Dandruff affects over 50% of all Americans and can be embarrassing, causing you to shy away from social situations or controlling what types and colors of clothes which you let yourself wear. Because of all of this, many people are looking for a treatment for dandruff that works, so let's look at some important things which you can start doing today to get rid of those annoying flakes for good.

Dandruff can occur for any number of reasons. For some people, dead skin is produced and flakes off of the scalp at a greater rate than others, causing it to be more noticeable. It also comes from an excess of sebum or oil in the skin on the scalp, or can be the byproduct of micro skin organisms. It can also be triggered by exposing the scalp to extreme heat or cold.

Be firm but gentle on your scalp when shampooing and leave it on your hair for a few minutes. When it comes time to rinse, use lukewarm water as this is more neutral and less abrasive. Be sure to rinse thoroughly as any leftover shampoo can irritate your scalp once it dries and cause additional dandruff. Once you are out of the shower, pat dry your hair with a towel rather than vigorously rubbing. If you blow dry, avoid using the extreme heat settings on your hair dryer as this also agitates the scalp.

There are a number of shampoos out there which work as a treatment for dandruff. They oftentimes contain active ingredients such as selenium sulfide or salicylic acid which are adept at removing flakes as well as the excess oil from the scalp so less dandruff is produced.

It's a good idea to revolve between multiple shampoos which contain different ones of these active ingredients every other day as this keeps your scalp from adapting to that shampoo so that it doesn't work anymore.

Stress plays another large role in causing dandruff as you shed more skin when you are stressed. Try taking a bath a few times a week if possible by candlelight with bath salts as these all have calming and nourishing effects on the skin.