My 10 1/2 year old daughter is going through puberty. She has the breast, period and pubic hair. She appears to be having trouble with oily scalp and acne (it appears to be whiteheads) around the hair line and on the scalp into the hair line. What should she use that will not be too drying for her skin and scalp? Is oily hair one of the symptoms of puberty? Her hair is fine and mostly straight. The acne feels kind of rough and hard. Any information you can provide will be appreciated.

The whitehead problem is known as comedonal acne and can be made worse by oily hair if the child has bangs. For that part of the problem our dermatology consultant recommended seeing your physician for the possible use of topical retinoids such as Retin A or Differin. Regarding the oily hair, sebaceous gland secretions increases with the onset of puberty. There are no medications that we would recommend to decrease this and would suggest washing the hair frequently - even daily - with a mild shampoo such as Nutragena shampoo for oiliy hair. See also Top Ten Myths About Acne

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