The Skin Nerd: Dandruff? Itchy scalp? Get yourself a hair care routine
Skin Nerd: The beauty sector is going to great lengths to help us take care of our hair and scalp.
The intersection between hair care and skincare, depending on how you look at it, has either become much murkier or much more defined in the last few years. Our scalp is made up of skin â it has the same layers as the rest of our skin: a protective stratum corneum, all of the other four layers of the epidermis, and the underlying dermis and hypodermis.Â
It produces sebum â too much, in the case of some of us â and it sheds skin cells. Unlike each hair, our scalp is very much alive and what we apply topically and feed ourselves internally defines the health of our scalp and the health of our hair.
So, what types of products benefit our scalp (and our hair) and do we need them?
Prebiotic and probiotic skincare is known to assist with the balance of our skinâs microbiome, in particular, benefiting those with skin that becomes flaky, itchy, red or angry easily. The same can be said when it comes to scalp care and the always clever and innovative folks at GallinĂŠe know this.Â
Their Scalp and Hair Serum (âŹ26, gallinee.com) is an oil-free prebiotic serum spray, containing alpha-glucan oligosaccharides to feed probiotic bacteria and lactic acid, an AHA that helps to balance the skinâs pH and act as a âpostbioticâ. In clinical testing, 91% of people using the Scalp and Hair Serum agreed their scalp was less irritated. Itâs recommended that you spritz this on to towel-dried hair, focusing on the scalp, or that you apply before bed and wash hair the next morning.
If you have ever read my column, you know that I believe helping our skin to exfoliate itself is integral to healthy skin... So why would the scalp be any different? Drunk Elephant T.L.C Happi Scalp Scrub contains alpha-hydroxy acids, salicylic acid, cellulose beads (biodegradable to boot) and nourishing plant oils to help to remove build up from the scalp and dissolve dead skin cells.Â
This is designed as a pre-shampoo treatment that you apply to dry unwashed hair prior to washing for 5 to 10 minutes. Itâs a true multi-tasker, not only exfoliating, but smoothing and soothing with ingredients like jojoba seed oil and hyaluronic acid. I am personally a fan of applying Skingredients Sally Cleanse (âŹ25, skingredients.com) to my scalp for a minute prior to shampooing to remove build up.
We very much know how UV rays can affect our skin by contributing to accelerated ageing and the development of skin cancer, but the effects on our hair arenât as well researched. In a 2019 study, it appeared that UV disrupted the processes of the hair, decreasing cell proliferation (the process in which new cells are made and old cells are shed off), and caused changes to the expression of growth factors.Â
Sun exposure is known to cause hair dryness, brittleness, loss of colour and decreased shine too. And to think we used to attract the light to our locks with Sun In... My dear friend Katrina Kelly, owner of Cut Social and hair educator, swears by the Joico Defy Damage products for hair protection. The Defy Damage Protect Shield (âŹ24.95, katrinakellyeducation.com) protects against heat damage as well as UV rays.
For those who see very few issues with their hair and scalp, I can understand why active scalp care could be a no â however, if you are someone who suffers from scalp build-up, dandruff, hair breakage or dull hair, branching out into this glorious intersection may be the answer to your follicular concerns!
With botanical antioxidant Aquatic Mint, this shampoo removes 97% of pollutant particles from the hair. In a 2019 study on Chinese citizens, exposure to pollution correlated with the degradation of hair fibres. In other studies, particle matter that accumulates on the hair has been shown to make it duller, drier and more difficult to manage.
This shampoo is suitable for all hair and hair types, respecting the pH balance of the scalp. The formula is biodegradable, and the bottle is made of 50% recycled PET. Follow up with their protective conditioner and whatever else is in your haircare routine!
