- Greasy hair can be caused by excess sebum, dirty hairbrushes, frequent touching and hormones.
- Fine or thin hair can show grease more obviously than thicker, coarser hair.
- Managing greasy hair is easy – with a few lifestyle tweaks and failsafe products.
Greasy hair: some of us have to deal with it year-round, while others only notice it as temperatures drop and cosy beanies emerge. Either way, greasy hair can be a bit of a nightmare. If you’re predisposed to producing a lot of sebum, there’s not much you can do to get rid of greasy hair – though there are some very effective ways to manage it.
Why does the scalp produce sebum?
Sebum is meant to moisturise the hair and scalp and is, therefore, an ally rather than an enemy to fend off at all costs. However, an excess of sebum can cause the hair to feel heavy and lank, even after washing. This can occur naturally, with some of us more predisposed to producing sebum and oils than others.
Why does my hair feel greasy straight after washing?
Besides being naturally more sebum-prone, hair can also become greasy when product builds up on the scalp over time.
This can happen during the washing process, when cleansing products aren’t properly rinsed out, as well as during styling. Leave-in products can leave layers of build-up on the scalp that, when combined with environmental debris (dust, pollution and limescale), can create the feeling of perma-grease.
Does washing my hair every day make it greasier?
Cleansing your hair on a regular basis is essential for a healthy scalp and washing it daily will not make it more greasy. The important thing is to use gentle, skin-friendly formulas.
Not washing the hair and scalp enough can lead to hair loss (and some forms of dermatitis) as accumulated sebum and keratin can clog the hair follicles.
A word of caution, though: if you have naturally oily hair, steer away from shampoos that promise to make it smoother, shinier or repair damaged lengths. They usually coat the hair in film-like substances that wrap around the cuticle and weigh roots down further.
Why does my hair get greasy so fast?
At certain points in your life, you may notice your hair becomes much more greasy. For example, puberty, menopause, stress and menstrual cycles – all of which come with their own hormonal cocktail – can have a pronounced effect on how much sebum your scalp produces and, therefore, how greasy your hair feels.
We touch our hair and head so much more than we realise. An absent-minded hair twiddle as you trawl through emails or a quick zhuzh before heading to a meeting can quickly add up, resulting in greasy hair requiring yet another hair wash.
Like your scalp, your hands produce natural oils that, when transferred to the hair, can add to the slippery, oily feeling of greasy hair. Added to that, your fingers may have the residue of oils from foods, hand creams and hand sanitisers that can all be transferred to the hair and exacerbate grease.
Hands up if you’ve never washed your hairbrush. It’s understandable. Unlike make-up brushes, which, really, we know we should be washing every week to two weeks, hair brush sanitisation hasn’t caught on nearly as much.
If you struggle with greasy hair, regularly washing your hairbrushes can be a game-changer for eliminating excess grease.
Start by unpicking the accumulated hair from the brush or comb – taking care not to yank and damage the bristles. Then, submerge the bristles or teeth in a bowl of warm water with a few drops of shampoo for anywhere between 10 and 30 minutes. For a deeper clean, add a teaspoon or two of baking soda. Next, take a toothbrush and scrub the area around the base of the bristle where it meets the brush head. Finally, rinse the brush and bristles with warm water and leave to air dry.
While your hair type won’t determine how greasy (or not) your hair is, fine and thin hair will show grease more obviously. This is due to a number of factors but the most prevailing one is that oil travels down thinner, finer hair more quickly.
How to get rid of greasy hair
Anyone who routinely uses straighteners and other stylers will often notice their hair getting heavy quickly, despite washing it. As mentioned, this is because heat-protective sprays, gels and masks can leave a permanent residue on the skin.
If hair is not properly cleansed, the build-up – combined with natural sebum – ends up making the hair greasy. To rectify this, use products that are specifically formulated to purify, which will help hair to “breathe”.
Olaplex
No.4C Bond Maintenance Clarifying Shampoo
- Why We Love It: No matter your hair type – dry, coloured, wavy, curly, straight – you can maximise the clarifying benefits of Olaplex’s dedicated shampoo. Combating product build-up, excess oil and the residue from hard water, it is designed to slot into your routine once a week to restore the strands to their lustrous glory. It is safe to use on dyed hair too in order to revive a salon dye. There are no sulfates, silicones or parabens in the formula.
- Key Ingredients: Broad-Spectrum Clarifying System
- Best for: Hard water buildup
Redken
Amino Mint Scalp Cleansing Shampoo For Greasy Hair and Oily Scalps
- Why it’s Vogue-approved: If greasy roots have left your hair feeling itchy and uncomfortable, try this soothing shampoo. Peppermint extract cools any heat while an amino acid complex encourages better, more balanced scalp health.
- Key ingredients: peppermint extract, amino acid complex
- Size: 300ml
- Why we love it: “As someone who suffers from a dry scalp, I love this formula because it cools upon application, helping to alleviate that slightly frustrating itchy feeling. Be warned: it’s addictive.” – Hannah Coates, beauty and wellness editor
Post-shampoo treatments should be used with caution and only applied in small amounts to the ends of the hair. In this case, less is more. Using a moisturising conditioner all over the hair doesn’t necessarily lead to more moisture and can actually weigh the hair down – especially if it is fine. If you use conditioners or masks to help detangle, opt for an in-shower hairbrush instead.
Scrubs and clay masks are useful because they help to remove dead cells, product residue and sebum that, in the long run, become occlusive. Gentle exfoliation is great because it can help the active ingredients in shampoo and conditioner penetrate better, ensuring they’re more effective. Those with oily hair should seek out formulas with salicylic acid due to its sebum-regulating power.
A must-have for anyone who is concerned with greasy hair, dry shampoo is super effective at removing grease and restoring hair volume. There are a number of different formulas which cater to different hair concerns on the market, but they all work in the same way – apply to the roots and massage in.
Be careful not to go overboard, as they can accumulate on the skin and cause build-up or trigger irritation.
Like we said, regularly touching your hair will exacerbate the amount of grease and oil on your strands. Reducing the number of times you touch your hair after styling, especially the fine front sections, will help to keep it clean and fresh.
How to prevent greasy hair from returning
While greasy hair isn’t something that can necessarily be “solved”, it can be managed. Here are the ways in which you can help support your hair:
- Use a clarifying shampoo to cleanse the scalp and hair of build-up and sebum.
- A double shampoo can help to thoroughly cleanse the hair and eliminate any pockets of grease left over from the first wash.
- Regularly wash anything that touches your hair: that includes hairbrushes, pillowcases, wiping down hot tools and washing your hands.
- Tie your hair back if you feel that you can’t stop touching it.
- Keep a dry shampoo on hand for quick refreshes before your hair becomes too greasy and necessitates a full hair wash.
- Apply the majority of your styling products to the mid-lengths and ends (save for mousses and volumising products designed to be used on the root) to avoid build-up.
- Wash your hair with lukewarm water to thoroughly cleanse oils without stimulating the scalp to produce more.
- It’s not an instant solution, but adjusting your diet to include more whole foods, essential minerals, fatty acids and vitamins (and minimising processed foods high in saturated fat and sugar) should help with reducing excess grease on the skin and scalp.
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