TORONTO - Julie Wright has heard all sorts of suggested solutions for the problem of oily hair, but says she's not a big believer in home remedies.
"A lot of them are old wives' tales," said Wright, head of the Department of Hair and Esthetics at Vancouver Community College. She described it as a frustrating problem for those who find their hair becomes greasy within a day, or even within hours of washing it.
"It's just something that they have to deal with," she said. "It is generally hereditary, generally through their teenage years is the worst time ... but it's just really important that they keep it clean and don't ignore it."
The school has a large international population, and "they come with all sorts of interesting ideas from different countries," she said.
For instance, Wright has heard it said that a woman should not shampoo her hair if she's having a menstrual period.
Meanwhile, the Internet is fairly swimming in inconsistent advice about what someone should do if they're afflicted with greasy hair - and much of the information is posted by salons trying to sell products.
The roots are where this all begins, and it often arises during puberty, experts say.
Kevin McElwee, a research scientist in the Department of Dermatology at the University of British Columbia, said the oils are produced by the sebaceous glands attached to hair follicles.
"They are androgen-responsive, they respond to hormones like testosterone," said McElwee, who is also part of the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute.
"Basically, the oil that's produced is - certainly for those who have oily scalp - often produced in response to androgen activity," he said
"It's very often an issue for boys. Teenagers as they go through puberty, their androgen hormones increase, the testosterone increases, and so this in turn impacts the hair follicles and stimulates the sebaceous glands, and they usually get larger, and they also become more active."
"The consequence is oily scalp and also acne."
Wright noted that as a person gets older, the problem often does slow down.
"A person can have oily hair at any age really," she said. "But it does tend to be more common in teenagers."
Dr. Charlene Linzon, a dermatologist and director of the hair loss clinic at the University of Toronto, said it's important to note that scalp and hair are separate items, and the hair is basically dead cells.
"They're very easily damaged, so the more you use detergents and products on it, the hair actually gets damaged. So that's why you have to correct that damage with using conditioners," she said.
"It would be ideal if we could ... take our hair off, shampoo our scalp and put the hair back on. But that can't happen, so the shampoo really should be more directed towards the scalp and not so much washing the hair."
She advised against two-in-one shampoos and conditioners. In fact, she advises her patients to use an anti-dandruff shampoo that can work as an anti-inflammatory on the scalp: lather it up and leave it on while showering, then rinse at the end.
The shampoo "will be much more effective" against greasiness if left on for five to 10 minutes, she said.
Wright finds some drugstore dandruff shampoos to be "harsh" and recommends salon-quality products. She noted that it's important for people with the condition to look after the scalp well.
