We all desire beautiful, healthy hair. However, hairdryers, ironing, colouring and increasing pollution can take its toll on the quality of our hair. Here in Singapore the humid climate can make the hair frizz, which is certainly not a desirable look.
What can we do to keep our hair in top shape?
1. First of all start with healthy hair. If you have damaged hair then, if possible, cut it. There really is no way to repair badly damaged hair. Even if you want to have long hair, it will be easier to achieve this by first cutting your hair and then growing your healthy hair. Short healthy hair will look better than long damaged hair and does not need to be trimmed so often. Healthy hair will grow faster and the overall result will be faster growing, healthy hair.
2. Make sure to trim your hair often. Damage to your hair will move up from the ends and the only way to prevent this is to cut it on a regular basis. Use sharp scissors that are designed for cutting hair and make sure to snip any splits off the ends of individual hairs.
3. Find a hair salon with a good reputation. If you want to grow your hair or have long hair, make sure to find a long hair specialist and communicate clearly on how (much) you want your hair to be trimmed.
4. You knew it was coming, and this could be tough, but try to avoid any blow drying, curling irons, hot rollers, and especially no flat irons or crimpers! If you absolutely must blow dry, then try to dry your hair naturally as long as possible and just use the blow dryer to finish it off. If you have to use rollers, then use flocked or ceramic rollers that are safer for your hair (instead of spiked plastic rollers). It also helps to add a protective hair product to your hair.
5. Try not use any hard chemicals on your hair and avoid perms and peroxide. But of course as many of us over 40 get grey we cannot always stick to this rule. So when colouring, use non peroxide colour or 100% natural henna (not advised for very dry hair though). Low peroxide hair colour is a lot less damaging but if you using these products over and over again it will start to have negative effects on your hair.
6. Always choose a good shampoo and conditioner especially designed for the condition of your hair. If you have coloured it, using a line that adds a bit of colour to it will make it last much longer. If you are succeeding in holding the colour in your hair longer, you will need to have it coloured less often, which will benefit your hair.
7. Avoid chlorine and saltwater or make sure to shampoo your hair shortly after the exposure. If you are blond and you expose yourself too much to chlorine, this may actually lead to a greenish hue coming over your hair. Using specially formulated shampoos may help prevent this. If you are a frequent swimmer it would be good to wear a bathing cap. This would also allow you to apply some deep conditioner on your hair while wearing it.
8. Protect your hair from the sun. If you spend a lot of time in the sun you may want to protect your hair with a product that provides uv protection for your hair. Of course you could also cover your hair with a nice scarf or hat!
9. Be careful with the hair accessories that you use. Metal barrettes and rubber bands are not advisable as they will tear your hair. Avoid anything with sharp edges, plastic combs with rough seams, or hair claws wirh metal hinges, Velcro or springs attachers. You want to avoid anything that causes hair to come off or fall out.
10. Don’t put any stress on your hair. Avoid braids, very tight coils, hair extensions, dreads
11. Avoid extreme diets and be sure not to eliminate all fat from your diet. If you are on a diet it is recommended that you take a good multivitamin to make sure that your hair (and body) gets all the nutrients it needs.
12. Comb your hair before champooing, to remove knots and remove loose hairs with a good boar bristle brush. Try not to pile your hair on top of your head while shampooing and instead apply shampoo to roots and work your way down. Dont’ forget then ends of your hair!
13. Every now and then don’t wash your hair and let it get dirty and greasy and let this natural conditioning do its magic.
14. The colder your rinsing water, the better. It will make your hair shinier hair that is easier to comb. It also helps against breakage.
15. Every now and then you can use a leave-in-conditioner. This can be good to nurture extremely coarse or curly hair.
16. Try out different hair products and stick to those of which you see results. Different hair product ingredients work for different people so you need to find out what’s best for you. More products have come on the market with natural ingredients, so you may want to give those a try.
17. If you can, clariify your hair when needed with a mixture of cider vinegar and water or use a clarifying shampoo to remove build-up of product in your hair.
18. A deep condition treatment once a month is a must. Even if your hair is in good shape a deep conditioning can keep it that way. If your hair is in a bad condition and is dry or damaged a deep condition would be recommended every week.
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