Oily scalp with dry ends: Why and How to control?

Growing up, hair oil massage and shampoo was probably the only hair care routine. It hasn't changed much, even today. Everyone's scalp can naturally get a little oily sometimes. While a bit of oil is OK as oil (sebum) helps protect and support healthy hair. But dealing with excessive oily hair is one of the most frustrating & challenging concerns as it makes hair heavy and greasy or dirty all the time, making it difficult and embarrassing to manage. So, what's an oily-haired girl or a guy to do? Hide under a cap? Dry shampoo your hair into oblivion? Stop going out or meeting people? Not possible. Think again.

To start with, relax! It may give you some respite to know that this condition is quite common for many, unlike you thought. And more importantly, there are solutions available to take care of the same!

What causes oily hair?

Before we deep dive into the 'how to' part, let's first try and understand the causes behind it. Oily scalp and dry ends occur due to excess sebum, a naturally occurring oil produced in our oil glands. While our body can usually tell precisely how much oil it needs to produce to keep our skin healthy and hydrated, it sometimes goes on overdrive, resulting in excess production. On one side, this results in our skin and hair feeling oily, while on the other, it makes the hair ends remain dry and damaged due to lack of moisture.

How to confirm if you have oily scalp & dry hair ends?

Simple. Do the following.

Wash your hair correctly with a good shampoo and a conditioner. If your hair roots feel oily within 1 to 2 days of washing and the hair ends feel brittle and dry, you have a combination of oily scalp and dry hair ends.

Reasons why scalp is oily

Listed here are a few significant factors that contribute to an oily scalp:

  1. Seborrheic Dermatitis

"Seborrheic" refers to the "sebaceous" glands while "derm" means "skin." Seborrheic dermatitis is a common, noncontagious, easy-to-manage skin condition. It causes itchy red patches and greasy scales on your skin, along with white or yellow crusty or powdery flakes on your scalp. If your condition is severe, we suggest you consult a specialist and get a check-up done.

  1. Genetics

Yes, like many other things, here too, your genes may be the reason you get an oily scalp. Further, they may also play a role in your hair texture and thickness, and people with thin and fine hair are more likely to have an oily scalp with dry hair.

  1. Skin Conditions

Two widely known skin conditions - eczema and psoriasis, both related to immune dysfunction, cause your scalp to become scaly, red, may feel waxy, and even blistered. The root of your hair looks exceptionally greasy.

  1. Forehead Acne

Not exactly a reason for an oily scalp, forehead acne is surely a sign that your scalp produces extra sebum oil. When this oil gets trapped inside your skin pores, red itchy bumps are seen to develop.

  1. Exposure to Sun

Like your skin, excessive exposure to the harmful UVA and UVB rays is likely to harm your hair, breaking down the cuticle, leading to your hair becoming discolored and dry.

And why the hair ends are dry

Here are a few reasons why your hair can become dry:

  1. Excessive Washing

While washing, especially with a shampoo, helps clean the scalp and remove the dirt and dust properly, excessive washing ends up stripping off the natural oil from your hair strands, making your hair ends dry and brittle.

  1. Weather Conditions

As you travel, weather extremities end up impacting your hair. Continuous exposure to excessively hot or cold weather will make your hair dry and brittle. You will be surprised to know that frequent swimming in the pools and beaches can be harmful too.

  1. Styling

There is widespread use of hair styling products (heat, color treatments, silicone, and bleaching) these days, all in the name of convenience and looking good. While you get a compliment for your looks, your hair is damaged in the long run, making them dry and more prone to breakage.

Stress and diet changes can further intensify the damage to both the scalp and hair ends.

How to control an oily scalp & dry hair ends?

To start with, get to know your hair which will help you understand what it needs. This is half the battle won!

  • Always pick up hair care products suitable for your combination hair type, which means they serve both your oily scalp and dry hair ends.
  • Look to use products free of parabens, silicons, artificial fragrances, sulfates, etc.
  • We suggest you go for products containing natural ingredients and natural oils. Natural products will always be healthy for your hair, irrespective of your hair type.
  • Relook at your diet to help maintain your overall health. Add food rich in protein besides zinc, magnesium, and biotin to help boost your hair's health.
  • Keep your hair hydrated with regular oil massage, especially for your dry ends.
  • Exfoliate your scalp to remove the dead skin cells, extra sebum oil and dirt, using a scalp scrub.

Are you wondering how to know your hair type and what it requires?

You are wondering how to get to know your hair type and what it requires. At Kaion, with the help of our experts, we have a thoughtfully designed questionnaire, answers to which will help us identify your hair type and the current state of your hair.

Our experts process your answers to determine a suitable recipe as unique as you, helping you achieve the perfect hair you've always wanted! To take the quiz: click here

Further, carefully go through the product descriptions, ingredients, usage advice, FAQs, and reviews before selecting a product.

When to see a specialist?

It's always good to visit and consult the specialists - a dermatologist, trichologist, and a dietician. But do so after you have done all the research possible and probably tried a couple of products only to notice no significant improvement. This may also be due to specific skin conditions and genetic disorders.

Finally

A combination of oily scalp and dry hair ends may seem challenging to treat and embarrassing too. Relax; help is at hand. Kailon, backed by a team of experienced hair care professionals, has harnessed the best of laboratory science with naturally derived ingredients to create a series of hair care serums and shampoos especially for combination hair types.

Evocative of the true spirit of India, Kailon is a made in India brand from the house of Kolors Healthcare a 15+ years old ISO 9001; 2008 certified organization and a leading health service provider in India with branches across major metros in South India, offering expertise in weight loss and hair & skin treatments!

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