Once upon a time I thought it would be a great idea to bleach my hair three times in one week. That didn’t work out well, to say the least. On the plus side, I learnt how to take care of incredibly damaged hair, and I mean the kind of damaged where you brush it and about an inch snaps off. I’ve nursed my hair back to health and I’m going to tell you how to do the same. You don’t need to have super damaged hair to take care of it, doing any of these will help to prevent damage and keep your locks looking more b-e-a-u-tiful than they already do. And, because I know you’ve heard it all before, I won’t add the mandatory avoid heat on your hair. Some days a girl has just got to use a blow dryer.
Go sulphate free
Sulphates are a cheap ingredient used in cleaning products and detergents to dissolve oil. Because they are so cheap, they’re also used in most shampoos as a way of stripping your hair of grease and dirt. And when I say stripping, it is seriously harsh. It removes any moisture from your hair, making it brittle and prone to snapping. Sulphates can also damage your hair follicles over time, meaning your hair won’t grow through as strong. Sad times. Brands like Happy Hair, Naked, Green People and Bumble & Bumble all offer sulphate free shampoos, and honestly I’ve tried all four brands and they’re just as good as normal shampoos. You do sometimes need to shampoo your hair twice but it’s no biggie, even with shampooing twice I’ve found my scalp and hair health has improved loads – it’s been nearly a year since I quit sulphates so I’m a good reference. I’ve found it helped with this dry patch on my scalp, and Scott occasionally gets some dandruff so I let him use my shampoo and it clears up instantly. And yes, Scott isn’t allowed to use my shampoo or conditioner normally because as a guy, he doesn’t understand that good hair products can’t be bought in cheapy stores.
Use coconut oil
Coconut oil has been my absolute saviour, she says as she sits with her entire hair soaked in coconut oil. All oils are good for your hair, however coconut oil is more easily absorbed as the fatty acids are in a straight chain and it has a low molecular weight. So basically, it’s small enough and shaped enough to get inside your hair rather than just coat the outside. Once inside your hair, the fatty acids in coconut oil binds to the protein in your hair (which, ya know, your hair is made of) and protects against loss of protein and hair breakage. It also seals in moisture and provides nutrients, as coconut oil is nutrient dense. You can use coconut oil as a hair mask, but as it takes a couple of shampoos to wash out I’d suggest waiting until you can leave it overnight to make the mask worth it. You can also just rub a little coconut oil in your hair ends instead of a serum, it is a little oily at first but it quickly absorbs in and leaves your ends looking very healthy.
Sleep in plaits
Have you ever wore a necklace for a few weeks and realised that a piece of your hair has basically been sawn off? Repeated friction is bad for your hair, so tossing and turning while you sleep can snap off damaged ends and tug out your hair. Sleeping in plaits will stop unnecessary hair loss due to rough and tumble sleepy time.
Wash your hair less
Greasy hair is annoying, but it has a purpose. Hair and skin follicles produce oil to keep our hair and skin moisturised, so as annoying as greasy hair might be, relentless washing it day after day is damaging. Plus, the more you wash out the oils the more your hair produces them – it’s like your body’s own SOS. Start going an extra day between washes, either with dry shampoo or an up do, and after a week or two you’ll see that your hair doesn’t get as greasy as quickly. Then push it another day, and so on. On a good week, I can go five or six days without my hair getting greasy, but as I gym most days I tend to go for two times a week. Not only is my hair thankful, I get to use that time watching Vampire Diaries or vegging out in bed.
Protein up
Like I said earlier, hair is made up of protein so making sure you get enough protein in your diet is crucial. Using protein topically also helps, either by using protein based hair products, I can recommend Lee Stafford’s hair growth range and Babyface Keratin treatment, or making your own. Egg, Greek yoghurt, avocado and mayonnaise are all great protein treatments but can actually leave your hair feeling a little crispy and dry so use an intensive conditioner afterwards.
Detox your hair
Hair products build up on your hair, especially silicone (another ingredient you probably want to avoid) and can cause your hair to break. Every now and then, clarifying your hair helps to prevent this build up. You can buy specially made clarifying shampoos, but they’re quite harsh on your hair – as well as stripping the products, they strip your hair’s moisture. To stop it from being counter-productive, use a protein treatment and then moisturising conditioner after your clarifying shampoo to restore your hair. Apple cider vinegar also works to clarify your hair, and its naturally acidic pH restores your hairs pH balance, calming down frizz by closing the cuticles. Simply make a solution of half water, half vinegar and work in to your hair before rinsing out. It won’t leave you smelling of a chip shop, don’t worry.
Use a lower heat setting
Without blow drying and a quick straighten, my hair is unmanageable and frankly quite ugly. It used to be lovely and curly but five years of bleach will (shock) ruin that. Despite my need to use heat, I don’t want to damage my hair so I use a lower setting. 220 degrees, the go to setting, is hot enough to boil water two times over – pretty much unnecessarily hot for your hair. Hair dryers also don’t need to be on the highest heat; I use mine on the coldest setting and it only takes around 5 minutes longer to dry than the hottest, plus I find the cool air makes it much less frizzy! Obviously if you have a night out and need perfect locks, go for your damaging temperatures but for day to day, try it on a lower setting – you’ll probably find it’s enough.
I have to be honest, since my hair stopped breaking off for no reason, I’ve not done any of these nearly as often as I should. I don’t use sulphates ever, and rarely use silicones in my hair products, and I don’t wash my hair very often. But treatments? I’ve definitely slacked. I do use coconut oil on my hair every now and then but I used to have egg in my hair every weekend without fail. I am going to get back to weekly treatments, my hair could do with some TLC. I hope you’ll be following my angelic lead?
What do you do to help your hair health? Let me know in the comments.
