When it comes to our hair, we get really obsessive with it sometimes. We care for it and try to protect it in the best way possible. We also love getting it colored to look our best. But, the effect of getting our hair colored is not just limited to a lovely color but with it comes a lot of other hair problems because of the chemical agents that are present in the dyes. It either leaves your dry and damaged making it so brittle that it starts causing hair loss due to breakage.
All these can have a really bad effect on our scalp and it can be too frustrating. Sometimes if the hair dye does not suit you well it can be the reason behind your itchy scalp. Then it starts flaking and ultimately leads to dandruff. There are many dandruff shampoos for color treated hair that you can find in the market.
The devil itself: Dandruff
There can be a lot of reasons behind dandruff or that can cause dandruff like symptoms. And dandruff is typically known to be caused by Malassezia. This is a microbe that dwells in our scalp. The natural oil that is present in our scalp becomes its food. But it seems to be pretty harmless. But is does make us sensitive and then our body automatically starts responding by showing signs of dandruff.
Hair dye and dandruff
If you think that hair dyes are directly responsible for causing dandruff then perhaps you are wrong. But if you are already suffering from dandruff problem then hair dyes can even add to it more. So, what is happening on your scalp exactly? It is the chemical that is present in your hair dyes that removes the lipids or the natural oil from our scalp which usually acts as a protective layer. Therefore, the scalp gets exposed as a result of which it gets prone to damage from irritants such as Malassezia. This is what starts developing into dandruff.
On the other hand, the chemicals that are present in the hair dyes can itself be an irritant or like allergen itself that starts causing irritation and it increases if you already have dandruff. Following are the symptoms that you can experience due to contact dermatitis:
- Itching of the scalp due to skin irritation
- Stinging sensation
- Appearance of swollen patches
- Reddening of the skin
What are the chemicals that are present in your hair dyes? They are Paraphenylenediamine (PPDA) which is a sensitizer and can even cause people to get an allergic reaction after repeated exposure. It can cause dandruff too. So, in case you are allergic to PPDA then avoid hair dyes that are of the oxidation type where the hair coloring kits usually contain 2 bottles of colorant and developer that you have to mix together.
Solution
You can always maintain healthy hair and scalp by using dandruff shampoo for colour treated hair regularly for about 2 weeks and avoid shampooing just before coloring as the natural oils will help to protect your hair and the scalp.