Trying to grow longer, healthier hair? We feel your pain. It’s not easy maintaining texture, shine, and length. Good news, it can be done—and done naturally. No need to drop excessive amounts of cash on deep conditioning treatments and repair products, just make a handful of small changes to your routine.
But, first...why is hair so easy to damage?
Each strand of hair on our heads is comprised of three layers—the medulla, the cortex, and the cuticle. The cuticle acts as a sheath around our hair, offering up 10 layers of cells to protect the cortex. The medulla is the deepest layer of the hair shaft, working with our cortex to keep hair strong. Any external damage hits the cuticle hard, lessening protection around the cortex and weakening overall hair health. Combine a weakened protective layer with internal factors (which we’ll get into below), and you’ve got yourself a cringe-worthy hair sufferfest. Damage no more, make your hair longer and stronger from the inside out with these simple, natural tips.
Begin From Within
If you’re only focusing on external damage—styling, brushing, etc.—you’re missing out on the most important piece of hair health. Ensuring each hair shaft is strong from the moment it leaves the follicle is critical to long-lasting, healthy hair. Here’s what you can do to help:
Take deep breaths. Stress is super hard on the body and can negatively impact our normal internal processes. Easier said than done, but take steps to alleviate excessive stress. Consistent exercise can be a solid outlet, helping to increase endorphins and improve mood. If you don’t have time to hit the gym or the trail, try an herbal approach. Ashwagandha is a key ingredient in our natural supplement, Calm Now, offering an approach to stress support.
Eat better or supplement. Are you eating a well-rounded diet? It’s easy to slack on nutrient intake, especially after a long, busy day. But, if you want healthier hair, you have to start with supplementing any deficiencies. Vitamins, amino acids, and proteins are necessary for healthy hair. Deficiencies in any of these critical building blocks means weaker hair. Ensure you’re getting everything you need with our natural supplement, Hairfluence. A combination of biotin, niacin, and a laundry list of vitamins including vitamin A, C, and D3, Hairfluence is specially formulated to support longer, stronger hair. An easy addition to your routine, take a serving everyday so that you may start seeing results in as little as one month. The skin and nail benefits aren’t too shabby, either (you can expect those after 2-3 weeks of consistent use).
Avoid low-protein diets. An extension of what we discussed above, protein intake (or lack thereof) can seriously affect your hair health. Our hair is mostly made of keratin, a hard protein formed with amino acids. Be weary of restrictive diets that limit protein intake, which is necessary for strong hair shafts. If you aren’t getting enough protein in your diet already, try supplementing with a plant based protein powder.
Recognize changes that come with age. Well, duh, but there is something you can do here. As we age, our hair can fall victim to free-radical damage. Our internal defense systems weaken over time, and free-radicals can begin to impact healthy hair production. A diet packed with antioxidants, especially vitamin C, can help supplement your body’s natural processes.
Control External Damage
Once you’ve balanced your diet and stress levels, it’s time to focus on external damage. This means making some minor adjustments in your routine that add up to big changes in your hair health. Get started with these quickies:
Cut back on styling. This is a tough one. We all like to look good—and with work, date nights, and everything in between, we can’t always take a day off from styling. We can adjust the way we style, though, starting with how you brush your hair. When your hair is wet, your cuticle is swollen, exposing the inner cortex and making hair shafts prone to breakage. To lessen damage, ditch your brush and invest in a wide tooth comb. Begin combing from the ends of your hair and carefully work your way to the top. If you can, let your hair air-dry and skip the blow-dry, straightener, or curler routine. If you must, minimize damage by waiting until your hair is damp to style and attach a diffuser to your blow dryer. Invest in a decent dry shampoo and maintain your style without overwashing. Shampoo strips hair of natural oils and can leave your hair feeling dry and prone to breakage. Try to go at least two days between washes (any extra is a plus) and invest in natural products that don’t stress out your hair.
Take care in the wild. The moment you step outside, you expose your hair to all kinds of damage. You can’t be a hermit and you shouldn’t avoid the outdoors, but minimize damage by controlling what you can. All year long, and especially during the summer, UV rays from the sun can degrade keratin and dry out your scalp. If you’re going to be in direct sunlight, try to wear a hat when possible to block dangerous rays. In addition to the sun, try to keep your hair out of chlorinated water as the chemicals can break down the bonds in your hair. If you can’t resist that underwater dip in the pool, be sure to rinse and condition your hair ASAP.
Snip, snip. Every long-haired girl’s nightmare—the trim. Believe it or not, the more often you trim your hair, the less you’ll have to cut off. By keeping up with dead or split ends, your hair will grow faster and healthier. Ideally, get a trim once every 10-12 weeks to speed up growth.
Get Growing
It’ll take time to see results after you make these changes, especially if there is existing damage. Stay strong and be consistent. Keep us updated with the improvements you see after your first month, we’d love to hear them!
Now go be great, we know you will.
Try Hairfluence today.
