Believe it or not, healthy hairs enhance facial features beautifully. But unfortunately, not everyone is blessed with healthy and smooth hair texture and it is not easy to work towards achieving manageable hair. We all dream of that model’s hair we see on a magazine cover page, and some of us also want to get glamorously healthy hair inspired by our favorite celebrity. But what makes achieving healthy hair such a challenging and time-consuming process?
Let’s find out the science involved behind hair health and explore tips regarding haircare products that, if followed consistently, provide you with dreamy hair.
The Science Behind Hair Growth
We all desperately want our hair to look healthy and grow consistently. But we do not look at the factors which are responsible for keeping hair healthy. If you want your hair to stay stronger for a lifetime, it is important to understand the science behind hair growth and follow the healthcare routine that actually promotes hair growth.
First and foremost, let’s talk about the hair cycle, which determines how your hair will grow from the follicle and how fast the hair growth will be promoted. The hair growth cycle comprises four phases, including:
Anagen Phase
This is the most active phase of the hair cycle in which the hair cells divide rapidly inside the hair roots so the new hair starts developing. During the Anagen phase, the hair grows about half an inch, and the entire phase lasts within 6 to 7 years.
Catagen Phase
Next is the transitional phase, or the Catagen phase, which terminates the previous active growth phase. During this phase, the hair strands are separated from the hair cells and the blood supply. The entire phase lasts between two to three weeks.
Telogen Phase
This is the resting phase of hair growth in which the hair stays inside the follicles but is not showing active growth. The telogen phase stays for almost three months, and almost 15% of our hairs are always in this phase.
Exogen Phase
The last phase of the hair cycle is the Exogen phase when the hair emerges from the hair follicle and falls off. After this, the hair cycle starts again.
Disruption in the Hair Growth Cycle
Every hair follicle follows a different phase of the hair growth cycle, so every hair grows and sheds off on its own. A healthy hair scalp loses approximately 100 hairs daily, and if the growth cycle is stressed, several problems like hair thinning and hair breakage occur. The disruption in the hair growth cycle occurs more often due to stress, poor diet, overexposure to chemicals, an unhealthy lifestyle, certain medications, or any health complication.
Under stress, the hair shaft is changed due to disturbance and irregularity in the hair growth cycle, which makes the hair more sensitive to damage. Under the irregular hair cycle, the hair does not remain in the anagen phase for enough time, preventing hair from acquiring length. If the disruption in the hair growth cycle persists, the hairs will not show growth as they used to.
Tips to Promote Healthy hair Growth
Achieving healthy hair requires more than regular conditioning and shampoo routine. Your hair requires breathing and treating the hair scalp with lots of chemical treatments, bleaching, and heat, suffocates the hair follicles which make it difficult for the hair to breathe properly.
- While choosing hair care products, it is important to know the ingredients and if these are friendly for the hair. Looking for products that are specifically formulated to satisfy hair requirements is crucial to stimulate better hair health. Below are a few tips which help strengthen and beautify your hair from the inside.
- Any hair styling tool that emits heat waves harms the scalp and increases the chances of split and dead ends, along with more hair breakage. Women who straighten or curl their hair more often develop frizz, and the hair grows weaker. So, if you want healthy hair, it is crucial to limit the use of heating tools and always use a heat protectant before any heating treatment.
- To ensure the utmost health, your hair needs vitamins, including A, B, C, D, E, zinc, and iron. You may boost your hair-friendly nutrients intake by consuming potatoes, spinach, eggs, milk, fatty fish, orange juice, almonds, sunflower seeds, avocados, red meat, lentils, beef, oysters, and cherries which are packed with essential nutrients. You may also intake hair supplements as well, such as biotin or collagen but always consult your doctor before consuming these as your body might not respond positively to them.
- Trim your hair after 6 to 8 weeks, as trimming helps in removing dead and split ends. Hair trimming, if followed through regular intervals, helps in promoting better hair growth.
- Do not wash your hair daily with shampoo, as it might strip away the natural oils in your hair. If you want to limit your hair-washing routine due to excessive oil coming out, dry shampoos are a great option to consider, adding volume to the hair while also reducing excess sebum on the scalp.
- Sometimes, dehydration inhibits hair growth, so it is important to hydrate your hair through deep conditioning treatment once a week. The deep conditioning treatments by using natural ingredients such as shea butter and avocado oil help lock in the moisture and condition your hair to give it a natural shine.
- Too much use of chlorinated water is extremely damaging to the hair and especially when swimming, exposure to the swimming water creates chlorine buildup that results in losing moisture and leaves hair looking brittle.
- Scalp massage is important to promote hair thickness and also increases blood circulation toward the hair follicles. Massage your hair by rotating fingers on the scalp in circular movements or you may do this with the help of a scalp massager.
In the end
You can maintain healthy hair from root to tip by learning about the science of hair growth and using the beneficial haircare tips mentioned above. Nourishing is the key to healthy hair; for that, you should choose products that are not harsh on the scalp. You may attain the rich, healthy hair you’ve always wanted only when you are consistent with a haircare regime. Having longer hair is not important, but having healthy hair is. So, always invest wisely in haircare products and always consult a stylist regarding your hair needs.