Hair Care Tips for Damaged Hair

Hair Care Tips for Damaged Hair
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Healthy hair tips can make all the difference in the transformation from damaged hair to an alluring mane. Five changes in your beauty regimen can help eliminate lackluster tresses and regain your hair's natural radiant shine. Damaged hair is defined as locks comprised of rough texture, overly porous strands that may be dry and brittle to the touch, hair that lacks elasticity, making it more susceptible to breakage, or hair that becomes spongy and matted when wet.

Limit Shampooing

For those with dry, damaged hair, shampooing every day may be harmful to your unruly mane. HealthCentral.com claims that there is no real reason to shampoo your locks each and every day. Daily shampooing strips your hair of its natural oils, leaving your scalp dry and prone to flakes, your hair brittle and prone to frizz, and color-treated hair can lose its luster if washed on a daily basis. Unless your hair is fine or oily, HealthCentral.com states that your hair can benefit from a few missed washes each week. Try washing your hair every other day, rather than daily.

Limit Heat

Damaged hair can also benefit from a vacation from heated hairstyling tools. Tools such as hair dryers, curling irons, hair straighteners and hot curlers all let off large amounts of heat that can strip the hair's cuticle. Allowing your hair to air-dry can help speed up the process of regaining its natural, healthy look. For starters, on the days that you wash your hair, try eliminating the use of one hot tool, such as a hairdryer or curling iron.

Add Moisture

It can be hard to control curly hair. The troublesome frizz and dry, brittle ends often stand out more than the beautiful coil of the curl. These unwanted hair nuisances do not have to stick around forever. According to Aveda.com, curly hair needs moisture. Daily use of a hydrating conditioner or leave-in conditioner will help prevent future split ends and control frizz. Dry your hair with a hair dryer on low heat and an attached finger diffuser when your hair is near dry. The finger diffuser will help disseminate the low heat from the hair dryer in a more even fashion, thus protecting the hair. Use of a lightweight serum, applied to dry hair, can help define lifeless curls and regain their natural resistance. Introducing these two products to your daily routine can help your curls bounce back to life.

Protect Hair from Heat

Taming curls to get straight hair can be difficult. Even if you have naturally straight hair, it may be hard to keep it conditioned and looking luscious and beautiful. This is because straight hair can require a lot of heat, which can be harmful and damaging. Heat from the hair dryer and straightener can cause split ends and frizz. Aveda.com recommends using a smoothing cream and glossing serum after your normal shampoo and conditioner routine. These products will help eliminate frizz and smooth and protect the hair during styling. If you're using a hair straightener, Aveda recommends using one with ceramic plates to protect your hair's cuticle from the strenuous heat.

Prevent Color-Treated Hair from Fading

Color-treated hair can often look unhealthy. If not treated properly, it can turn dry, lifeless, dull and frayed. "Marie Clarie" recommends using moisture-rich products designed entirely for color-treated hair. These products will help condition and restore your hair. "Marie Claire" also recommends skipping washes. By not washing your hair every day, this technique will help preserve the color and keep it true longer. Lastly, heat-styling tools can shorten the longevity of your colored hair. Specifically, decreasing the usage of the hair dryer can help keep your color.

References

Article reviewed by Pamela Goldstein Last updated on: Dec 20, 2011

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