Understanding Your Scalp

It's important to understand your scalp if you want to properly care for it. For starters, note that the word "scalp" is a mnemonic for the five layers that form it: the skin, connective tissue, aponeurosis, loose areolar tissue, and pericranium.

Hair usually develops in the second layer, the connective tissue. That's your basic scalp anatomy across the board, but just because we all have the same makeup doesn't mean we all have the same type of scalp. Many of us suffer from scalp sensitivity that causes itchiness or irritation. Maybe you consider your scalp "normal" but it errs on the side of dry or oily. Visit a Davines professional to find out exactly which of these describes your scalp.

How to Achieve (and Maintain) a Healthy Scalp

If you've managed to achieve the ideal scalp balance — not too oily, not too dry, never irritating or itchy — you must be doing something right. If not, rather, consider it time to change up the routine for better results. Here are our tips for achieving and maintaining a healthy scalp.

Keep Your Scalp Clean

A balanced scalp should be washed every three or four days, but you might have to shampoo more or less frequently if you suffer from excessive oil (wash up to once a day) or dryness (wash once a week). Regardless, it's important to get the scalp thoroughly clean on wash days to prevent product buildup, which could become the source of your problems. In addition to your everyday shampoo, you should also incorporate scrubs and regular detoxes into your care regimen.

Keep Your Scalp Clean

There's a laundry list of ingredients to avoid if you want to maintain a healthy scalp. Harsh chemicals like sulfates (used to boost lather), phthalates (for getting fragrance to stick to strands), can stick to the skin and cause irritation. Look for hair care made with real, natural ingredients instead. Davines sources many of its ingredients from sustainable farms around Italy.

● Calming Shampoo
● Elevating Scalp Recovery Treatment
● Rebalancing Cleansing Treatment
● Purifying Gel
● Solu/ Sea Salt Scrub Cleanser

Massage Your Scalp

Massaging the scalp has a few benefits: It can help lift dead skin cells and product buildup off the scalp, allowing it to breath, and also improve circulation. Increased blood flow to the scalp stimulates nerve endings and nourishes the follicles to promote hair growth. General stress relief is an added benefit.To massage your scalp with your fingers, apply light to medium pressure and work your way across the area going in small circles. You can do this technique dry or with conditioner in the shower. You can also employ a rubber massage tool or brush, mimicking the fingertip technique again with small circles.

Eat a Healthy Diet

A balanced diet packed with vitamins and minerals is essential for skin and hair health. For example, nuts and oils rich in fatty acids can improve cell function and make your strands shine while vegetables high in beta-carotene (think carrots and sweet potatoes) help the scalp retain moisture.

Protect Your Scalp From the Sun

Always, always protect your scalp with a hat, a scarf, and/or SPF when you're in the sun. The skin on your head is very delicate and susceptible to sun damage — melanoma, even — so be sure to shield it physically or apply sunscreen, no matter how uncomfortable.

Stay Hydrated

Drinking water keeps the skin hydrated — you know this! — and that goes for the skin on your head just the same. Dryness, itchiness, and flakiness could be signs that you're dehydrated. How much water you should drink a day depends on lifestyle and weight but ranges from about 2.5 to four litres.

Preserve the shampoo bar, avoiding waste

What to Eat on a Hair-Healthy Diet Remember what they always say: Beauty comes from the inside. You can go ahead and take that in literal terms when deciding what to eat and drink to promote scalp health. Indeed, nutrition and lifestyle habits can significantly impact the hair and scalp, for better or worse, so here are some dietary boosts we recommend.

 ● Beta-carotene: The beta-carotene found in carrots, sweet potatoes, mangoes, pumpkin, and most other orange fruits and vegetables turns to vitamin A in the body, and vitamin A promotes cell turnover and, in turn, hair growth.

 ● Vitamin C: Oranges, strawberries, and other vitamin C-rich foods can help your scalp ward off harmful bacteria. Plus, they’ve been known to provide itch relief.

 ● Fatty acids: Fish oil is a common hair supplement, but you can also get your omega-3s from avocados, seaweed, flaxseeds, fatty nuts (like Brazil nuts), and chia.

 ● Iron: Iron deficiency can lead to hair loss, so make sure you meet your recommended daily amount with eggs, legumes, dark leafy greens, and cereal grains.

 ● B vitamins: Yogurt, beef, spinach, and seafood contain B vitamins that carry oxygen to the scalp and encourage cell rejuvenation.

The Bottom Line

Now that you know what to do to improve scalp health, it's time to put the words into action. Fill your water bottle, pencil in a yoga class, plan a nourishing dinner, purge your hair care routine of harsh chemicals, and treat it to a good massage the next time you take a shower. If you still experience excessive dryness, oiliness, or irritation after making changes to your lifestyle, it might be time to see a dermatologist or trichologist.

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