No more dandruff'
By Brandon Astor Jones
"pso.ri.a.sis n. A chronic, noncontagious skin disease characterized by inflammation and white, scaly patches." — American Heritage Dictionary
The condition that the dictionary defines above is a frequent visitor in the lives of many. I would guess that psoriasis sufferers number in the millions, the world over. Most of them have tried every manner of over-the-counter shampoo, all to no avail. No matter how cheap or expensive, such products rarely produce more than marginal relief.
Even if the sufferer has a low grade psoriasis problem, and practises good personal hygiene, s/he cannot wear black for fear that dandruff will speckle their shoulders like snow atop mountain peaks. Moreover, the embarrassment can be beyond measure when the itching gets so bad that one must scratch repeatedly and thereby produce even more flaking.
It also seems that those who can afford to go to a dermatologist as often as not will have wasted their time and money. For getting rid of their flakes is by no means a guarantee that they will rid themselves of the itch, any more than getting rid of the itch can guarantee that they will be rid of their flakes. Psoriasis is a kind of itching and flaking hell.
Enter those get-rich-quick schemers who, via every manner of advertisement, lure naive sufferers with the promise of relief in the form of a newer and more improved snake oil. Some of those schemers will go so far as promising to return the sender's money if s/he is not fully satisfied, but most will not.
Having said all that, I would like to offer a — free — suggestion that will promote a remarkable reduction in both itching and flaking. It is simple and inexpensive.
After completely rinsing away your regular shampoo, pour about an ounce [30 ml] of Listerine brand mouthwash onto the scalp (slightly more for longer hair) and carefully massage it in. Allow it to soak deeply into the scalp for at least five minutes. Then thoroughly rinse it out with hot water. For more than 75% of those who suffer from chronic low grade psoriasis, this inexpensive remedy will work. Voila: no more itch and no more dandruff.
[The writer is a prisoner on death row in the United States. He welcomes letters commenting on his columns (include your name and full return address on the envelope, or prison authorities may refuse to deliver it). He can be written to at: Brandon Astor Jones, EF-122216, G3-77, Georgia Diagnostic & Classification Prison, PO Box 3877, Jackson, GA 30233, USA.]