My scalp used to feel like it was angry at me. Constantly. That tight, itchy, can’t-stop-thinking-about-it feeling that sits somewhere between uncomfortable and actually distressing. Flakes showing up on dark clothes. That specific embarrassment of reaching up to scratch in public and immediately regretting it. I’d wash my hair and get maybe a day of relief before it all started up again. It was exhausting.
I already had androgenic alopecia, which is female pattern hair loss, so my scalp was never just a neutral backdrop I got to ignore. But seb derm on top of that? That was a whole other level of fun. (Not fun.)
Quick disclaimer before we get into it: I’m not a dermatologist. Everything here comes from my own personal experience, my own research, and a lot of trial and error on my own scalp. Nothing in this post should replace professional medical advice, and if your seb derm is severe or not responding to anything, please see a doctor or dermatologist.
What even is seborrhoeic dermatitis of the scalp
Seborrhoeic dermatitis, or seb derm, is a chronic skin condition that affects areas of the body where sebaceous glands are most active. On the scalp it shows up as flaking, redness, itching, and that general feeling that your scalp is staging a protest. The thing is, Malassezia (the yeast behind it) lives on everyone’s skin. Seb derm is strongly associated with an inflammatory reaction to it, though, and in some people, me included, that reaction is very much a whole thing. It’s not contagious, it’s not caused by poor hygiene, and it’s not something you just fix once and forget about. It’s a manage-it-for-life situation, which took me a while to properly accept.
For anyone with hair loss already in the mix, it matters even more to keep it under control. An irritated, inflamed scalp is not a happy environment for hair. So I got serious about it.
One thing I’d also recommend if you’re navigating seb derm: bookmark Sezia. It’s a free tool where you can pop in the ingredients list of any product and it’ll flag whether it’s safe for seb derm or whether it contains anything that could be feeding your Malassezia. I wish I’d known about it earlier. Would have saved me a lot of money on things that were actively making things worse.
Everything I tried before landing here
I want to be upfront: I have spent a genuinely embarrassing amount of money trying to sort my scalp out. Peptide serums, caffeine treatments, clarifying masks, scalp oils, specialist shampoos, soothing toners that smelled lovely and did very little. Some of them were fine. A lot of them were fine. Fine just wasn’t enough. I needed something that actually addressed what was happening on my scalp rather than just temporarily calming it down, and it took a lot of trial and error and a very cluttered bathroom shelf to figure out what that looked like for me specifically.
What I actually do now
This is the routine that I’ve stuck to consistently, which for me is the real measure of whether something works because I’ve abandoned plenty of things that were probably fine just because they were annoying to use.
Every morning: Hypochlorous acid spray, straight onto my scalp. Honestly, I originally bought this for my rosacea, not my scalp at all. I came across someone in a Reddit thread saying it had helped with their seb derm, decided to give it a go, and have genuinely noticed a difference since adding it in. I can’t claim it’s a frontline seb derm treatment because it isn’t — the clinical evidence isn’t there the way it is for something like ketoconazole — but for me personally it’s been worth it. Hypochlorous acid (HOCl) is something your own white blood cells produce naturally as part of your immune response, and in spray form it’s antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory. Two jobs at once. It’s gentle enough for daily use, doesn’t sting, doesn’t dry things out, and I just spritz it onto my scalp in the morning and let it dry. Why I think it helps: HOCl has antimicrobial properties and helps calm inflammation, which for me seems to keep the irritation from escalating between other treatments. It’s not the heavy hitter in this routine but it feels like a useful daily reset. Worth flagging though: this is personal experience rather than established seb derm treatment territory, so go in with that expectation.
Every night: Philip Kingsley Flaky Itchy Scalp Toner. This is the one I rate most highly for seb derm specifically. It contains piroctone olamine, which is an antifungal ingredient that directly targets Malassezia, the yeast that drives seb derm. You apply it to the scalp, leave it, don’t rinse. I do it before bed, let it do its thing overnight. It’s not glamorous but it works and it’s the one thing I’d be most reluctant to drop from the routine. Why it helps with seb derm: Piroctone olamine inhibits Malassezia growth by interfering with its metabolism, and unlike some harsher antifungals it does this without being particularly irritating to an already reactive scalp. It also has some anti-inflammatory properties on top of the antifungal action, so it’s doing double duty overnight.
Once a week: Inkey List Salicylic Acid Scalp Treatment. Salicylic acid helps break down the buildup and flaking that comes with seb derm, and this one applies easily, sits on the scalp without dripping everywhere, and I genuinely notice a difference in how my scalp feels after using it consistently. Worth knowing before you try this one: glycolic and salicylic acids aren’t standard seb derm treatments, and if your scalp is already quite inflamed or compromised they can potentially irritate rather than help. I’d start cautiously. For me they work well as part of a wider routine, but I want to be honest that this is the “managing symptoms and buildup” part of the routine rather than the antifungal heavy lifting. Why I think it helps: salicylic acid is a beta hydroxy acid (BHA) that’s oil-soluble, so it can work its way into the follicle and help loosen the dead skin cell buildup that makes flaking worse. It also has mild antimicrobial properties. Regular use stops the buildup accumulating, which I find makes everything else work better.
Once a week, alternating with the salicylic acid: The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution on the scalp. I know, it’s not marketed for scalp use, but it’s become a bit of a word-of-mouth staple in the seb derm community and I find it helps with texture and buildup. I don’t use it the same week as the salicylic acid, I alternate them so I’m not overdoing the exfoliation. Same caveat as the salicylic acid applies here — this isn’t a standard seb derm treatment and it can irritate if your scalp is already reactive, so patch test and go slowly. Why I think it helps: glycolic acid is an alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) that works more on the surface of the scalp than salicylic acid does, helping to shift the dead skin cell buildup that contributes to flaking. I alternate the two rather than using both because they’re doing slightly different things at slightly different depths, and I don’t want to overdo it.
Pre-wash: MCT oil. I apply it to my scalp before washing as a pre-wash treatment, and I decant it into a scalp applicator bottle I found on Amazon which makes applying it so much easier and less messy. MCT oil is a fatty acid that Malassezia apparently doesn’t feed on, which makes it a useful addition when you’re managing seb derm. It’s quietly earned its place in the routine. Why it helps with seb derm: Malassezia feeds on long-chain fatty acids, which is why lots of regular oils can actually make seb derm worse. Many people with seb derm tolerate pure C8/C10 MCT oil better than traditional oils, because its fatty acid chain length falls outside the range Malassezia can metabolise. Worth noting that not all MCT oils are equal though — the ones to look for are pure C8 (caprylic acid) or C10 (capric acid), ideally without added oils that could be feeding the yeast. So you get the conditioning and protective benefits of a pre-wash oil treatment without inadvertently feeding the yeast. It also helps lift some of the buildup before shampooing so the antifungal shampoos can get to the scalp more effectively.
Shampoo rotation: I rotate between the Vichy Dercos Anti-Dandruff Shampoo, the L’Oréal Professional Scalp Advanced Anti-Dandruff Shampoo (the blue-green bottle), and Nizoral 2%. The Nizoral is the heavy hitter, it’s a medicated shampoo with ketoconazole which is another antifungal, and I don’t use it every wash because overuse can be drying, but having it in the rotation keeps the Malassezia in check in a way that non-medicated shampoos alone don’t manage for me. I also use a scalp massage brush whenever I shampoo. I personally enjoy using one because it helps distribute shampoo thoroughly across the scalp and feels genuinely soothing on an irritated scalp. (Honestly it’s one of those things that feels too nice to be medicinal but actually earns its place.) The gentle stimulation is also just good practice generally when you’ve got hair loss in the mix.
Why each one helps with seb derm: The Vichy Dercos contains selenium disulfide, which has antifungal properties and helps slow the accelerated skin cell turnover that contributes to flaking. The L’Oréal Scalp Advanced contains piroctone olamine (same active as the Philip Kingsley toner) plus zinc pyrithione, which is an antifungal that works on the Malassezia. One thing worth knowing: zinc pyrithione has been restricted in cosmetics in some regions including the EU following regulatory safety reviews, so formulas vary depending on where you buy them. Worth checking the current ingredient list for wherever you are before you buy. Nizoral‘s ketoconazole is probably the most clinically established of the lot for seb derm specifically — it’s an azole antifungal that interferes with how Malassezia produces the components it needs to maintain its cell walls. As for rotating all three: I find it helps prevent my scalp getting used to any one product and stops effectiveness plateauing, though I want to be honest that this is based on my own experience rather than established guidance on antifungal resistance in Malassezia.
The red light helmet: I use the CurrentBody LED Hair Growth Helmet a few times a week. Red and near-infrared light therapy for the scalp has some decent research behind it for hair growth stimulation, and I’ve been using it long enough now to say it’s made a subtle difference. It hasn’t transformed my hair overnight and I won’t pretend otherwise, but I keep using it and that tells you something. It’s one of those things where I think I’d notice more if I stopped than I do while I’m doing it.
A quick note before you go and buy everything
You don’t have to do all of this. Genuinely. I like testing things, I like switching things around, and this is just where I’ve landed right now – the combination that’s made a noticeable difference for my seb derm. But my journey is going to look different to yours. Try one or two things first and see how you get on. Introduce things one at a time, patch test, give each thing a proper chance before adding something else in. Because if you suddenly pile on ten new products at once and your scalp reacts badly, you’ll have absolutely no idea which one caused it. (And honestly, I’d never suggest using that many things on your head at once anyway. Like ever.)
The honest summary
Seb derm is genuinely a lot to manage. And I won’t pretend I’ve completely solved it because you don’t really solve it, you just get better at keeping it calm. The Philip Kingsley toner at night and Nizoral in rotation are the two things that made the biggest difference for me. Everything else layers in around them.
If you’re dealing with it and feeling like you’ve tried everything and nothing is working, I get it. It took me a long time and a very cluttered bathroom shelf to land on something that actually stuck.
Skincare discount codes
If you’re shopping for skincare, I have active codes for a few places worth knowing about. Skinsider — use code NEVEEN15 for 15% off (brilliant for K-beauty in the UK). Stylevana — use code INF10NEVE for 10–15% off. Lookfantastic — use code LFTFNEVEEN for 20% off. And if you’ve been thinking about prescription skincare like retinoids or azelaic acid, Dermatica — use code NEVE1 for your first month free on their subscription, or NEVE2 for 10% off standalone products. Full list at neveenwood.com/discount-codes.
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