Oily Scalp

Has anyone ever found anything that made their scalp less oily? After dealing with this for 30 years, it is getting a little sickening!

What kind of shampoo do you use? The shampoo makes a HUGE difference. The cleanser has to be gentle, otherwise the scalp will "overcompensate" and produce extra oil. When I used Pert Plus, my hair was GROSS! Then I switched to a shampoo that had "sodium laureth sulfate" listed second (not sodium lauryl sulfate, or anything that starts with "ammonium") and my scalp adjusted over a matter of 2 weeks.

Best of luck
Anais

It really doesn't seem to matter what shampoo I use. I have had this problem for 30 years, and have tried it all.

Some say to use a moisturizing shampoo. Some say to use a gentle shampoo. Some say use an oily hair shampoo. Some say use a regulating shampoo.

Nothing seems to make any difference. How often did you have to wash your hair before, and how often do you have to do it now?

Thanks for trying to help.

I'm sorry I couldn't help you much. When all other explanations for oily scalp fail, I say it's the genes.
As for your question... for my 2 weeks of transition, I went from daily washing to 3x/week. For the next three months or so, I gradually decreased to 1.5x a week or 3x every two weeks.

Good luck
Anais

Have you ever tried Neutrogena shampoo? It's a clarifying shampoo that removes all build-up. I had an oily scalp when I was younger (I finally outgrew it in my late 20s). I found that washing just my scalp everyday with a clarifying shampoo took care of the problem without drying out the rest of my hair.

Yes, I'm afraid I get it from my Dad. He's almost 80, and still has an oily head. Thanks, Dad! My Mother does not have the problem.

I can wash my hair every day with a gentle shampoo, but I'm trying not to have to do that. I've also read that washing every day makes the problem worse. And I think it does.

I have very oily skin too. I'm sorry to say I haven't found any products that really help with it. Doing the last rinse with very cold water does help some though. I guess you close the pores with the cold so less oil comes out. I find it also helps make my facial skin look a lot less oily.

I wash my hair every other day. It does look oily on the second day, I always wear it up that day and it doesn't show. Since I wanted long hair, I tried to go to every 3rd day with washing, but I couldn't stand it. I made it 2 months, and I just had to quit. My mom only had to wash hers once a week with no noticeable dirt, but that just won't work for me.

Hi. Thanks for the help. I guess I pretty much do what you do. Except I can't deal with the cold rinse in the Winter. I wash it every other day, otherwise I dry out my scalp too much. Especially in the Winter.

I have bangs, and they look oily the fastest. Do you have bangs?

Lisa

I tried bangs, but I had to wash them alone every day, and they'd still look oily in the morning. I didn't like it, so I grew them out.

How did it help to grow them out? Doesn't the hair still look oily by the scalp?

I have oily skin in general, so keeping my hair off of my face really helps a lot. Your hair only touches your scalp at the roots, so the roots gradually look oilier, but if it touches your face and you have oily skin, it gets oily on both ends and soaks that oil up like a mop. If you have an oily face too, keeping your hair off of your face will make a big difference. Now that my bangs are grown out, I put the bang area of my hair up in a ponytail holder at night on top of my head to make sure my hair doesn't touch my face during sleep, and I wear it up off of my face during the day. The bangs I just couldn't keep off my face so they always looked oilier than the rest of my hair. Now my hair just gets oily equally from the scalp only.

Okay. That makes sense. I know my bangs do get more oil from my forehead. ( My face is oily in the T-Zone).

It would take forever for me to grow my bangs out. May bangs are so fine and thin, that that doesn't help either. It doesn't take much oil to make them clump together and look oily. They also never stay in place.

Hey, I have the same problem as you Lisa I have oily hair and have bangs also. I have to wash my hair every day also, using head and shoulders balancing act. unfortunately it only lasts for about a day and i have to wash it the next morning. I'm considering to get a perm to control this problem but not sure yet.. Try asking hairdressers; my sister had extremely dry hair (opposite to me dammit!) and now it's.. pretty much perfect. I haven't been since the shampoo im currently using is fine. Sorry for this long reply, but I hope it was some sort of help to you. Good luck

I now wash my hair three times a week.  That is still stretching it, but it sure beats seven time a week.  I use a non-sulfate shampoo or a light conditioner to wash.  It has helped to use gentler products.

Hi Lisa!  Its funny to read this again, since then I cut bangs again!  (I did hate them, but after seeing how bad I was looking in photos I decided they were the best option).  Now I have to wash bangs-only every morning to keep them oil free. 

Have you tried diluting your shampoo?  This has done wonders for me lately and it might make your going so long work even better.  I've been diluting mine for months now and wouldn't stop (it reduces oilyness a lot).  If you try it, use a smaller bottle and mix only what you need at the time (I wouldn't let it sit around diluted more than a week as its preservatives are diluted and it might grow stuff).  Mix by slowly rolling the bottle.  You can dilute it 50/50 with water - some shampoo is very concentrated though and I find I can even go to 75% water and still get a good lather.

Hi Susan.  No, I haven't really been diluting my shampoo.  Except for putting a lot of water on when lathering up.  I don't know if that makes a difference. 

I looked at your pictures.  Your hair is looking great, and growing so fast!

 

Thanks!  Diluting the shampoo in a bottle will probably help your scalp more than just using a lot of water (because when you put the concentrated shampoo in your hands, its still getting to your scalp in a pretty concentrated state).

 

 I read on Glamour that adding a spoonful of Aloe Vera Gel to your shampoo it will help absorb the oil, but I haven't tried it.