{"id":3955,"date":"2025-11-11T12:49:02","date_gmt":"2025-11-11T17:49:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/prose.com\/?p=3955"},"modified":"2025-11-11T12:49:28","modified_gmt":"2025-11-11T17:49:28","slug":"smelly-scalp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/smelly-scalp","title":{"rendered":"Why You May Have a Smelly Scalp and How to Change That"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Does Not Washing Your Hair Do?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The Problem:\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sure, this runs counter to the advice to not suds-up daily, but when hair is super fine or your scalp\u2019s skin is overly-oily, shampooing every one to two days will help <a href=\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/how-to-treat-oily-hair.php\">keep your sebum levels in check<\/a>. And even with thick, coarse stands that can handle the hiatus, remember that greasy hair holds onto dirt, sweat and debris.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Fix:\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To further keep your scalp and sebum levels in check, incorporate a scalp mask into your hair care routine. <a href=\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/scalp-mask-prose.php\">Prose\u2019s scalp mask<\/a> is detoxifying and <a href=\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/microbiome-friendly-prose-scalp-mask.php\">biome balancing<\/a> thanks to bamboo charcoal powder, kombucha and prebiotics. Plus, the <a href=\"https:\/\/prose.com\/ingredients\/bamboo-charcoal\">charcoal<\/a> helps absorb any buildup and reduce scalp odor, keeping your hair fresh and free from a smelly scalp.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Does Overwashing Your Hair Cause, and What Are The Signs to Look Out for?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The Problem:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Just like not shampooing enough can be problematic, so can washing too much with the wrong products. Regular use of shampoos with heavy detergent loads will lead to over-stripping of strands. And while squeaky-clean hair may be the goal, ironically, the scalp compensates by amping up oil production. The signs of overwashing hair include\u2026&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Fix:\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Be sure to use a sulfate-free shampoo. All <a href=\"https:\/\/prose.com\/products\">Prose formulas<\/a> are <a href=\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/benefits-of-sulfate-free-hair-care.php\">sulfate-free<\/a> which means they avoid harsh chemical cleansing agents called surfactants. Surfactants are listed on labels as sodium lauryl sulfate and sodium laureth sulfate, and while they give cleansers their dense lather, they can be particularly sensitizing to scalps and drying to strands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hormonal imbalances and stress<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The Problem:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Anxiety and stress both interfere with hormonal function and can result in additional oil production and irritation on the scalp.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Fix:\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Incorporate scalp-soothing ingredients into your hair care routine. Prose\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/prose.com\/products\/custom-shampoo\">shampoo<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/prose.com\/products\/custom-scalp-mask\">scalp mask<\/a> contains <a href=\"https:\/\/prose.com\/ingredients\/cannabidiol\">CBD (short for cannabidiol)<\/a> to help combat redness and instantly calm angry skin. Another star ingredient featured in our scalp mask is <a href=\"https:\/\/prose.com\/ingredients\/bamboo-charcoal\">bamboo charcoal<\/a>, which helps draw out impurities and remove excess sebum, reducing scalp odor and keeping your scalp feeling fresh.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Smelly strands begone.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":6003,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,17],"tags":[378,479,249],"class_list":["post-3955","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lab-notes","category-scalp-care","tag-flaky-scalp","tag-new","tag-oily-high"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Why You Have a Smelly Scalp and How to Fix It | Prose<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Wondering why your scalp smells? Learn what causes scalp odor, how to treat a smelly scalp, and the best shampoo and care tips.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/smelly-scalp\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Why You Have a Smelly Scalp and How to Fix It | Prose\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Wondering why your scalp smells? Learn what causes scalp odor, how to treat a smelly scalp, and the best shampoo and care tips.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/smelly-scalp\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-11-11T17:49:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-11-11T17:49:28+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/cdn-blog.prose.com\/1\/2019\/08\/smelly-scalp-1024x683.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"683\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Keely McCormick\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Keely McCormick\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/smelly-scalp#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/smelly-scalp\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Keely McCormick\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/cd00aa1df81e8b84cc05265f0413de08\"},\"headline\":\"Why You May Have a Smelly Scalp and How to Change That\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-11-11T17:49:02+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-11-11T17:49:28+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/smelly-scalp\"},\"wordCount\":352,\"commentCount\":13,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/smelly-scalp#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/cdn-blog.prose.com\/1\/2019\/08\/smelly-scalp.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"flaky scalp\",\"new\",\"oily high\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Lab Notes\",\"Scalp Care\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/smelly-scalp#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/smelly-scalp\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/smelly-scalp\",\"name\":\"Why You Have a Smelly Scalp and How to Fix It | Prose\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/smelly-scalp#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/prose.com\/blog\/smelly-scalp#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/cdn-blog.prose.com\/1\/2019\/08\/smelly-scalp.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-11-11T17:49:02+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-11-11T17:49:28+00:00\",\"description\":\"Wondering why your scalp smells? 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