If you want to get longer, thicker, shinier hair, the best way to do it is to boost your overall hair health. Many women seek quick fixes or buy expensive products to improve their hair, but the fact is healthy lifestyle choices combined with protective styling tips are the best way to get on the road to beautiful hair, naturally.
Styling Tips
Keep your hair healthy by using styling products and techniques to nourish and protect your hair. Be sure to use a shampoo and conditioner formulated for your specific hair type, and make sure one of the products you use has an SPF to protect your hair against the drying effects of the sun’s rays. Also, when you style your hair use low heat settings or avoid heat styling when possible, as heat dries out hair and causes breakage. If you do use heat styling products such as a blow dryer, curling iron or flat iron, saturate your hair with a leave-in conditioner first to help keep it moisturized.
Hair Cuts
Whether you have long hair or short hair, it’s important to keep your locks strong and healthy by getting regular trims, once every six to eight weeks. Getting the split ends removed helps keep your hair looking shiny, full and healthy. Since women tend to have longer hair than men, it becomes more noticeable when they neglect getting haircuts because the long, split ends will appear scraggly and uneven. In fact, the longer your hair, the more noticeable it will be if it’s unhealthy, so be prepared to spend extra time caring for long locks to keep them looking lush.
Healthy Lifestyle Habits
Practice healthy lifestyle habits, and your hair will radiate good health as well. Be sure to get at least eight hours of a sleep a night to give your hair time to grow and repair itself. Also, incorporate stress reduction techniques into your routine, as stress can trigger hair loss. Try meditation, yoga, visualization or therapy to help you control stress in your life. Massages are also great for stress reduction, and stimulate blood flow throughout the body, which will increase circulation to your hair follicles, accelerating hair growth. It’s important to eat a nutritious diet for healthy hair, as certain nutrients such as protein and iron, and vitamins such as vitamin E, A, C and B vitamins, promote hair growth, repair and shine. You can find protein in foods such as lean meat, poultry, fish, beans, nuts, eggs and soy. For iron, eat broccoli, spinach or red meat. Vitamins are found in a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables, including avocados, berries, oranges, spinach and lentils.
