WHAT DOES DANDRUFF LOOK LIKE?

HOW TO SPOT THE SYMPTOMS OF SEBORRHEIC DERMATITIS

If you think you might have dandruff, here are a few pictures of the key symptoms to help you diagnose it.

Dandruff flakes

Dandruff's most visible symptom is flakes, which occur as your skin cells renew faster than usual. These dead cells are visible on the hair and shoulders as ‘dandruff flakes.’

Here, you can see flakes on the shoulder:

And if you look closely at your hair and scalp, you may notice flakes there too:

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Irritated scalp

Another key symptom of dandruff is an irritated scalp as your body reacts to the dandruff-causing microbe, Malassezia globosa.

Symptoms of dandruff you might not see

As well as the visual symptoms, there are some that you can’t see – though you can definitely feel them.

These include:

Itching is a sign of an irritated scalp and is often an early indicator of dandruff. It can also further damage the scalp as scratching disrupts the skin cells on its surface.
Dryness – similar to the feeling when you have dry skin elsewhere on the body, a dry scalp can feel very tight. It happens as damage caused by dandruff disrupts the scalp’s natural moisture defenses, allowing essential moisture to escape.

More about itchy scalp.

More about dry scalp.

How to tackle the symptoms of dandruff

Here’s the easy part. Just switch to an anti-dandruff shampoo like Head & Shoulders.

It’s clinically proven to work on all the symptoms of dandruff, including flakes, itching, and dryness.

More about dandruff.