Oily Hair Solutions and Causes Explained

Find out about what causes oily hair and how to deal with a ‘greasy’ hair look quickly and easily with our expert tips and advice.

WHAT IS GREASY HAIR?

When people refer to oily or greasy hair, they’re normally talking about the amount of natural oil - known as sebum - which is visibleon the hair.

It happens to everyone, although some people produce more sebum than others, making their hair look more ‘oily’.

Sebum is produced by your sebaceous glands and its primary role is to moisturize the scalp and the hair, keeping it healthy.

The areas with the most sebaceous glands are the face, chest and scalp – in fact, there are between 200 and 500 of them in every square centimetre of your scalp.

Scientists believe these natural oils occur help protect your skin and they may also have helped our human ancestorsto recognise one another by scent.

Your body continually produces this oil, potentially leading to oily hair and scalp problems as sticky oil traps dust and pollution, causing your hair to look dull.

HOW TO DEAL WITH GREASY HAIR

There’s no ‘cure’ for greasy hair as you’ll always produce sebum. But you can keep it under control by using a deep clean shampoo. That means washing your hair at least 3 times a week - by washing your hair frequently, you can remove the oils that accumulate.

In the summer or during periods of high humidity you may want to wash more often as heat and sweat can spread scalp oil and make anoily hair problem worse.