It is a known fact that dry hair is the pre-cursor to damage. Different types of hair react differently to treatments and processes we subject it to. But all hair, may it be curly, wavy or straight, have the same design when we look at it closely using an electron microscope.

The hair cuticle is located on the outside of the hair shaft. The cuticle looks like scales that point downward the hair shaft. Healthy hair is shiny and soft to the touch. This is because the hair cuticle is all aligned and sealed. Damage occurs when the hair cuticle becomes lifted and ragged. Damage also occurs when the hair shaft explodes from to much exposure to heat. Too much heat dries out the hair making it brittle and prone to breakage. When breakage occurs, split ends appear. The ends break and split unevenly and Split ends can never be repaired, only temporarily put off by conditioning shampoos and styling products. Most hair damage can come from multiple sources:

• Mechanical – Even though our hair is one of the toughest materials on the planet if compared side by side to the same size of steel, too much brushing and back combing can lift the hair cuticle and expose the shaft.
• Chemical – Coloring, perming, relaxing and straightening are some of the chemical treatments usually done to hair. Frequent treatments and over processing can lead to dryness and breakage.

Too much cuticle damage due to over perming. Image taken from P&G.

• Sun damage – Over exposure to the sun’s UV rays can dry out hair. This can be seen as light streaks on the hair.
• Heat – Too much heat and too frequent blow-drying dries out hair and makes it brittle.

Hair breakage due to too much heat from blowdrying. Image taken from P&G.

There is no turning back once your hair has been damaged and splits. It can temporarily be hidden by conditioning shampoos and “split-end treatments” as it only coats the outside of the hair shaft but will reappear after the next shampoo.

Hair after using split-end shampoo. Image taken from P&G.

The only way to remove split ends is to have a hair cut initially and have regular hair trimming every 6 to eight weeks. If your hair is much damaged, you may need to drastically shorten your hair and start changing your hair care process. But the best recourse is prevention and good hair care maintenance. Regular conditioning is essential to prevent hair from drying out. If you have time, let your hair air dry rather than blow drying it. If pressed for time, blowdry it at the lowest setting. Also have a short trim every six to eight weeks.

Article by Rikki Ola

You can always turn to natural mixtures if you have been looking for hair care procedures without too much effort or money. They are easy to do and it costs a lot less than buying fancy hair care products. The advantage of using all natural ingredients is that they do not contain harsh preservatives or chemicals. To take care of your hair naturally, below are some tips to help you.

* Make sure that you are maintaining a healthy and clean lifestyle.

Drinking alcohol, smoking and insufficient sleep can affect our mane. Exercise is also a must to promote good blood circulation to the scalp. Stress can cause accelerated hair problems.

* Try utilizing all natural shampoo.

If you want to create a special Chamomile shampoo, you must have 1 ½ tablespoons of glycerin, 4 bags of Chamomile tea, and 4 tablespoons of pure soap flakes. For 10 minutes, boil your Chamomile tea bags in 1 ½ cups of water. Next, take out the tea bags and pour the liquid left in the pot into a bowl with the soap flakes. Wait until the mixture softens before stirring in your glycerin until it is thoroughly blended. Pour your final mixture into a bottle and put it in a dark, dry and cool place until you are ready to use it.

If you prefer to make a mixture of olive oil and aloe shampoo, you must have 1 tablespoon olive oil, ½ cup natural liquid castile soap, and 2 tablespoons of aloe vera juice. To make this recipe work, first create an herbal infusion by taking ½ ounce of dried flowers of your choice and pouring one cup of boiling water over them. Once your herbal infusion is created, cover the mixture, cool and then strain. Add your aloe vera juice, castile soap, and olive oil to your herbal infusion and then pour it into a bottle.

* Hot oil is one of the most famous products that you can utilize at home.

You do not have to go to the parlor to do it effectively. All you need is use the right solution, shower cap, and a hot towel. To make it better, use ginseng and tea tree oil. This oil extracts from plants does not only provide moisturizing to your hair but is extremely effective in fighting bacteria as it strengthens your mane. That’s one way to natural hair care solution.

If you use heat in styling and it eventually caused hair problems, solutions containing hemp seed oil can help bring back moisture to your mane even as you style it. You can also use Argan oil as it can revitalize and fix the damage. If you are having dandruff problems or itchy scalp, you can use rosemary and jojoba oil to treat these issues.

Article by: Rikki Ola