Vitamin E: how does it affect your scalp?

If you could bottle up beauty into a mysterious, honey-colored liquid, you might just end up with vitamin E.

For generations, vitamin E has been beloved as a health and beauty supplement. It’s said to possess miraculous, anti-aging, wrinkle-fighting skin benefits. Advocates also believe it can promote luxurious, shining locks of hair. Some say it can even treat your dandruff.

So should you start bathing in a vat of vitamin E? Before you get too invested , let’s learn a little more about vitamin E - and its purported benefits. 

What is vitamin E?

Vitamin E is actually a group of eight antioxidant chemical compounds known for their ability to disarm free radicals in your body. Because your body is unable to create these compounds itself, vitamin E is considered an essential dietary nutrient. It plays a vital role in protecting your cell membranes, while helping widen blood vessels and prevent blood clotting. Vitamin E is most commonly found in the form of vitamin E oil.

Despite the fact that most adults don’t get the recommended amount of vitamin E in their diet, cases of true deficiency are rare. Deficiency can be a side effect of low-fat diets. If your vitamin E levels fall too low, you’ll eventually see a range of unpleasant symptoms, including nerve problems, dry skin, and hair loss. 

On the other hand, ingesting too much vitamin E can be harmful to your health. The toxicity that results from excess vitamin E can cause muscle fatigue, nausea, diarrhea, and in some cases more severe issues. But in proper doses, doctors recommend vitamin E supplementation for a wide range of health issues.

Vitamin E in medicine

The antioxidant properties of vitamin E have made it a powerful tool for treating a range of diseases. It has been used as an intervention method for macular degeneration, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease, and some research has found it can help cancer patients deal with the side effects of chemotherapy. 

Vitamin E is also used to treat various blood disorders such as anemia caused by chronic illness or low levels of blood protein. It has also been used to treat severe menstrual cramps and scarring in the kidneys in patients with kidney disease.

Of course, like many health remedies, some of vitamin E’s supposed medical uses have been debunked. For example, there’s no evidence (despite myths to the contrary) that slathering vitamin E onto a wound will help it heal without scarring. In fact, some research has even found that it can actually worsen the cosmetic appearance of a healing injury. However,health and beauty products that contain vitamin E are safe to use.

Benefits of vitamin E

Countless products that contain vitamin E claim to fight wrinkles, repair damaged or dry hair and skin, and treat acne. But do these benefits really hold water?

The short answer is: largely, yes.

A major review of scientific literature confirmed that vitamin E is a natural anti-inflammatory, which can “complement the photoprotective effects of other antioxidants in the skin.” In other words, vitamin E really does protect your skin from the aging effects of sun exposure, like wrinkles and sagging. And because it fights inflammation in your body, vitamin E can help other antioxidants (like vitamin C and beta carotene) do their job even better, protecting your body from oxidative stress.

The study also concluded that vitamin E has “skin barrier-stabilizing properties.” The skin barrier is the outermost layer of your skin tissue. It keeps out germs and contaminants, while trapping moisture in, giving your skin that bright, youthful glow. If you’re trying to keep your skin healthy and luminous, a strong skin barrier is exactly what you need.

Of course, hair and scalp health are closely related to skin health. No surprise, then, that research has also shown that vitamin E dietary supplements can help stimulate hair growth, repair fragile hair, and improve scalp conditions that lead to flaking. While that doesn’t mean vitamin E alone can sufficiently treat dandruff, it does tell us that this compound can play a part in the fight against flakes. (More on that shortly.)

Where does vitamin E come from?

There are many natural sources of vitamin E in a well-balanced diet. If you’re eating leafy greens, nuts, avocados, and olive oil, you’re probably getting a healthy intake of vitamin E in your meals. 

Of course, you can also take a vitamin E supplement. The mixed tocopherols in natural vitamin E oil are typically derived from soybean oils.  Some manufacturers in the beauty industry prefer synthetic versions because they have a longer shelf life and are less acidic, while others turn to natural vitamin E because it is often more easily absorbed by the body and allows for sustainable formulations. Either way, vitamin E is a powerful ingredient in medications, supplements, and cosmetic products. 

How does vitamin E help with dandruff? 

To better understand how vitamin E interacts with your scalp, it’s important to look at the conditions that cause dandruff in the first place. 

Dandruff is simply flaking that results from the irritation and inflammation of your scalp. This can be caused by many underlying conditions, including dry scalp, psoriasis, eczema, and seborrheic dermatitis. When these triggering conditions inflame your scalp, its microbial balance is disrupted, and flakes of dead skin cells slough off. These are the white or yellowish flakes that you’ll find on your hair and clothing if you’re experiencing dandruff.

Because dry skin is one of the underlying causes of dandruff - and because the spiraling irritation of dandruff can throw off your scalp’s moisture balance - vitamin E has a very useful role to play. Incorporating vitamin E into your hair care regimen (in moderate, precise quantities) can help maintain your scalp’s natural moisture. Vitamin E may also help protect your scalp from harsh UV rays, which can further stave off irritation and keep dandruff at bay. 

Again, it’s important to note that these are all benefits of the topical use of vitamin E. Unless you have a serious vitamin deficiency, increasing your vitamin E intake or using dietary supplements will probably not help you.

Can I use vitamin E as a home remedy for dandruff?

Clearly, vitamin E offers enormous benefits for scalp and hair health. But using vitamin E on its own won’t address all the underlying causes of dandruff. 

Using too much vitamin E oil can clog your pores, which will lead to a build-up of the natural oils your scalp produces. These oils are perfect food for Malassezia - a microscopic yeast that gets out of control in people with dandruff. (Remember above when we mentioned your scalp microbiome going haywire? That’s Malassezia at work.) If you’re trying to soothe your scalp and get your oil balance under control, pouring on a bunch of additional oil probably isn’t a good idea.

To further complicate things, vitamin E oil also needs to be adequately diluted, or it may directly irritate the scalp and worsen your flaking. Hair and scalp care involve exact chemistry to work correctly, and too much of one ingredient may render the others ineffective.

These are all reasons why you should leave scalp chemistry to the experts. You need a professionally formulated dandruff shampoo that’s designed to get the most out of beneficial ingredients like vitamin E. High quality brands will include vitamin E as a moisturizing supplement. Jupiter’s Balancing Shampoo and Nourishing Conditioner are both formulated with vitamin E and the active ingredient Zinc Pyrithione. Zinc Pyrithione is the uncontested champion in the fight against flakes. Study after study has proven that it’s effective at treating the root causes of dandruff. 

The winnable war against flakes

Dandruff can’t be cured. But that doesn’t mean you’re doomed to live with it. In fact, flakes are something you can completely and easily treat without a headache. All you need is a dandruff and scalp care brand you trust. 

That’s where Jupiter comes in. We’re the first elevated dandruff and scalp care brand that treats dandruff with a suite of products tailored to your scalp care needs. Paired with regular use of our  scalp brush, you’ll find a regimen that leaves your scalp soothed and cleansed, and your locks flake free. In fact, we design all of our products to delight the senses and lend a touch of luxury to your bathtime. That’s because consistency is key in the fight against dandruff. You need to practice your hair care regimen every day to ensure your scalp stays healthy. 

Jupiter makes your daily routine a blissful ritual, rather than a tiresome chore - so you’re all the more likely to stick with it. Learn more about how we help you banish flakes and feel amazing doing it.