The Flakes Are Gone At Last

[Maelyssa]

For most of the past 10 yrs I've had a horrible case of the flakes.
I've tried just about every over the counter shampoo & leave in product as well as brown sugar scrubs, coing, vinegar & even oil all to no avail.
At best I had maybe a 40% reduction in flakes & redness but still a significant issue.

FINALLY after all these years & all that money spent on products I can safely say that I am 99.9% flake free with the occasional 2 or 3 flakes every now & again.

And what can I credit this to?

A combination of two things.

Firstly I am now sulfate free & I truly believe this had a big part of it. I have tried a variety of sulfate free shampoos & have found it's not a particular brand that works just so long as it's sulfate free. My first sulfate free shampoo was WildAid by David Babaii then I also tried Vitamin Shampoo & Chagrin Valley shampoo bars. Both worked the same in terms of cleaning effectively (for those of us who like shampoo) as well as treating my scalp gently. I do make sure to massage well with the shampoo the areas that give me the most trouble & rinse well.
Secondly I follow up with a good conditioner. Not only do I condition the length but it is essential that I take a good amount of conditioner & apply it to the scalp making sure to condition my whole scalp. Then again rinse thoroughly.
Finally when I apply anything as a leave in I avoid putting it on my scalp. I always try to get the length only whether it be a conditioner or oil...only the length.

And amazingly...no more flakes.

Now I have found that if I go back to sulfates OR if I do not condition my scalp while washing then I will get an immediate return of the flakes.

So for anyone who is having trouble w/those pesky flakes & doesn't know where else to turn why not give it a try?
So simple, so easy & it worked for me.
Good luck!

[Brat]

I have an itchy scalp and flakes. How do you find if they have sulfates? Do the labels specifically say sulfates or is there another name for them? Thanks!

[Roseate]

I had the same experience when I cut out sulfates and I was so happy! I couldn't believe it was as simple as that. No more flakes, no crusty, dry, angry scalp- just one happy head.

Glad you've had the same good experience! :)

ETA: and Brat, yep, it's right on the label, usually in the first few ingredients. Things like sodium lauryl sulfate, ammonium lauryl sulfate, sodium coco sulfate. Some people can't tolerate any of them, some people find a particular one irritating, some people have no problem with them at all.

[Daedalus_Dev]

are there any other recommended shampoos and conditioners that are sulfate free besides the ones listed in the original post? id like to try this as well.

[Roseate]

You can find a ton at any place that sells more 'natural' body-care products, or a Whole Foods. Aubrey Organics makes some nice ones, Burt's Bees makes some that can be found in regular stores. L'oreal just started making a sulfate-free line called "pure care"; I haven't tried those but they are also pretty easy to find.

[angelthadiva]

I use brown sugar and a big glob of condish and work it right into my scalp.

[viking_quest]

I do this too. I had nasty flakes until I changed over to an SLS-free shampoo, but I've found that an AVC rinse after I condition helps as well.

And Brat, sulfates are usually the first or second ingredient listed in shampoo but not always, the name pretty much ends in sulfate like sodium lauryl sulfate, etc.

[Zombiekins]

You know...I haven't been one with scalp issues (not even the greasies, really, since slowly lowering the number of washes a week and using a sulfate free shampoo, co, or shampoo bars), but last year I started getting really awful flakes by the second or third day after wash. They were large and very noticeable on my dark hair. Brushing my scalp made them worse and it seemed like I just couldn't get rid of them.

Then, this year we joined a gym and after getting over my fears of swimming in a chlorinated pool (didn't do anything to my color, btw), I went specifically to swim several times a week. After one week of swimming the flakes were totally gone and haven't been back since. Now, I did oil down my hair the night before and day of swimming, in addition to soaking it with chilly water before hopping in, just for maximum protection from chlorine damage. Oh, and I haven't been back in the pool for maybe two months now, but the flakes haven't reappeared.

Just wanted to throw that out there in case it works for somebody else. :)

[annie09]

me too i had the same trouble for about 15 years i tried all the antiflake shampoos and other treatments also,then last week i cut out sulphates and bam nothing but the odd flake since i can hardly believe it was that simple, my scalp is as happy as yours now and i wouldnt have ever known about sulphates if it wasnt for lhc :):):)

[Helen Baq]

me too i had the same trouble for about 15 years i tried all the antiflake shampoos and other treatments also,then last week i cut out sulphates and bam nothing but the odd flake since i can hardly believe it was that simple, my scalp is as happy as yours now and i wouldnt have ever known about sulphates if it wasnt for lhc :):):)

I actually discovered LHC because of sulfates! I kept having sore, hot, itchy, flaky, greasy scalp problems and they were getting worse. I switched shampoos and it improved, but didn't disappear. When I looked at the ingredients I noticed the worst one had SLS and SLES, but the not quite as bad one only had SLES. I'd already learned a bit about SLS because I'd recently had a problem with a canker sore, so I went searching for info on SLS in shampoo and eventually wound up here - and with a happier scalp! :cheese:

[Jessaka]

Hmm, I guess I need to look for a sulfate free shampoo as well. Mine is weird though, I only have flakes near the top of my head.

[Maelyssa]

I'm glad that so many others are having the same wonderful experience I've had. Flakes can be such TORTURE!

And for me the flakes were always around the temple & hairline. It was horrid...they'd end up on my face...just yuck!

I honestly have seen good results from all the sulfate free poos I have tried & now it seems like mainstream stores are carrying more & more sulfate free products. And most of the bottle proudly say 'sulfate free' right on the front.
I've just recently seen another salon type brand...Cristopher or something like that has a sulfate free line. Also the Samy line has a new sulfate free line. I've truly been finding great selections at places like Walmart, Target, Rite Aid & CVS.
I think the Organix brand also is sulfate free & Naked Naturals is showing up in Rite Aid often. And yes then there's the new L'Oreal line but I haven't yet tried it.
All & all it so far doesn't seem to matter which brand just so long as they're sulfate free.
And I've even used it w/super coney Herbal Essences & they've still washed my hair just fine.

Good luck girls!!!

[sagebabies]

Hmm, I guess I need to look for a sulfate free shampoo as well. Mine is weird though, I only have flakes near the top of my head.

this is exactly me! I recently got a CV tea tree shampoo bar and overnight the problem went away. My whole head used to itch and I'd have a patch right in the front on the top of my head that had flakes. Now it's gone! amazing!