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What Causes Greasy Hair Suddenly? [How to fix it]

Asking yourself what causes greasy hair suddenly perhaps it is because you feel desperate because your hair feels and looks dirty.

There are some habits that may be causing this.

The most known cause of suddenly greasy hair is excess oil production on your scalp. Some things like washing your hair too much or using a high temperature when bathing can alter the normal production.

In this article, you will find the main causes and the solutions you can take to clean and eliminate this feeling in your hair.

What Causes Suddenly Greasy Hair Apparience?

It is very likely that what causes your hair to be greasy suddenly has to do with an alteration of the gland that produces the oil in your scalp.

The one in charge of sending the necessary amount of oil to the scalp is the sebaceous gland. We all have it and it is inside the skin of the head.

Something very interesting I want to tell you about this is that this gland always produces grease, oils and other ingredients such as sugars and amino acids that help maintain the skin healthy.

Did you know that we all need that grease on our hair? It protects our skin and scalp. It even has antibiotics that help protect it from dust and other things that come from the outside.

When that gland is stimulated too much it starts to produce more oil (sebum) out of control or out of normal range.

And this causes the feeling of continuous dirtiness! That’s why if your hair is greasy you should keep the excess of oils under control to avoid developing other scalp complications such as hair loss, dandruff or sensibility.

Many of the things that overstimulate this oil production are due to bad washing and cleaning habits. Others cannot be controlled because they are genetic or less common conditions.

What are the Causes of Greasy Hair suddenly?

The most common causes come from specific actions during shampooing and on the products that you use.

It may also be due to external agents such as hormonal imbalances or a change in medication.

I have to say that they are closely related.

Some of them are:

Washing your hair a lot
Using hot water
Over conditioning your hair
Using an inappropriate shampoo
Stress

Let’s see a little more about each one so you can identify why it directly affects your hair and the most practical solutions.

#1 Washing your hair a lot

This may be one of the reasons that I think is most to blame for this happening. And this is also very confusing!

Anyone would think that if your hair starts to feel dirty all of a sudden the smart thing to do would be to wash it more often.

Unfortunately, that’s not the case, it’s the opposite.

The best thing to do when this starts to happen is not to wash it for at least 3 days.

I know it may sound crazy and crazy but it is just what is needed.

Remember I told you about a gland (sebaceous gland) and when you wash your hair it gets motivated to send more oils to your head.

That’s why you shouldn’t wash it so that the gland settles down and doesn’t stimulate itself to create more oil that you don’t need.

The solution is to not wash your hair for 3 days and use dry shampoo in the meantime to clean and maintain a good image.

#2 Using hot water

The temperature with which we wash the hair is very important because in some cases it will have a lot to add.

Avoid using very hot water because it causes the oil to spread, opens the pores and the gland will produce even more oil.

That is why hot water is bad for your hair!

The ideal temperature for washing hair with oil excess problems is warm to cold. As this is difficult to do, you can use warm water instead. Whenever you can it is very good to use cold water.

You will notice how much cleaner your hair feels.

If you continue to do this you will see that along with other good habits the greasy appearance will improve.

# 3 Over conditioning your hair

Sometimes you may be applying conditioner too close to the roots and skin and because of this get saturated. With all the oils an excess of butter that conditioners have you can fill your hair oily and grasy suddenly.

The truth is that if you are over conditioning your hair you can develop greasy hair problems!

I suggest you to not put the conditioner beyond the ears to prevent this.

Always leave a couple inches of minimum separation without touching the skin, but ideally apply it as far away from your scalp as possible!

You may be surprised how applying conditioner below can make such a difference.

When I was little I thought conditioner needs to be all over the hair.

Now after studying about it I know that this can be harmful. Especially for oily skin.

That’s why I’m sharing it with you now so you can avoid it and do it the right way.

This will avoid many more complex problems in the future.

#4 Using an inappropriate shampoo

A bad quality shampoo can cause greasy hair because of the ingredients in the formula.

Shampoos are responsible for cleaning the residue on the head such as sweat, natural oils, dust, and what accumulates from the environment.

The ability to clean well must be in the shampoo and concentrate the wash on the roots and not on the ends.

When the hair does not need certain ingredients, it will return the excess and build a layer there.

Most of the shampoos you can find in supermarkets or pharmacies don’t do a very good job.

It is difficult to find a good one because most of them are loaded with oils and softeners that dirty rather than clean.

The solution for this is that you should use a special shampoo to clean the residues very well. My recommendation is Bain Divalent by Kerastase because it does a very good job. It has worked very well for me and I have seen it work great for many other people.

This product cleans deeply and helps you regulate the production of oils from that gland.

#5 Stress or genetics

Stress is one of the agents that has the most to do with altering the normal behavior of the body.

When we are subjected to high work pressure, for example, the body can secrete hormones or alter existing ones.

Sometimes, when you have a lot of things to do, stress levels go way up and it is common have suddenly greasy hair.

The reason is that the way we produce the natural oil in the skin of the head is by a gland.

Normally it is the nervous system that send signals and regulates glands in the body.

That is why stress can be closely related to the creation of more oils because it disrupts the normal way they work.

READ MORE >> Can Stress Cause Oily Hair?

Bottom line

Knowing what the causes of greasy hair are means that you can now know which way to go and what actions to take

The habits you have seen can help anyone who is suffering from it. Don’t be afraid to follow them. They may help you more than you can imagine.

The products with the right technology can help you regulate that gland plus the other actions in a proper routine like the one you saw will help you control the feeling of fat in your head.

I hope that I have helped you to understand more about this topic and that it will help you to balance yours if you have this problem.

Until next time.