“From a macroscopic point of view, first is aspect: dull, brittle hair and
Sadly, there's really no way to heal damaged hair. Hair is not a living tissue with regenerative abilities, so it can't heal. It has no nervous system, blood, or living cells.
A professional hair stylist will be able to diagnose your hair's condition in more detail, but in general, damaged hair breaks easily when pulled and has visible split ends (due to fragile bonds), while dry hair is often accompanied by white flakes of skin and a coarse, rough texture.
While the term hair damage is pretty broad, the five most common forms of hair damage include split ends, heat damage, color damage, chemical damage, and hair loss.
Fortunately, in the vast majority of cases, you can eventually grow the damaged hair out as long as the follicle itself has been preserved. The most common causes of damage are below. Damaged hair can still grow eventually, but routine damage can result in negative consequences for your hair.
Harsh shampoo, hair treatments, styling products, and excessive brushing contribute the most to poor hair health. However, other culprits include: overconsumption of alcohol. low-calorie and crash diets.
Using products that are designed to nourish the scalp and hair can definitely speed up this process, but on average you'd be looking at six months to a year to fully see a difference in your hair's condition.
Marina Hodgins, owner at Fringe Benefits Gloucester, agrees that clients will be looking at six to twelve months for their damaged hair to grow out, “It is advisable to use a professional hair care routine to nourish the hair and scalp which will speed up the growing out process.
Overprocessed hair will look different depending on your hair's natural texture. Typically, overprocessed hair looks and feels dry to the touch. It will lay in several directions and be prone to cowlicks and flyaways. Overprocessed hair may also take on a different texture, or not have the same texture throughout.
While these terms are often used interchangeably and have similar symptoms, there is a common misconception that frizzy hair means damaged hair and this is simply untrue.
People with oily hair or who use hair care products daily should consider washing their hair once every 1–2 days. People with dry hair can wash their hair less frequently. Those with textured or coily hair should only wash it once every 1–2 weeks.
What are the signs of healthy hair? Healthy hair strands have a sheen and a luster, little breakage, minimal shedding, are moisture rich (so not dry), reflect light, do not break when brushed, and do not contain dandruff.
“From a macroscopic point of view, first is aspect: dull, brittle hair and split ends,” Sitter says. “Second is touch: rough, dry and irregular. Third is shedding due to breakage. Look for more hair lost in the shower or visible on your brush or pillow because it's more sensitive to breakage.”
Sun damaged hair and heat damaged hair share most of their symptoms. Your hair feels and looks dry, thin, rough, brittle and dull. You may notice you have increased hair breakage, while your ends may be split and broken with white bits showing at the ends.
Everything depends on where exactly your hair is damaged. “If you have split ends, you're better off getting them trimmed immediately as the hair fibers have become separated and will never return to their normal self.
Basically, if you don't have a trim, your split ends will run riot and likely split further up the shaft eventually snapping and making your hair short, which stops it from growing long. This way, your hair can continue to grow healthily from your roots, but the ends won't fray and snap shorter.
Split ends are a sign that your hair has been weakened from chemicals and exposure to heat, wind, and sun, Blaisure adds. Trimming is the best way to keep ends from fraying and causing further damage.
Use a hair mask weekly.
She recommends looking for moisturizing formulas with ingredients such as shea butter, coconut oil, and avocado oil. While these won't repair any damage (more on that in a minute), they will add plenty of moisture. In turn, this makes hair look and feel softer and smoother—always a good thing.
Deep conditioning is a crucial step when your hair is overly dry and damaged. You should aim to deep condition your hair 2-4 times a month. If your hair is extremely dry, you should deep condition it weekly. Also, some ladies incorporate a hot oil treatment into their moisture routine, which is also a great option.
However, the news that daily washing doesn't damage the hair doesn't mean it's necessary. There are no hard and fast rules: daily hair washing is a “can” not a “must,” and more frequent washing is only required if your hair tends to be greasy.
She says it's more important to consider your hair type, texture and amount of oil production you usually experience. “I typically advise patients to keep to a standard hair washing schedule, whether it is three times per week, weekly or once per month, regardless of activity level,” she says.