A variety of traditional treatments can help reduce seborrheic dermatitis (SD) symptoms like scales, itching, and dandruff. These therapies include corticosteroids, medicated shampoos, topical antifungals, creams or lotions, salicylic acid, and more. If you’re living with this skin condition, you’ve probably tried one or more of these treatments under the oversight of a health care provider.

Some people choose to try natural remedies for seborrheic dermatitis. One person on MySebDermTeam summed up the questions many members asked: “I just read your response with all the products listed. Thanks for all that info. Are they natural? Can you use them without any problem with your SD?”

If you’re looking for natural remedies for seborrheic dermatitis, here’s what you need to know.

What Are Natural Remedies?

Natural remedies fall under the category of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). These treatments include any approach that’s outside of what’s considered standard medical care. People may also refer to these treatments as:

• Holistic medicine
• Eastern medicine
• Home remedies

CAM options includes treatments that:

• Come from substances found in nature, like vitamins, plants, supplements (such as a diet)
• Focus on balancing the body’s energy fields, like Reiki (a system of touching with hands)
• Combine aspects of both the mind and the body, like meditation or yoga
• Work with one or more parts of the body, like chiropractic or massage
• Are used in other medical systems or cultures, like traditional Chinese or Ayurvedic medicine

Some of these treatments may be effective in some ways, but others could also be harmful. In addition to talking to your doctor, it’s best to test any treatment early in the process to see if you have an allergic reaction. For a topical remedy, the American Academy of Dermatology suggests applying a product to the same small spot of skin twice a day for seven to 10 days. If your skin doesn’t become discolored, itchy, or swollen, the product is likely safe for you to use.

Natural Remedies and Seborrheic Dermatitis

People try a variety of natural remedies for seborrheic dermatitis. These are a few of the more common ones.

Tea Tree Oil

Tea tree oil, an essential oil distilled from the melaleuca plant, has been shown to fight microbes, including some bacteria, viruses, fungi, and protozoa. Some studies have shown that tea tree oil could be effective in treating seborrheic dermatitis. This makes sense, since an overgrowth of Malassezia yeast, a type of fungus, may be tied to seborrheic dermatitis. Tea tree oil may be applied alone or mixed with other products like creams and shampoos.

Some people on MySebDermTeam have found tea tree oil useful in treating their seborrheic dermatitis. One shared, “I’m having a bad flare. It is everywhere! I’m putting tea tree oil on my face, especially around my ears, eyes, upper neck, and scalp. I hate the scales! But they should come down with the tea tree oil.”

Others use hair products containing tea tree oil for seborrheic dermatitis on the scalp. “I wash and condition with a tea tree shampoo and conditioner set. Then I towel dry and apply a tea tree oil hair serum,” one MySebDermTeam member said.

You’ll want to make sure tea tree oil doesn’t irritate your skin before you use this topical treatment over large areas affected by seborrheic dermatitis.

Learn about other oils to consider and to avoid if you’re living with seborrheic dermatitis.

CBD Products

Products made using cannabidiol (CBD) oil or extract may help treat seborrheic dermatitis. CBD is derived from the cannabis (marijuana) plant, but it doesn’t contain tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the compound that can make you high. CBD may be used directly as an oil or infused into skin care products, foods, and more.

Research into the efficacy of CBD in helping with seborrheic dermatitis is limited. One study found that using shampoo containing CBD helped reduce the severity of scalp inflammation and associated symptoms in people living with seborrheic dermatitis.

CBD can have side effects, and it can interact with blood-thinning medications. Most people don’t experience negative effects, however.

Dietary Changes

Making certain dietary changes may also help reduce symptoms of seborrheic dermatitis. However, no particular diet works for everyone or even most people. Instead, you’ll have to figure out what triggers outbreaks of seborrheic dermatitis for your body.

A 2023 study linked eating certain foods with a greater likelihood of having seborrheic dermatitis. These foods include:

• White bread
• Pasta
• Rice
• Coffee
• Vegetables
• Nuts
• Nonacidic fruits

Many of those aren’t the foods people tend to associate with seborrheic dermatitis. Determining which foods to eat and which to avoid may take trial and error while working closely with your doctor.

This study is not definitive, but it may give you a place to start when testing foods to see if they trigger your seborrheic dermatitis symptoms. You can try eliminating one food or type of food for a while to see if your condition changes. You can also keep a food diary so that you can look back to see what you ate before a flare-up.

Dietary changes have helped some people at MySebDermTeam. One member shared, “I did stop eating all dairy for a few months and had zero breakouts. I went back to eating a little dairy, and the SD returned.”

“Diet changes have been a big blessing for me,” noted another member. “When I go astray, I will most definitely get a flare of dermatitis.”

Aloe Vera

Aloe vera is another plant extract that may help reduce some symptoms of seborrheic dermatitis. The plant makes a gel-like substance that can be applied directly or mixed with other products. Aloe vera gel contains a number of active ingredients that may help support wound healing, lower inflammation, promote a healthy immune system, fight some viruses and other microbes, and moisturize dry skin.

Aloe vera gel has been shown to help reduce scales and itching from seborrheic dermatitis, but it doesn’t seem to have an effect on skin discoloration. The gel may also reduce the number of affected areas on the body.

“I have an aloe vera plant,” one MySebDermTeam member wrote. “I used that and it’s healing, but the sores are still there.”

“I’ve found I can kind of get under control when I use sanitizer with aloe,” another member said.

Relaxation Training

In some people, seborrheic dermatitis seems to be connected to stress or recovery from stressful events. Finding ways to relax, therefore, might help reduce your number of flares or the severity of your symptoms.

You can pick from a wide variety of relaxation techniques — meditation, breathing exercises, progressive muscle relaxation, visualization, and more. Mastering one of these approaches could give you more control over how stressed you get and how your body experiences that stress.

One member of MySebDermTeam described making an effort to use these techniques. “I have gone back to my gratitude journal, and I try to meditate,” they said. “I’m aware that stress is the underlying cause of all my health issues.”

Check With Your Doctor Before Trying Natural Remedies

If you’re interested in trying a natural treatment to help manage symptoms of seborrheic dermatitis, talk to your dermatologist first. They can help you determine what’s safe and more likely to be effective for you. If you can’t get what you need over the counter, they may be able to prescribe a treatment.

Your dermatology team can offer medical advice about how to safely use natural remedies. They can also direct you to someone like a dietitian who can help you figure out which foods trigger your symptoms.

Natural remedies don’t work the same for everyone. Something that helps another person living with seborrheic dermatitis might not work for you and vice versa. It may take some time for you to figure out which natural remedies help you the most.

Talk With Others Who Understand

MySebDermTeam is the social network for people with pulmonary hypertension and their loved ones. On MySebDermTeam, more than 13,000 members come together to ask questions, give advice, and share their stories with others who understand life with seborrheic dermatitis.

Are you wondering if natural remedies might help you with seborrheic dermatitis? Have you tried any approaches with good — or not-so-good — results? Share your experience in the comments below, or start a conversation by posting on your Activities page.