Throughout my experience as a loctician, I have come across clients with many problems with their dreadlocks. Some experience thinning, balding, and dandruff. If you decide to lock your hair, it is your expectation that your journey will be a beautiful one. After all, the appearance of our hair and skin is an indication of our internal health. I will address the 3 main problems that one can encounter with dreadlocks and the simple solutions to help you prevent or cure these problems.
DANDRUFF:
The biggest misconception related to dandruff is that it means your scalp is dry. In turn we grease up our scalps and saturate our scalps and hair with oil. Big mistake! Whenever you see dandruff, it is the fungal infection calling card. It means that there is an over population of fungus on our scalp. The dandruff results from the fungus biting through our scalp, causing itching, irritation, and lastly flaking of the skin.
SOLUTION:
Wash your dreadlocks more often. Most people wash their dreadlocks once a month. This wreaks havoc on our scalp. Just like our bodies needs to be showered daily, our scalp needs to be cleaned regularly as well. If you cannot wash your dreadlocks once a week, wash them at least once every two weeks. Washing more often will eliminate fungal colonies and your dreadlocks will thank you by growing faster, stronger, healthier, and thicker.
Natural anti fungal scalp tonics will also cure dandruff. Oils should never be left on the scalp more than 24 hours. Remember that fungus eats oils. Feeding them more oil than they already get from our follicles will send them into over drive.
THINNING:
You know your Dreadlocks are thinning when the roots become significantly skinnier than the rest of the Dreadlock. Sometimes this thinning can happen in any area along the Dreadlock.
One cause for thinning can be tight styling. Your dreadlocks should never be tight. Let your Stylist know if you feel any discomfort. The health of your scalp and hair is more important than style.
Another cause for Dreadlocks thinning is a mean culprit called "dread rot". Dread rot occurs when fungus grows within the Dreadlock and they literally eat the hair causing them to thin and ultimately snap or break off. This can cause the overall look of your dreadlocks to be very unappealing.
SOLUTION:
Never keep your Dreadlocks style in longer than 2 weeks. This can breed bacteria and fungus that will feast on the dreadlocks along the folded points. Furthermore sweat and moisture gets trapped within the styled dreadlocks and fungus loves a damp environment where they can grow and feed effortlessly.
When you wash your dreadlocks, make sure they are completely dried before you style them. We never fold wet or damp clothes and put them away right? So, we cannot do that with dreadlocks either because they will get moldy and thin out. Mold is a member of the Fungus family. Fungus is bad for Dreadlocks.
BALDING:
When your strands fall out prematurely and are not replaced by new hairs, balding is the result. Balding can be caused by genetic factors, hormonal factors, some medications, poor diet, or fungus and bacteria. Your beautiful head of Dreadlocks can be dramatically affected by balding and the sooner you get to the root of the problem the better. Thinning and balding usually goes hand in hand. Low protein, iron, or vitamin C and E can result in balding. Thankfully there are many ways to reverse balding.
SOLUTION:
Visit your dermatologist, allergist, and general practitioner. These doctors can trouble shoot potential causes for balding. They can also let you know what your body is deficient in and what your body does not need.
Keep your scalp clean if you cannot wash every five days, cleaning your scalp with witch hazel and cotton pads will be helpful in reducing fungus and bacteria which will rob your scalp of what it needs to grow healthy and lovely dreadlocks. Anti-fungal scalp tonics, oils, and elixirs may also regenerate follicle activity to help your hair grow and allow your dreadlocks to thrive.
Good luck to you on your Dreadlock journey and I wish you Happy & Healthy growing! 😀
DANDRUFF:
The biggest misconception related to dandruff is that it means your scalp is dry. In turn we grease up our scalps and saturate our scalps and hair with oil. Big mistake! Whenever you see dandruff, it is the fungal infection calling card. It means that there is an over population of fungus on our scalp. The dandruff results from the fungus biting through our scalp, causing itching, irritation, and lastly flaking of the skin.
SOLUTION:
Wash your dreadlocks more often. Most people wash their dreadlocks once a month. This wreaks havoc on our scalp. Just like our bodies needs to be showered daily, our scalp needs to be cleaned regularly as well. If you cannot wash your dreadlocks once a week, wash them at least once every two weeks. Washing more often will eliminate fungal colonies and your dreadlocks will thank you by growing faster, stronger, healthier, and thicker.
Natural anti fungal scalp tonics will also cure dandruff. Oils should never be left on the scalp more than 24 hours. Remember that fungus eats oils. Feeding them more oil than they already get from our follicles will send them into over drive.
THINNING:
You know your Dreadlocks are thinning when the roots become significantly skinnier than the rest of the Dreadlock. Sometimes this thinning can happen in any area along the Dreadlock.
One cause for thinning can be tight styling. Your dreadlocks should never be tight. Let your Stylist know if you feel any discomfort. The health of your scalp and hair is more important than style.
Another cause for Dreadlocks thinning is a mean culprit called "dread rot". Dread rot occurs when fungus grows within the Dreadlock and they literally eat the hair causing them to thin and ultimately snap or break off. This can cause the overall look of your dreadlocks to be very unappealing.
SOLUTION:
Never keep your Dreadlocks style in longer than 2 weeks. This can breed bacteria and fungus that will feast on the dreadlocks along the folded points. Furthermore sweat and moisture gets trapped within the styled dreadlocks and fungus loves a damp environment where they can grow and feed effortlessly.
When you wash your dreadlocks, make sure they are completely dried before you style them. We never fold wet or damp clothes and put them away right? So, we cannot do that with dreadlocks either because they will get moldy and thin out. Mold is a member of the Fungus family. Fungus is bad for Dreadlocks.
BALDING:
When your strands fall out prematurely and are not replaced by new hairs, balding is the result. Balding can be caused by genetic factors, hormonal factors, some medications, poor diet, or fungus and bacteria. Your beautiful head of Dreadlocks can be dramatically affected by balding and the sooner you get to the root of the problem the better. Thinning and balding usually goes hand in hand. Low protein, iron, or vitamin C and E can result in balding. Thankfully there are many ways to reverse balding.
SOLUTION:
Visit your dermatologist, allergist, and general practitioner. These doctors can trouble shoot potential causes for balding. They can also let you know what your body is deficient in and what your body does not need.
Keep your scalp clean if you cannot wash every five days, cleaning your scalp with witch hazel and cotton pads will be helpful in reducing fungus and bacteria which will rob your scalp of what it needs to grow healthy and lovely dreadlocks. Anti-fungal scalp tonics, oils, and elixirs may also regenerate follicle activity to help your hair grow and allow your dreadlocks to thrive.
Good luck to you on your Dreadlock journey and I wish you Happy & Healthy growing! 😀