Long hair can enhance your style if it looks clean and well-kept. Unfortunately, dandruff can deter from the appearance of your hair. While dandruff is a scalp condition that can affect individuals with any length of hair, it can be more time-consuming to treat and prevent in longer styles of hair.

Dandruff

Dandruff is a common type of chronic scalp condition. While the flaking and itching can be annoying and embarrassing, dandruff is rarely serious and not contagious. However, your long hair requires you to consider the effects of dandruff products on the health of your hair strands, as well as on your scalp condition.

Appearance

Dandruff symptoms are usually easy to spot, especially on dark hair and deeply colored articles of clothing. The dandruff normally appears as white, oily flakes of dead skin. These flakes often dot the area of your scalp around your part, often falling to your shoulders. Dandruff can cause itchy feeling that makes you want to scratch your scalp, an action that can lead to additional flaking and shedding.

Long Hairstyles

While short, full hairstyles often create volume around the scalp, lifting the hair strands upward and hiding the area near the roots, the weight of long styles can pull your hair downward, exposing your scalp near your part. Choosing styles that eliminate your part, such as ponytails and buns, can help hide your dandruff. Tucking your long hair on top of your head in a loose bun may help keep flakes along your hair strands out of sight.

Prevention

Limit the stress in your life, as stress may trigger your dandruff or make it worse. Shampoo often if your scalp is oily. Choose a gentle shampoo that won’t dry out your long hair. Limit your use of styling products. Cut back on sprays, gels, mousses and waxes that can build up and make your scalp oily while weighing down your long hair.

Treatment

Over-the-counter dandruff products usually clear up the flaking and itching, although some may be drying to the ends of your hair. Dandruff products may contain various ingredients including zinc pyrithione, coal tar, salicylic acid, selenium sulfide and ketoconazole. These products can help reduce dandruff by eliminating fungus, drying oily skin, slowing the rate of shedding cells and eliminating scales. Keeping these products on your scalp while using conditioning treatments and rinses on your longer lengths may help reduce dandruff and enhance your hair.