1. Cuticle Protection.
Each hair on your scalp is protected by a thin outer layer of overlapping cells (called the cuticle). It helps to keep the hair strong and resilient and guards the inner cortex against moisture loss and damage. However, unlike skin cells, hair cells do not regenerate themselves once past scalp level, so once the cuticle is gone, it’s gone – and this makes the minimization of daily wear and tear very important.
One of the most common causes of cuticle damage is boar bristle brushes. These can tear away sections of the hair cuticle, seriously weakening strands and increasing porosity. Instead, choose a paddle brush that has plastic, rounded prongs. You may also want to use a detangling spray to help smooth the cuticle before brushing through. When the cuticle is raised, strands tend to interlock like Velcro.
2. Brush Right
Incorrect detangling can cause a lot of breakages, which can lead to thinner mid-lengths and ends. Detangle starting at your ends and gradually and gently work your way up. Detangling from the top can worsen tangles and snap strands.
3. Skin Care Vs. Hair & Scalp Care
A useful rule of thumb is to think of your hair and scalp care regime in a similar way to your skin-care routine. You take them to the same places and they are subject to the same environmental assaults:
You cleanse and moisturize your face in the morning with products for your skin type, so start your day by shampooing and conditioning your hair with products formulated for your hair texture. Physiologically, hair health is closely interlinked to scalp health and frequent shampooing cleans and optimizes the scalp environment.
Cosmetically, clean hair also reflects light much better than dirty or coated hair.
Just like your face, your scalp benefits from the daily use of a toner. It helps to stimulate the scalp and ward off flaking and oiliness throughout the day. After towel-drying
your hair, apply a scalp toner to your scalp in one-inch partings from ear to ear.
Exfoliate your scalp weekly to keep it supple and to gently remove dead skin cells and flakes. A flaky scalp is known to cause and/or worsen hair shedding in certain individuals, making this an important part of your hair-care routine.
4. Improve Elasticity
Hair should stretch up to a third of its length when wet before breaking.
However, this often isn’t the case. Hair gradually loses its elasticity as it grows due to general wear-and-tear from
styling and chemical processing and things like UV rays and wind exposure – and simply the fact that it has been there for longer.
To restore elasticity, apply an intensive moisturizing
mask to your hair once to twice a week. The best ones are pre-shampoo conditioners that you apply to damp hair at least 20 minutes before washing your hair. Firstly, this maximizes the hydrating benefits of the product. Secondly, as the active ingredients are absorbed into the hair shaft with any heavy excess residue then being washed away they do not weigh the hair down. We make a multi-award-winning pre-shampoo conditioner called Elasticizer,
which was originally formulated for Audrey Hepburn.
5. Post-Shampoo Conditioning
One of the most common causes of limp hair we see is the incorrect application of conditioner. Only apply conditioner to your mid-lengths and ends where the hair is older and is needed the most. If you apply it too close to your roots you will weigh them down.
Philip Kingsley Trichology is expert in wellness for your hair and scalp. They will be sharing more words of wisdom in the coming months.
In the meantime, you can follow them on Instagram for some great tips.
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