Get Healthy, Strong Hair

Achieving healthy, strong hair takes dedication. By eating hair-strengthening foods, avoiding damaging grooming practices, and pampering your tresses with high-quality shampoos and conditioners, you can revitalize your hair.

Steps

Pampering Your Hair

1. Clip your damaged ends. If your hair is very damaged, consider cutting off the most damaged parts. Removing the damage from your hair will immediately make your hair look healthier; it will also prevent split ends from creeping up the lengths of your hair.
   • Some stylists recommend getting a trim every 5 weeks for healthy-looking hair, while others suggest a trim every 6 to 8 weeks depending on whether you’re trying to maintain or grow out your hair, respectively.
2. Know your hair type. When you know what type of hair you have, you are better able to keep it healthy by meeting its needs. You can discover your hair type by gauging its density, texture, and strength.
   • Density: Look at a patch of hair on the top of your head. If you can barely see your scalp through your hair, you have thick-density hair; if the hair is more spaced out, it’s of a fine density; and if it’s somewhere in the middle, your hair is of a medium density.
   • Texture: Observe an individual strand of your hair. How thick or thin is the strand in relation to the hair of other people you know? You can also gauge how thick or fine your hair is by tugging on it — thick-textured hair will be stronger/less likely to break than fine-textured hair.
   • Strength: Hair strength is measured by porosity and elasticity. Wash and towel-dry your hair, then feel it: if your hair feels quite wet, it’s more damaged/porous; if it feels quite dry, it’s healthier/less porous. The farther you can stretch your hair without it breaking, the more elastic and healthy it is.
3. Use a high-quality shampoo and conditioner designed for your hair type. If you have fine hair, you can use volumizing or thickening shampoos and conditioners; if you have thick or oily hair, you may want to use a deep-cleansing shampoo and a light conditioner.
   • There are myriad products to choose from — just be sure to choose something that suits your hair. In general, salon brands are thought to be of a higher quality than drugstore brands.
4. Massage your scalp regularly. Massaging your scalp increases the blood flow to your hair follicles, conditions the scalp, and helps relieve stress. This will not only help keep your hair healthy, it may even help reduce and/or reverse hair loss.
   • You can give yourself a gentle scalp massage while shampooing your hair.
5. Deep condition your hair regularly. You can do this using a store-bought conditioner or a homemade one. If you do buy a deep conditioning treatment, opt for a salon brand, as drugstore brands will likely contain lower-quality ingredients.
   • How often you deep condition your hair will depend on how healthy it is: if your hair is very damaged, deep condition it once a week.
6. Make your own deep-conditioning hair treatments at home. If you can’t afford to buy expensive salon conditioning treatments, and you’d rather not use drugstore brands, you can pamper your hair at home with the following treatment:
   • Massage your scalp and the ends of your hair with some warm oil. Options for oil include coconut, olive, and sweet almond, among others.
   • Which oil you use will depend on your hair type and personal preference. Jojoba oil is a safe bet for all hair types.
   • Wrap a hot, damp towel around your head. This will help the oil penetrate your hair. Just make sure it’s not too hot!
   • Apply a hair mask to your hair. The type of mask will depend on your hair type. For dry hair, apply a paste of 1 or 2 egg whites and honey to your hair; for greasy hair, apply a paste of aloe vera gel, amla powder, and water to your hair.

Preventing Damage to Your Hair

1. Avoid over-washing your hair. Washing your hair too often robs your hair and scalp of their natural oils, making your hair look dull. Washing your hair too vigorously can also cause damage, so be gentle.
   • How often you wash your hair will depend on your individual hair. Some people find that they need to wash their hair every day or two to keep it from getting too oily; others are able to wash their hair once or twice a week.
   • When washing your hair, be gentle: massage the shampoo into your roots and then let it move down through the rest of your hair — don’t rub it into your hair, as this can cause damage.
2. Be gentle with your hair when it’s wet. When your hair is wet it’s more fragile and prone to breakage. After washing your hair, dry it gently by wrapping it or squeezing it with a towel, rather than rubbing it vigorously with one.
   • Wait for your hair to dry a bit before brushing it; when you do brush it, use a wide-tooth comb.
3. Don’t over-brush your hair. The popular advice of “100 strokes a day” is wrong. Brushing your hair too much can actually cause split ends and breakage.
   • You also need to be careful about what kind of brush you use. Wide-tooth combs are commonly recommended by stylists as the most gentle option.
4. Avoid heat-styling your hair. This includes flat-ironing/straightening, blow-drying, and curling your hair. These things can make your hair look dull; with regular use over time, they can cause permanent damage.
   • If you must heat-style your hair, be sure to coat your hair in a protective spray or balm before applying heat.
5. Avoid putting your hair in ponytails or braids. Doing this can cause your hair to break, particularly if you pull your hair too tightly while styling it. In more extreme cases, hair can even fall out: this is called traction alopecia.
   • Be especially careful about putting your hair into a ponytail or braid when it’s wet and more prone to damage.
   • The same goes for extensions and weaves, which can pull on you hair. If you have discomfort or pain in your scalp, your hair is likely causing too much pressure on your roots.
6. Protect your hair against the elements. The sun’s UV rays can bleach your hair, causing it to become dry and brittle. You’re not much safer in the rain, which can deposit harmful chemicals into your hair.
   • To protect your hair in the sun, wear a hat or spritz it with a UV-protecting spray. Some leave-in conditioners also provide UV protection.
   • To protect your hair in the rain, use an umbrella or a hat, or wear waterproof jacket with a hood.
7. Protect your hair at the swimming pool. The chlorine in pools can irritate your skin and scalp, and make your hair dry and brittle. Before you get in the water, get your hair damp, slather on a protective product, and cover it with a swimming cap.
   • Recommended products for protecting your hair from chlorine include those containing oil and/or silicone or, for a more natural option, coconut oil.
   • If you swim regularly, you may also want to invest in a hair cleanser that’s specially designed to wash out chlorine.
8. Avoid using too many hair products. Resist the urge to tame your damaged locks with a tonne of conditioning and frizz-reducing products, which can leave your hair looking weighed down and oily.
   • When using hair products, less is more. Start small and add additional product as needed. A small dab of anti-frizz cream/gel is often enough to tame fly-aways without making your hair look oily.
9. Don’t put harsh chemicals on your hair. Hair that has been dyed, permed, straightened and/or relaxed is more likely to be thin, dull, and prone to breakage.
   • There are often natural alternatives to chemical hair treatments — for example, henna instead of regular hair dye.

Making Healthy Choices

1. Eat for strong hair. In general, a healthy diet consists of lots of fruits and vegetables, lean proteins, healthy fats, and the avoidance of processed foods. Here are some key foods to eat for healthy hair:
   • Fish such as salmon, sardines, and mackerel contain omega-3 fatty acids, which protect you from disease and help your body grow and maintain healthy, shiny hair.
   • Greek yogurt contains protein and vitamin B5 (also known as pantothenic acid), which are both essential for healthy hair growth. If you don’t get enough protein in your diet, your hair growth stalls.
   • Dark leafy greens such as spinach and kale contain vitamin A, iron, beta carotene, folate, and vitamin C, which are all helpful in maintaining a healthy scalp and hair. Vitamin C in particular is hugely helpful in preventing breakage.
   • Sweet potatoes and other orange fruits and vegetables such as carrots, pumpkins, cantaloupe, and mangoes contain the antioxidant beta carotene, which helps keep hair hydrated and shiny.
   • Cinnamon and other spices boost your circulation, helping to deliver oxygen and nutrients to your hair follicles. Sprinkle blood-flow-boosting spices into your various meals and beverages.
   • Eggs are a great source of protein, iron, and biotin — a B vitamin that helps with hair growth.
2. Make sure you get enough iron. In addition to making you tired, unfocused, and depressed, an iron deficiency can cause hair loss.
   • If you think you might not be getting enough iron in your diet, try eating fortified cereal, grains, and pastas.
   • You can also find iron in soybeans, lentils, shellfish, dark leafy greens, beef, and organ meats like liver.
3. Drink enough water. If you are dehydrated you are likely to have a drier scalp and dull, dry hair. Aim to drink roughly half your body weight (in pounds) in ounces of water each day.
   • Example: a 150-pound woman would drink at least 75 ounces of water each day — more if she were active or living in a hot climate (i.e. if she were sweating).
4. Reduce stress. Stress can lead to hair loss. To help reduce stress, work on exercising regularly, sleeping at least 7 hours each night (8.5 hours if you’re a teenager), and doing things that help you relax.
   • Some things that may help you relax include meditation, socializing with people who make you feel good, taking baths, or taking up a fun hobby (e.g., book club, music, dance, recreational sports).
5. See a doctor. If your hair is thinning or otherwise damaged, and there’s no obvious reason for it (i.e. you’re not bleaching your hair regularly or constantly frying it with heat styling tools), see a doctor to rule out any potential health problems. Some health problems that can lead to hair loss/damage:
   • Overactive or underactive thyroid
   • Other hormonal problems
   • Anemia/iron deficiency
   • Exposure to harmful chemicals
   • Severe infections

Tips

• Many drugstores and beauty supply shops carry salon-quality products at discounted prices: if you’re on a budget, check these before heading to a salon.

Warnings

• Some people claim that you can strengthen your hair by pulling on it and twisting it. There is limited research available to suggest that twisting or tying up your hair will strengthen it by stimulating the arrector pili muscle. Many specialists claim that consistently pulling on hair can lead to hair loss.

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Sources and Citations

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