Causative factors can be put down to anything from hereditary, dietary, illness, stress, hormonal to bad hair care (very common).
It usually affects men more than women, and usually after puberty when the hormonal changes take place. It can be mild from a few tiny flakes visible in the scalp or dropping onto one's shoulders, (however, even the mildest forms can be quite stubborn) or more severe as in literally 'snow storms' falling onto one's shoulders. In it's severest form i.e. 'Seborrhoeic Dermatitis' or 'Eczema', the scalp can be quite inflammed and itchy.
It is a completely non-infectious, non-contagious condition, i.e.you cannot catch it from someone else or give it to someone else.
It occurs because our skin cells are constantly renewing themselves. Skin cells on the scalp get renewed, by pushing the old ones to the surface which come away from the scalp. With dandruff, skin renewal is faster, which means that more dead skin is shed and hence, your dandruff is more noticeable.
What can we do for you?
In most cases, dandruff can be easily treated and kept under control with specialized shampoos, and in more severe cases treatment creams/lotions may be required.
It is not a condition to be taken lightly as it is often quite embarrassing, you cannot wear your favourite dark clothes for fear of watching flakes falling onto your shoulders. For those affected by dandruff it can cause social or self-esteem problems, therefore, corrective treatment is very important and necessary for both physiological and psychological reasons.
You are not alone and that is the most important thing to remember, this is a more common condition than you may think.
However, we understand your concerns and would like to reassure you that in most cases of dandruff that we have treated, we have had wonderful results!
Emphasis is on treat it as soon as possible and regularly, 'better late than never'.