My daughter’s dandruff

My 10-year-old daughter has had dandruff for the past few months. Unfortunately, all the medications I have been using have not helped. Please help me.

Smart (by SMS)

Dandruff is dry flakes of skin on the scalp. It happens when a lot of dead skin cells build up on the scalp. The most common cause of dandruff is seborrhoeic dermatitis. This is a type of eczema that can develop where the skin is oily and hairy. Stress, cold and dry weather, and mild allergies to some hair and scalp products can make dandruff worse. Dandruff isn’t contagious.

Dandruff is very common in children, teenagers and adults. You’re more likely to see dandruff once your child reaches puberty, because this is when the oil glands become more active. The most common symptom of dandruff is a dry and itchy scalp. The scalp can be sore or inflamed, particularly if your child scratches a lot. On children with darker skin, the scalp might also look brown, purple or grey.

On children with lighter skin, the scalp might also look red. You can usually control dandruff by regularly washing hair with a medicated shampoo. You can buy medicated shampoo from the pharmacy or supermarket. If you don’t know which shampoo to buy, ask your pharmacist.

You or your child should massage the shampoo into their scalp and leave it in contact with the skin for 5 minutes, then rinse out. Make sure your child’s hair is brushed before shampooing to remove some of the dead flakes. But note that brushing too hard might irritate the skin and cause bleeding.

Once your child’s dandruff is under control, cut back the use of medicated shampoo. For example, your child can wash with their usual shampoo for one wash, then use medicated shampoo for the nextA wash. To stop the dandruff from coming back, your child can use medicated shampoo as long they need to. For example, some children might keep using medicated shampoo once or twice a week.