# I shave my head ... so why do I still have dandruff .... in my EARS? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 3, 2003, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-shave-my-head-so-why-do-i-still-have-dandruff-in-my-ears/152515 "2003-02-03T16:11:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Spiff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiff/32/9852_2.png) [@Spiff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiff)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2003, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-shave-my-head-so-why-do-i-still-have-dandruff-in-my-ears/152515/1 "2003-02-03T16:11:01Z")
The question in the subject line say it all. I have a shaved head, and have had one for about 2-3 years now. Never had a dandruff problem before. But for the last six months or so, I have had what appear to be dandruff flakes originating in my ears. My ears itch, I scratch them with my fingers/fingernails, and out come what I think are dandruff flakes. My ears, from what I can see in the mirror, have dry, scaly flakes on the surface of the skin, that fall off on contact. How can I have dandruff from my ears? (And no, I’m not one of those men with forests of hair in their ears …) So, have any other Dopers experienced this? P.S. I’m gonna have to borrow the wife’s bottle of dandruff shampoo and start giving the ears a dose of that in the shower. (As a plus, she’ll go crazy wondering why her shampoo is disappearing so quickly … 'cos she’ll never suspect her bald husband of sneaking it!) ---
**Author:** ![dorkusmalorkusmafia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dorkusmalorkusmafia/32/7266_2.png) [@dorkusmalorkusmafia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorkusmalorkusmafia)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2003, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-shave-my-head-so-why-do-i-still-have-dandruff-in-my-ears/152515/2 "2003-02-03T16:45:08Z")
Those scaley flakes are probably ear wax build up. Use a qtip and dig it out in direct opposition to what the label tells you. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2003, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-shave-my-head-so-why-do-i-still-have-dandruff-in-my-ears/152515/3 "2003-02-03T16:46:12Z")
I heard it’s a vitamin deficiency. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2003, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-shave-my-head-so-why-do-i-still-have-dandruff-in-my-ears/152515/4 "2003-02-03T16:53:50Z")
Try a little Cortaid cream, or other 1% hydrocortisone cream, and it will go away. ---
**Author:** ![FranticMad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c68b51/32.png) [@FranticMad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FranticMad)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2003, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-shave-my-head-so-why-do-i-still-have-dandruff-in-my-ears/152515/5 "2003-02-03T16:53:56Z")
You have to exfoliate your ears every day. I’m not kidding. It’s like any other facial skin. ---
**Author:** ![raygirvan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ac91a4/32.png) [@raygirvan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raygirvan)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2003, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-shave-my-head-so-why-do-i-still-have-dandruff-in-my-ears/152515/6 "2003-02-03T16:58:48Z")
Possibly eczema? Quite common in the ear canal. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2003, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-shave-my-head-so-why-do-i-still-have-dandruff-in-my-ears/152515/7 "2003-02-03T17:00:33Z")
Could be psoriasis, too. Go see a doctor. ---
**Author:** ![Spiff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiff/32/9852_2.png) [@Spiff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiff)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2003, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-shave-my-head-so-why-do-i-still-have-dandruff-in-my-ears/152515/8 "2003-02-03T17:18:19Z")
It’s not excess earwax, I know that for a fact. If I do start to use an over-the-counter dandruff shampoo, will it take care of exzema and/or psoriasis, too? I’d hate to go see a doctor over a little thing like this, which is more of a nagging inconvenience than a health issue, IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2003, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-shave-my-head-so-why-do-i-still-have-dandruff-in-my-ears/152515/9 "2003-02-03T17:30:22Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Spiff \* > **If I do start to use an over-the-counter dandruff shampoo, will it take care of exzema and/or psoriasis, too?** If it’s psoriasis, no, that won’t help. > [@](#): > > \*\*I’d hate to go see a doctor over a little thing like this, which is more of a nagging inconvenience than a health issue, IMHO. \*\* Until you know what it is, you don’t know whether it’s an inconvenience or a serious health issue. I appreciate how you feel–I don’t like doctors either–but go anyway. ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2003, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-shave-my-head-so-why-do-i-still-have-dandruff-in-my-ears/152515/10 "2003-02-03T18:18:01Z")
Sounds like seborhea to me (a fungal infection of the skin). Try Nizoral shampoo and see if it clears up. ---
**Author:** ![Skelji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b38774/32.png) [@Skelji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skelji)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2003, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-shave-my-head-so-why-do-i-still-have-dandruff-in-my-ears/152515/11 "2003-02-03T19:46:49Z")
I noticed the same thing about a year ago, like little flakes of skin if I scratched in my ear. “What the hell???”, I wondered. At the time, it occurred to me what a sight I must be, sitting at my desk, rooting around in my ear with my pinky and then examining what I had dug out. I decided it was just dry skin (especially since it was winter with its lower humidity), and started applying a little skin lotion to my ears, inside and out. Problem solved. Maybe I was listening to too much dry humor…