Smelly scalp, also called smelly hair syndrome, is when the skin on top of your head has an unpleasant scent. The smell can also linger in your hair. Stinky scalp can be a symptom of several medical conditions. It can also result from the way you take care of your hair. You can often treat a smelly scalp at home.
Like its name, the main symptom for this condition is a horrific odor that comes from the hair and scalp. For some people, the odor emanates a few hours after showering, but in extreme cases, an odor can be noticeable right after showering.
Not Washing Enough
Not shampooing enough can build up oils (sebum) on your scalp and lead to a smell. If you have an oily scalp or super thin hair, consider washing your hair with a mild shampoo every two days to keep the sebum levels in check. Note: Too much of anything is bad.
A smelly scalp can be caused by underlying medical conditions, such as psoriasis or a yeast infection, or non-medical causes, including poor hygiene, pollution, and even certain foods. Once the underlying condition is determined, your smelly scalp can be treated appropriately.
Diagnosing and Treating an Unpleasant Scalp Smell
The story typically goes that their scalp smells bad and no matter what they do, they just can't get rid of the smell. The specific issue goes by a variety of names, although the most common names are smelly scalp syndrome (SSS) and smelly hair syndrome (SHS).
Care and Treatment
Change your hair care products: Try “clarifying” shampoo designed to prevent the buildup of hair products. Look for ingredients such as apple cider vinegar or tea tree oil. You may also have good results from eliminating hair products for a time, so your scalp can recover.
Over/Under-Washing
If you've been skipping out on your wash days and relying on dry shampoo to tide you over, that could be one reason why your hair smells. The buildup of sebum, dead skin cells, sweat, and product residues marinate your roots, making it the ideal environment for bacteria to proliferate.
As one trichologist told Cosmopolitan, it is those bacteria that are producing the sour to acrid smells you start to notice 24-48 hours after shampooing your hair. Left to its own devices, the smell will become noticeable to your friends, colleagues, and passerby, making life unpleasant for you and everyone around you.
Essential oils such as tea tree oil can be used to reduce the smell of the scalp because it has powerful cleansing, antibacterial and antimicrobial properties that aid in eliminating the bad smell. What's more? It can also improve blood circulation in the scalp.
You may have a hormonal imbalance
This is because stress causes some major hormonal imbalances in your body, which is related to overproduction of oil in the scalp causing it to smell awful. BB pro tip: Indulge in some stress-management activity such as yoga and meditation.
Body odor is caused by a mix of bacteria and sweat on your skin. Your body odor can change due to hormones, the food you eat, infection, medications or underlying conditions like diabetes. Prescription-strength antiperspirants or medications may help.
Menopause, hormonal imbalances, sweat glands, stress, and underlying illness may cause hyperhidrosis. Those with this condition often use a combination of treatments to manage perspiration. Unfortunately, when sweat accumulates, it can cause an unpleasant scalp odor, mixing with the bacteria that call your scalp home.
Why does it happen? It takes a lot of time for your hair to dry during monsoon, and the humidity makes your hair secrete more oil than necessary. The oil and damp hair traps in dirt, pollutants, smoke, and many different odours from the environment – making your head a hotspot for foul smell.
Some describe it as "... stinks like a diaper." Others have compared the smell to "sour milk, wet dog, moldy hay, potatoes, an old shoe or dirty socks, a jacket that's never been to the dry cleaner, and an oily smell mixed with vomit." The most unusual description we've heard was "...
Causes. Uncombable hair syndrome is caused by mutations in the PADI3, TGM3, or TCHH gene. These genes provide instructions for making proteins that help give structure to the hair strand (shaft). The proteins produced from the PADI3 and TGM3 genes modify the protein produced from the TCHH gene, known as trichohyalin.
Hair traps moisture, Lamb said, meaning that built-up bacteria on unwashed scalps can start to pick up a mildewy or sour smell after several days or a week, especially if exercise is involved.
When to wash. Rossi generally tells his patients they should wash their hair once or twice per week. But if you've had chemical treatments that can make your hair drier — such as bleach, perms or relaxers — you might want to wash it less than once weekly to avoid breaking or brittle hair or split ends, he said.
Sweat is mainly water and sodium chloride, but also contains small amounts of potassium, calcium, ammonia, urea, lactate, and ethanol. When sweat mixes with bacteria on the skin, it can produce a smell, which may smell like vinegar.
Many things can cause you to have musty, mildew-smelling hair, some of which include; Excessive sweating. This leaves hair moist, thereby giving room for mold growth and a musty smell. It is advisable to free hair from any restraints and loose hair down while sleeping for the sake of air drying.
Your hair can enhance the odor.
And once they break down the fats in apocrine sweat, the stay-away-from-me aroma appears. The more hair you have, the more surface area bacteria has to cling to, which keeps the smell so pungent, says Bowe.
Tip #1 – Wash your Hair with a Sulfate Shampoo for Deep Cleaning. Tip #2 – Deep Condition Your Hair and Scalp With Coconut Oil and Tea Tree Oil Anti Fungal Properties. Tip #3 – Apply Diluted Anti Fungal Essential Oils to Your Scalp and Hair Before Styling.
In the scalp, fungal infections often form circular, scaly, inflamed patches. Frequently, there can be temporary hair loss (hair returns when infection clears but if treatment is delayed and scarring results, permanent hair loss can be seen).