Heat, smoke, frequent washing, color, sunshine, and air pollution are just a few of the things that can damage your hair. It’s tough to avoid everything that can hurt your hair. No matter how hard you try to keep your hair healthy, your tresses may be in trouble.
Finding the right hair products can be a never-ending quest and an expensive one. Shampoo, conditioner, leave-in treatments, and finishing sprays are a few products you can use to keep your hair healthy. But what can you do besides add products to your hair-care repertoire? Here are five tips for healthier hair that can help you say goodbye to dry, brittle hair for good.
1. Lay Your Head on the Right Fabric
You might spend one-third of every day sleeping. That means for eight hours, your head and hair are resting on your pillow. If that pillowcase is cotton, it may be damaging your locks.
It’s tough to argue with logic. Cotton is an absorbent material, so it pulls the natural oils from your hair and scalp. Plus, the comparatively rough texture of a cotton pillowcase creates friction, which often results in tangles.
Silk pillowcases, on the other hand, are far less absorbent. They don’t pull moisture from your hair and help keep your natural oils on your head. Furthermore, their smooth, friction-free texture lets your hair slide around as you move. You might be surprised at how well they repel a nasty case of bedhead.
If you can’t bear to give up your Egyptian cotton bedding with a high thread count, there is a compromise. Swap out only the cotton pillowcase for silk. Your hair will thank you in the morning.
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2. Opt for a New Cut
Here’s a little science lesson. Hair begins at the base of the hair follicle. As new cells are created at the base, old cells are pushed up and out of the follicle.
What’s pushed out of the follicle is the hair you see. Each strand is a series of dead cells shoved out into the world by the live cells down below. The dead can’t be brought back to life.
If your hair is really damaged with split ends akimbo, the best thing you can do is get it cut. Removing the damaged ends with a sharp set of shears will immediately improve the look of your locks. How much you take off will depend on how high your ends are split.
Your hair will grow faster after you take off the dead weight. Then your hair can rally for the win.
3. Lighten Up on the Chemicals
Relaxing curly tresses, curling straight ones, and coloring your hair all involve chemicals. Those, of course, damage hair. Use them sparingly, or stop using them completely.
Talk to your stylist about cuts that can honor your waves or lack thereof. Keep your color close to your natural hair color. Drastic changes in either direction require more color with more (not less) frequency.
If you do color your hair, you should have it done professionally instead of using a box color. Stylists know how to do the least damage and use products that protect hair better. It might cost more money, but you’ll save yourself some of the destruction.
Consider embracing your gray or using highlights instead of all-over color. It’s natural for everyone to want to improve on nature to look their best. Still, there’s always room for a little compromise.
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4. Supplement Your Diet
If you recall the brief science lesson in hint #2, you’ll understand why your diet affects your hair. Diet, not topical hair products, can stimulate healthy cell production from the inside out. Like the rest of you, your hair is what you eat.
A daily vitamin or supplement with Vitamin D, B, and zinc will help. So will biotin, a specific vitamin B for healthy hair, nails, and skin. Don’t forget the iron since anemia can cause hair loss, too.
Then there are the omega-3 fatty acids necessary for health cell growth. These are found in fish, shellfish, walnuts, flaxseed, and fish oil supplements. To boost your levels of Vitamin E naturally, you can also eat spinach, sunflower seeds, almonds, and avocados.
Being kinder and gentler to your dead cells on the outside is half the battle. Nourishing those cells while they’re alive and kicking may make all the difference. Moreover, all these vitamins and healthy foods benefit you a lot more than your hair. They are key ingredients for a healthier lifestyle.
5. Turn Down the Heat
Heat is not your hair’s friend, no matter what form it takes. Hot water, blow dryers, curling irons, straighteners, and even the sun can damage your strands. Turning down the heat when you can make a noticeable difference.
How much you need to dial back the heat will depend on the type of hair you have. The temperature range for using that flat iron on fine hair, for example, should be between 250 to 340 degrees. Normal hair can take 350 degrees and thick hair up to 450 degrees.
A good rule of thumb is to use the least amount of heat for the least amount of time necessary. There are products you can use to lower the heat’s impact and reduce drying and styling time. Air drying helps your hair retain moisture, but avoid vigorous towel rubbing because that will damage hair. When you can turn down your hair routine a few degrees. Cooler heads of hair will prevail.
Hair is undoubtedly one of those things most people wish were different. They want a different color, texture, or thickness. Those with natural curls want straighter hair and vice versa.
The most important thing, no matter your hair’s other characteristics, is what you can do to keep it looking healthy. Split ends, flyaways, frizz, and brittle breakage aren’t attractive to anyone. So show your tresses a little kindness and appreciation. Your efforts may be richly rewarded with a healthy, happy head of hair.
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