Disease, Illness and Condition Library
Caring for Your Hair
evidenced by the millions of dollars spent on hair care products each year. Use the following tips to help keep your hair healthy: Handle your hair gently: Wet hair is particularly fragile because it might become stretched. When possible, allow your hair to air dry. A natural bristle brush is preferable to a synthetic one because the synthetic material may cut your hair. Brush your hair gently from your scalp to disperse scalp oil over your hair. If you prefer a comb, use a wide toothed comb to avoid injury to your hair. If you must use a blow dryer, use it on a low setting and leave your hair somewhat damp. Shampoo you hair as needed: The amount of washing that your hair needs depends on your hair type, the weather, your physical activities and perhaps even your occupation. Daily shampooing won’t damage your hair if you do it gently. Buy shampoos tailored to your hair type – oily, dry, or normal. Protein shampoos don’t penetrate your hair, but they do coat it, temporarily giving your hair more bulk. A protein shampoo acts as a shampoo and conditioner in one. Permanent waved, straightened or dyed hair needs a low-pH shampoo. Follow your shampoo with a cream rinse or conditioner. These products lubricate your hair between washings and help lessen damage from brushing or combing. Choose a healthy hair style: Certain hair styles and treatments can cause breakage or root damage. Avoid excessively tight braiding, buns or ponytails and don’t roll you hair too tightly in curlers. Curling is safest if you twist you hair into pin curls overnight. For safe curling of fine hair, wind slightly dampened hair around sponge rollers and let it air dry. Use of excessively hot rollers or curling irons may damage even coarse hair. Use these devices cautiously. Teasing and back combining should be done gently or not at all. A styling gel or mouse can give your hair more body or thickness. These products don’t necessarily damage your hair, but they might make it extra dry, especially at the ends. Permanent waving (a perm) is safe for healthy hair, but you may find that it results in increased dryness and splitting, Straightening and permanent waving use the same chemical methods to change the properties of the hair strands. The initial (waving) solution dissolves a chemical linkage in the hair. After the hair is arranged in its new, curly configuration, application of the second solution, the neutralizer, restores the linkage. Like other aggressive cosmetic treatments, permanent waving can be damaging when done to excess. Be careful with coloring: Hair bleaches chemically alter the melanin granule in the middle layer of each hair strand. Despite careful treatment, persistent bleaching eventually damages even healthy, strong hair shafts, but it doesn’t injure the roots from which future hair growth takes place. Hair dyes work more like paint by covering hair strands with color or by mixing with melanin granules without altering them. Dyes come in temporary form, which eventually wash out, and semipermanent and permanent forms, which penetrate your hair. Avoid chemical and sun damage: Too much exposure to sun, wind and swimming pool chemicals will dry out your hair and cause it to knot. Eat a balanced diet: The quality of your hair reflects, in part, the satisfactoriness of your diet. Contrary to what you may have heard or read, consuming extra protein or amino acid preparations won’t promote hair growth. However, crash diets and eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa can damage hair dramatically.
Helpful Products for Hair Loss ReGrow Scalp Massage Oil - Supports healthy hair growth by nourishing hair follicles and scalp - Continue ReGrow Plus - Promotes circulation to hair follicles and roots for healthy hair Continue |
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