Hair Tips, Hair Ideas
Use a shampoo and conditioner that suits
your hair type.
Choose products that are gentle, best without any harsh
detergent like the sulfates.
For daily washes, use a shampoo that is mild, gentle and
moisturising. Using too much conditioner makes hair greasy.
For oily hair, apply a light conditioner at the ends of
the hair.
Ingredients such as coconut oil moisturizes dry hair,
makes hair softer and soothes the scalp; tea conditions
and softens hair; jojoba moisturizes permed or chemically
treated hair and makes hair manageable; silicone makes
hair silky; lemon gives hair a natural shine and conditions;
honey conditions deeply; henna leaves are natural hair
dyes; apple cider vinegar and rosemary oil encourage hair
growth and control dandruff.
Eggs contain lecithin which helps to
moisturize dry hair. Before shampooing, beat an egg and
apply it onto dry hair and cover with a plastic bag for
about 15 minutes (body heat intensifies conditioning)
then rinse off totally with cold water.
Olive oil is a good conditioner too.
Massage onto hair and leave it for 10 minutes before shampoo.
Massaging your scalp with your fingertips
helps the blood to circulate to the scalp.
On average hair grows about 1.2 to 1.25
cm a month.
Hair is most fragile when wet.
To make hair soft and shiny after washing,
blot hair gently with towel and then separate with a wide-toothed
comb.
Blow-drying damages hair, causing dryness
and split-ends due to the close contact between the heat
on the scalp and hair. The next time you blow dry your
hair, face the dryer downwards, use a leave-on conditioner
for protection and avoid long exposure of both scalp and
hair to the strong heat.
To avoid hair damage (e.g. green hair)
while swimming in chlorinated water, wear a swimming cap
or deep condition your hair before entering the pool.
Also, wash and condition hair as soon as you have finished
swimming.
Wear a hat when staying outdoors for
a long period and condition more often.
The best hair brush to use is one with
bristles made of animal hairs.
Do not use brushes on wet hair to de-tangle.
Start with a wide-toothed comb, then use a brush to style
hair after partially drying locks. If your hair has a
lot of static, it could be due to the weather, dry indoor
office air or a fine hair type, but you can also get static
if your brush has plastic bristles or tines. In this instance,
switch to a natural bristle brush or mist hair spray on
the brush and restyle. Incidentally, while some stars
swear by boar bristle brushes, other natural bristle brushes
are similar.
Whenever you backcomb your hair, start
with a small section at the crown, brush from an inch
or so above the root area straight down, pick up another
parting behind the first one and repeat. You can use a
sculpting brush for this, but often, a comb permits more
control. Smooth the surface with a brush after using a
comb to backcomb roots.
Do you have dull and dry looking hair?
Brush you hair with a good hairbrush. It will improve
the texture of your hair through activating the natural
oil in the hairs oil glands. The hair will look
healthy and shiny again, it will be more manageable.
Refrain from giving stress to hair with
constant perms, dye, highlighting, blow-drying, curlers
or the use of strong hair styling products.
Hair turns grey when melanocytes (cells
found in the hair bulb) cease to produce color pigments.
Split ends are preventable but not repairable.
Cutting them off is the only solution.
Flaking does not always mean dandruff.
It can be caused by overusing conditioners, the build
up of compounds from styling products, not washing hair
often enough or not rinsing thoroughly.
Nourishment
Poor nutrition, hormonal changes, stress
and shock play a major part in affecting the condition,
appearance or disapperance of hair.
Vitamin A - promotes healthy scalp.
Food sources: dark green, orange and yellow fruits and
vegetables.
Vitamin B complex - Regulates
the secretion of oil, keeps hair healthy and moisturized.
Food sources: cerals, tomatoes, lean meat, liver, kidney,
Brewer's yeast, eggs and green vegetables.
A severe lack of biotin (one of the Vitamin Bs) can lead
to hair loss. It works best with Vitamin B5, B12 and folic
acid. Food sources: cauliflower, yoghurt, wholemeal bread,
bran and bananas.
Minerals such as zinc, iron and
copper promote healthy hair.
Food sources: zinc - lean red meat, chicken, pumpkin seeds
and green vegetables; iron - beef, dried apricots, lean
red meat, parsely, eggs, wheatgerm and sunflower seeds;
copper - animal organs, seafood, egg yolk and whole grains.
A lack of iron is cited to be the cause of hair loss among
women who have not reached menpause.
Proteins - because hair is made
up of 97% protein (keratin), consuming enough of it gives
hair a natural shine.
Food sources: lean meat, grains and soy.
Winter hair - Wash
your hair less often so as to strip less of the hair's
natural oil.
Use a dry shampoo if you need to wash.
One way to have a dry shampoo is to sprinkle some baby
powder onto your hair and comb it off.
Deep condition once a week. Try massaging
your scalp with 4 tablespoons of honey and cover with
a plastic bag for 15 minutes or more then rinse off totally
with hot water.
Static - A
leave-on conditioner or hair mousse can get rid of static.
Hair static is caused by a lack of hair moisture. Brush
with natural and not plastic bristles. Get
a sheet of fabric softener and wipe across your hair.
It helps control frizz too.
Hair loss - Try
drinking this - blend bananas with honey, yoghurt and
low-fat milk. A drink rich in biotin can help keep your
crowning glory firmly rooted.
Take dietary supplements such as Vitamin
B6, zinc and saw palmetto. Supplements are useful when
you can't get enough from natural food sources (see Nourishment).
Invert your head while you shampoo and
massage your scalp. This helps promote blood circulation
to the head.
Eliminate stress or else it can be disastrous
to your precious hair! Get enough sleep.
To stimulate scalp circulation, massage
the scalp with rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) essential
oil or rinse hair with tea made from sage (Salvia officinalis).
In 76 Ways to Use Noni Fruit Juice (Direct
Source, 2001) Ms. Isabelle Navarre-Brown suggests the
noni rash treatment by applying noni fruit juice directly
onto the scalp using a plaster cloth. Another alternative
is to apply noni extract directly onto the scalp, massage
and leave to dry.
Dandruff - Dandruff
arises from an oily, not dry scalp. Use a special-formaulated
shampoo to help control the flaking.
An anti-dandruff shampoo should contain
tea tree oil, salicylic acid, sulfur and zinc pyrithione.
Use on alternate days.
Massage your scalp with some table salt
to remove dandruff then shampoo.
Avoid taking foods with preservatives
or additives.
After washing your hair, massage your
scalp with half a cup of apple cidar vinegar. Leave it
there, don't rinse off. Do this for a week.
You could try this leave-on after shampooing
: boil 1 cup of water with 2 tablespoons of dried thyme
for 5 minutes and leave to cool. Strain then massage onto
hair and scalp. Don't rinse off.
In 76 Ways to Use Noni Fruit Juice (Direct
Source, 2001) Ms. Isabelle Navarre-Brown recommends the
noni scalp treatment by applying noni fruit juice directly
onto the affected scalp, massage for a couple of minutes,
leave to dry. Noni can be left overnight or a few hours
or it can be rinsed off after about 20 to 30 minutes.
Rinse off the noni juice and wash hair. Noni has essential
fatty acids that help counteract hair and scalp trauma.
It contains antioxidants that fight against free radical
damage to the hair and scalp and may end chronic hair
problems.
Head lice - Lice
are very tiny wingless blood-sucking insects. They spread
quickly when there is personal contact or when items such
as combs, brushes, towels, pillows, clothings and hats
are shared. It is best that you don't share such items
with someone else. Lice infestion can also occur at beards,
eyelashes and eyebrows.
Ways to get rid of head lice and nits
(eggs) include : applying anti-lice medication (lotion,
cream or shampoo), using essential oils such as herbs
thyme and rosemary, manual removal and getting a hair
cut.
Wash combs, brushes, hats, beddings,
stuffed toys, school bags, coats with hoods, clothings
and etc... in hot water.
Vaccum thoroughly floors, furniture,
carpets, car seats and their head rests. Discard the vaccum
bag immediately.
Hair Clean 1-2-3 Lice Remover - A very
highly recommended and effective non-toxic formula made
from essential plant oils.