We all strive for that perfect hairstyle with shiny, silky, bouncy, long and frizz free hair .To achieve this plethora of products like shampoos, conditioners,serums, hair sprays, waxes, gels, mousses, etc are available to beautify,enhance, strengthen, and nourish our tresses.
This article is meant to answer few commonly asked queries that we face as trichologists (like how often we should shampoo and condition hair? Does blow dryer damage hair? How to comb and when?Etc.) The article will be shared in 2 parts-part one[do's] and part two[don'ts]
Part one –Do’s
Routine hair care involves 3 steps-shampooing, conditioning, and lastly, combing or brushing with some extra care during monsoon (the season of extra fun needs little extra hair care!)
Step one -
Shampooing- should be done twice weekly (to clean dirt, oil, sweat, hair products, bacteria, etc.)
Dust, dirt, sebum (natural hair oil),and hair products build up on the hair making it sticky, dull, and often unmanageable. This is termed as a 'bad hair day'. This can be managed with proper shampooing which involves wetting hair completely, taking good amount of shampoo and applying it to cover whole length of hair. Keep it for few minutes and rinse thoroughly.
Nowadays many shampoos available in market claim magical effects like anti-hair fall, ultraviolet protection, volumizing shampoos and so on without any scientific proof. (So beware of such advertisements!)
Step two-
Conditioning-can be done daily to achieve smooth, shinyand bouncy hair
Shampoo with good cleansing effect removes sebum (natural hair oil) and leave your hair dull and dry. A good conditioner covers the outer layer of hair and makes it smooth.
A simple conditioner like coconut oil(not mineral or vegetable oil) can be used (it has been used effectively since ancient times when we had no plethora of fancy hair products to confuse us!)
Commercially, conditioners are available as rinses, instant, leave-on, serums, etc. “Rinses” or instant conditioners-are used after shampooing on a towel dried hair and kept for 2-3 minutes and rinsed. They are longer lasting than “leave on” conditioners or serums.
Deep conditioners-include various oils and creams applied for 20-30 minutes and rinsed off. This provides better shine and gloss but can damage hair if not done correctly.
Step three-
Combing-should be done twice daily to remove dirt and untangle hair to prevent breakage
Always use clean, wide mouthed, soft bristle comb. Start combing from the bottom and never from scalp as knots usually develops in middle parts and hair breaks as it gets pulled. Remove knots with fingers or wide mouthed comb or brush.
Never comb wet hair as it can easily break (let it air dry and avoid blow dryer)
Hair care during monsoon
We all love monsoon picnics-the season of enjoying weekends in rain water. With all the fun, you need to take little extra care of hair. Do not leave your hair wet for long as it attracts fungus (they love moisture!) And cause dandruff. Excess water takes away natural hair oil and conditioner that we use and leaves hair dry and frizzy. After having a blast in rain water, make sure you dry your hair (avoid hot blow drying) and apply suitable conditioner.
Hope you can use these simple hair care tips to bring back your "Happy Hair Days"!
In part two [routine hair care is not rocket science-don’ts], I will try to cover some commonly done mistakes that damage hair (for example-hot showers, blow drying, etc.)