scalp and even on forehead.
• • Pityrosporum ovale, the infection causing fungi/ yeasts, found on the skin surface, which leads to shedding of skin flakes.

Natural Dandruff Cure

Dandruff treatment of mild variety includes introduction of minor changes in one's lifestyle. For natural dandruff cure, a person must include certain changes in food and cleanliness habits and avoid certain food items as well as habits. This list of do's and don'ts will help in dandruff treatment of people suffering from dandruff.

• • Avoid excessive intake of junk and oily food as well as tea, coffee, and other beverages.
• • Avoid meat, sugar, and chocolates.
• • Increase intake of juicy fruits but avoid citrus fruits as well as banana.
• • Take balanced diet on a regular basis that should include vegetables, grams, cereals, fruits, etc. Drink lots of water during the day.
• • Keep your hair and scalp clean. Try to use herbal shampoo and avoid using strong shampoo having artificial scents.
• • Comb hair properly on a daily basis for maintaining proper blood circulation which is a pre condition for any type of dandruff treatment.
• • Prevent scalp from becoming oily and dirty. It is a common belief that dandruff occurs when skin of the scalp gets dried. However, too much oily scalp attracts dirt which in turn aggravates the problem of dandruff. Nonetheless, scalp massage with the help of appropriate oils is essential along with regular and frequent hair wash with good quality herbal shampoo.

Home Herbal Remedies for Dandruff

If the natural dandruff treatment do not prove to be helpful, one must adopt home and herbal remedies for dandruff cure.

• • Take some fermented curd (ferment curd by keeping it aside for 2-3 days, do not freeze) and apply this curd to the scalp and hair. Keep it for about an hour and wash it off with shampoo. Curd not only is a very good dandruff treatment but is also the natural conditioner that makes hair shiny.
• • Mix two tablespoons of vinegar with six tablespoons of hot water and apply it all over the scalp. If you have long hair, increase the amount accordingly. Keep it overnight after tying a cloth and wash hair with plain water the next morning. Do it twice a week for 3 months. It is an effective home dandruff treatment.
• • Massage the scalp regularly with olive oil. It will not only cure dandruff but will also prevent it from occurring.
• • Take one part of sandalwood oil with three parts of lemon juice and apply on scalp to get rid of dandruff.
• • Apply gel of aloe vera leaves on scalp and leave it overnight. Wash it with a herbal, preferably shikakai shampoo the next morning.
• • Soak two tablespoons of fenugreek seeds overnight and make a fine paste from it. Apply this paste on scalp and leave it for half an hour. Wash hair thoroughly with soap-nut (ritha) solution or acacia concinna (shikakai)
• • Mix two tablespoons of green gram powder with half a cup of curd. Wash hair with it twice a week.
• • Boil tops and roots of beet in water and massage the scalp with this water every night. Use your finger tips to gently massage hair scalp.
• • Mix few drops of lime juice with Emblica Officinalis or Indian gooseberry (amla) juice and massage the scalp with it every night before going to bed.
• • Boil the peel and seeds of ash gourd in coconut oil. Massage the hair scalp with this oil to prevent dandruff and dryness of the scalp.