Best Shampoo for Dry Scalp

April 25, 2018 12:12 PM

I am seeking recommendations for a good shampoo for dry scalp.

My scalp is rather dry, especially toward the front of my head. I am not sure if I have dandruff per se, but I definitely might. I have very thick hair (kind of oily, too). What are really good shampoos for dry scalp? I love things that smell great; conversely, I also like more "natural" products. But I will take recommendations for whatever, as long as it helps eradicate dry scalp. Ick.

posted by bookworm4125 to Health & Fitness (19 answers total)

Apologies as this is not the answer you were looking for, but I have found that my dry scalp/dandruff improved dramatically when I stopped using shampoo. I use shampoo now 4x a year, the day I am going to get a haircut, only because my hairdresser expects it (not because my hair looks horrible). Using water alone has been great for my hair and my scalp. YMMV.
posted by Bella Donna at 12:50 PM on April 25, 2018 [6 favorites]

Have you tried anti-dandruff shampoo? Head & Shoulders does work for a lot of people. If that doesn't help, I'd consult a dermatologist to rule out psoriasis.
posted by DarlingBri at 12:59 PM on April 25, 2018

Best answer: I love Nizoral, I use it every other wash and it keeps my hair shiny, my scalp happy. It's pricy but concentrated and effective, and it doesn't leave residue like some of the other products in my experience.
posted by lafemma at 1:05 PM on April 25, 2018 [2 favorites]

Seconding Bella Donna, only to add that dandruff is yellowish, so if they're normal whitish flakes it's just dry scalp.
posted by rhizome at 1:08 PM on April 25, 2018

Note that Canada sells Nizoral OTC in a concentration (2%) only available by prescription here in the U.S., if you have any Canadian hookups. I find it significantly more effective than the U.S. OTC 1%.
posted by praemunire at 1:11 PM on April 25, 2018

There are 2 neutragina ones I like- t/gel which is for dandruff and T/sal which prevents scalp build up.

Another thing that has been SUPER amazing for my scalp is this Marvy shampoo brush Which does feel like a scalp massage and helps really work the medicated shampoo into the scalp and dislodge any build up. I am Not ashamed to admit that once I got that thing I also started repurposing this cat brush that my cat doesn’t like With its slightly longer, rubbery fingers to achieve the same shampoo/scalp rubbing purpose. Might be good for thicker hair.

For conditioners I have had good luck with the Renpure brand.
posted by wowenthusiast at 1:14 PM on April 25, 2018

Best answer: Assuming your dry scalp isn't dandruff, I recommend OGX Coconut Milk Shampoo. It smells great but isn't so strong that people will be able to smell you without getting close. Switching to a moisturizing shampoo like this actually made my hair less oily, because the previous shampoos were too drying and my scalp was overproducing oil in response.
posted by purple_bird at 1:17 PM on April 25, 2018 [2 favorites]

I get white crusties at my scalp line, and sometimes in the back of my scalp. The Neutrogena T-Gel works best for me. The tar smell is a bit of a turn off, but once you use it a few times, it's not noticable. I only wash about 2x per week.
posted by hydra77 at 1:20 PM on April 25, 2018

Dry scalp hair is caused by a number of different things.

If it is dandruff caused by malassezia, nizoral's active ingredient is ketoconazole, which is an anti-fungal. It's been effective for me.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dandruff/symptoms-causes/syc-20353850
posted by just.good.enough at 1:50 PM on April 25, 2018 [3 favorites]

Note that Nizoral is also effective if it turns out that your condition is psoriasis, not dandruff. #askmehowiknow
posted by hanov3r at 3:57 PM on April 25, 2018

Neutrogena T-Sal, as suggested above. That one’s active ingredient is salicylic acid.

Another idea: every three to five days, wash your hair with white vinegar, diluted 50% with water. That is acetic acid.

A folk cure is ground up aspirin tablets. What is aspirin? Acetosalicyclic acid.

There’s a common thread here. Essentially, acidity is good for dry and itchy scalp problems.
posted by yclipse at 4:53 PM on April 25, 2018 [1 favorite]

I used to have this exact problem and found that regular shampoo actually made it worse, as did anti-dandruff shampoos. I tried all the things, including the vinegar rinse thing. Eventually I found my holy grail. These days I use Trader Joe's Tea Tree Tingle Conditioner as my "shampoo." I find if I give my scalp a good thorough massage with the stuff I don't need shampoo and my scalp doesn't itch or flake. It took a couple weeks for my scalp to stop overproducing oil in response to drying shampoos (I just lived in a bun and resisted the urge to wash it too much), but now I use it every 4/5 days, just as I once did with shampoo (that's as often as I ever washed my curly hair anyway) and it's amazing and wonderful and I never thought my scalp would stop driving me crazy but here we are. Might be worth a shot!
posted by JuliaIglesias at 7:07 PM on April 25, 2018

I'm not sure I agree that acidity is always good for dry and itchy scalp problems. It depends what the cause is. Sometimes you may simply be shampooing with an overly strong formula, or too often, and that issue can be compounded by a low humidity environment.

Try rubbing a little moisturizer into your scalp the night before you shampoo. Then take a plastic cup into the shower with you when you next plan to shampoo, and dump one TSP or so of shampoo into the cup rather than on your head. Then, fill with the cup with water, stir with your finger, and apply to your scalp in sections rubbing it through before you finally rinse it out. You'll note that diluted shampoo washes hair just as well. Try this over several washings and see if it helps any.

Note: Only dilute shampoo right before you use it, so as not to disturb the shampoo's preservatives.
posted by Violet Blue at 7:09 PM on April 25, 2018

I used to be in a very similar situation (and was eventually diagnosed with seborrheic dermatitis) — anti-dandruff shampoos didn’t help, going “no shampoo” with baking soda and apple cider vinegar worked but dried out my hair — what finally made a difference was switching to sulfate-free shampoo and conditioner. I haven’t had a flaky scalp in close to a decade now.
posted by bettafish at 9:12 PM on April 25, 2018

For dry scalp that's dry scalp: I've had good results using The Seaweed Bath Co. moisturizing conditioner. What works for me is using the conditioner every day and the moisturizing shampoo only when really necessary. It's much less drying than other shampoos I've used but it's still too drying to use often. I try to make sure I'm getting conditioner directly on my scalp, not just in my hair, and leave it in for as long as reasonably possible before rinsing.
posted by Verba Volant at 9:43 PM on April 25, 2018

A tangential answer to your question, but - do you air dry your hair after washing, or do you blow-dry it? My hairstylist told me that with dry scalp, the condition is exacerbated if you air-dry your hair as your scalp stays moist for longer. With very thick hair, the scalp stays damp for much longer. Whatever shampoo you end up using, you could try blow-drying the 2 inches of hair closest to your hair after wetting it (you don't have to blow-dry it all) and seeing if that helps.

I used to have very dry scalp, I couldn't wear anything black! But this seems to have passed now.
posted by Ziggy500 at 7:21 AM on April 26, 2018 [1 favorite]

T/Sal worked reasonably well back when I had major scalp issues, but lately the head and shoulders in the blue bottle has been enough. What helped far more was a different climate. (When I was younger, I permanently had a super thick layer of crusty skin on my scalp, possibly thanks to psoriasis, possibly not)

I also once tried some tea tree oil shampoo at the recommendation of a stylist and while it didn't reduce the crustiness, it certainly did make it less itchy, so I wasn't so likely to pick at it enough to make it bleed.
posted by wierdo at 7:06 PM on April 26, 2018

And no, not washing my hair didn't fix it. Neither did not having hair, for that matter. Living in Florida did that.
posted by wierdo at 7:07 PM on April 26, 2018

Response by poster: Hmmm, interesting answers all--thank you. I hear people on the T-Gel recommendation, but I can't with the scent. I also absolutely can't do no shampoo--I have tried and it's not for me. Last night I washed my hair with just conditioner (from Lush), and I also blew dry...neither of those things helped. Will try Nizoral next, I think.
posted by bookworm4125 at 10:02 AM on April 27, 2018