so you’ve gone no-poo/low-poo and now you’ve started seeing some flakes…
or maybe the cold weather has dried up your poor scalp.
let’s check out some ways to keep your scalp moisturized and healthy!
causes of dry scalp/flakes/dandruff:
- dry scalp
- irritation to ingredients
- bacteria/fungus on the scalp
so what can we do to help our scalps out? try these natural solutions! you don’t need to do them all. experiment and see which one/s work best for you and your hair type 🙂 when trying one, use it for a few washes before you judge it. some of these will take a little time, and others will be a little more immediate (depending on the severity of the dandruff and your hair type). the “**” denotes low-poo friendly options only, and should be avoided by no-poo-ers!
natural solutions to dandruff –
overall tips:
- drink enough water. you should be drinking roughly 1/2 oz of water per pound of body weight, or 2/3 oz of water per pound of body weight if you’re very active.
- wash your hair less & remember to scritch and preen!
- take fish oil supplements. i swear by this fermented cod liver oil/butter oil blend. it’s pricey, but the best money can buy (that i know of). you can either get it in capsules (easier to take daily), or as a gel (what i have… it’s tough taking it, but i don’t mind much anymore. it goes great in tuna salad! haha).
natural solutions:
each solution is unique, so don’t be afraid to play around with them (and maybe even mix some things up!)
- try a different wash – if you’re a no-poo-er, ditch the baking soda and switch to a no-poo alternative or a low-poo (you can even try water-only, which is what i do now!). the bs/acv routine could very well be too drying for your scalp. you can always switch back later on down the road!
- raw honey – slather raw honey on your scalp and massage into wet hair. let it sit for 15-20 minutes and rinse well with cool water.
- acv – use an acv rinse on your scalp. this should be stronger than your usual acv rinse. try 3-4 tbs per cup instead of the usual 1 tbs. rinse well with cool water.
- EOs – add a few drops of tea tree oil or rosemary oil to your bs/acv mixes. rinse well with cool water.
- pure aloe vera – slather pure aloe vera on your scalp and let sit for 15-20 minutes. rinse with cool water. *this is my go-to remedy!
- lemons – rinse with lemon water (1 tbs fresh lemon juice to 1 cup water). rinse well with cool water.
- witch hazel – rinse with 3 tbs witch hazel and 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice. rinse well with cool water.
- whip up a couple egg yolks and apply it to your scalp on dry hair. let it sit for 15-20 minutes and rinse very well with cool water.
- onion – blend an onion and massage the “paste” into your scalp. leave on for 30-60 minutes and rinse very well with cool water. a lemon juice rinse will get rid of the onion smell!
- coconut oil – massage coconut oil into your scalp before you wash your hair. let it sit for 20 minutes to overnight and wash out. you can add in 1 drop of tea tree oil or rosemary oil for every tbsp of coconut oil for extra flake fighting power! **
- oils – as with CO, you can also massage almond oil or jojoba oil into your scalp before you wash your hair. let it sit for 20 minutes to overnight and wash out. you can add in 1 drop of tea tree oil or rosemary oil for every tbsp of oil for extra dandruff fighting power! **
- DIY scalp rinse – try this heavy duty scalp rinse!
whew! i hope this helps!
what’s worked best for you? any other tips you have?? leave it all below! ❤
and don’t forget to enter in the “thank you giveaway”!! just as a little THANK YOU to my crunchies, i’m giving away an essential oils kit! ENTER HERE! CLOSED.
the title picture is clearly edited for pinterest reasons… lol