Your Hair Suffers When You Do This! Check the Round-Up of Forbidden Things that Ruin Your Hairdo

You pamper your hair with conditioners, carefully choose shampoos, apply hair end serum and use a hair mask once a week but your hair remains damaged, dull, frizzy and simply looks no good? A seemingly innocent thing may be the culprit and you might be unaware of that. Check the most basic mistakes and forbidden things that ruin your hairdo. Among them, you might find the wrongdoer which is responsible for the poorer condition. If you have these bad habits, give them up as soon as possible!

10 forbidden things that ruin your hair

1. A flat iron, curling wand and other heat-styling tools

Our hair doesn't like heat-styling. High temperature (over 40 celcius degrees) deprives it of water. An extremely high temperature emitted by straighteners irreversibly burns the hair and breaks inner disulfide bonds - damage that can't be fixed. Burnt hair isn't going to get back its proper moisture level so avoid flat irons and curlers as much as you can. If you can't do without them, always apply a heat protectant - a natural oil or ready-made sprays that shield from the destructive effect of heat and overdried strands.

2. Some hairstyling treatments and chemical processing

Apart from nourishing and revitalising therapies, we often treat our hair to theoretically hair-enhancing treatments which do the opposite in the long run, leaving hair extremely dry, worsening its resilience, elasticity, bounce, shine and general appearance. Notoriously damaged by chemical processing, hair is unlikely to get back its condition. The hit list of salon procedures includes bleaching, coloring, permanent wave, decolorization, hair extensions.

3. Weather conditions

Sadly, there is little we can do about them. You can't avoid the freezing cold, harsh wind and intensive sunlight which ruin your hair rapidly. The sun and frost don't just weaken outer hair structure but also the bulb inside. As a result, hair falls out and its growth might be blocked. A weaker bulb stops giving birth to a hair which is strong and thick enough. That is why protecting hair against the sunlight, harmful UV radiation and low temperatures is a must. Nowadays, next to the destructive weather conditions, hair is exposed to new threats such as smog, pollution, toxins which are dangerous both for your good looks and health.

In winter and summer, remember about a hat and reach for specially-designed anti-pollution hair sprays and oils - spritz them on your hairdo whenever you go outside.

4. Rubbing and tugging (physical damage)

These activities seem innocent but when you repeat them every single day, they ruin your strands - hair rubbing against the collar, earrings, necklaces, coats, pillows.... and wearing too tight hats extremely damage external structures. The worst crime you can commit against your hair is sleeping without the blow-dry routine after a wash - it is a huge mistake which quickly leads to damaged hair looking disastrous. Harsh towel drying does the same and causes physical damage on hair structure because wet cuticle scales are more fragile and sensitive and thus weaker so rubbing them with a towel devastates its condition, ruining the natural texture. After a wash, it is best to gently wrap hair in a (preferably microfiber) towel and wait until it absorbs the excess water.

5. Water

So innocent yet it may significantly harm your hair: too hard running water and minerals which build up on hair. Microparticles of such water cause stiffness and prevent you from hydrating the hair. Chloride in pool water or salty sea water have a similarly negative effect. If you want to protect hair from such damage - use special spray or mousse conditioners whenever you plan on swimming in the pool or sea. If your house water isn't soft enough, use a mixture of apple cider vinegar and boiled water for the final rinsing. It is going to soften the hair, increase shine and ensure the pH balance on the scalp.

6. Stress & bad diet

Hair gets the lion's share of nutrients from food we eat, therefore, if you really want to properly nourish and enhance the growth, as well as the appearance and condition of your hair, remember about the right diet high in vitamins and minerals. Hair is most fond of amino acids (taurine, arginine, methionine, cysteine, tyrosine) - they are mostly responsible for growth and prevention of hair loss. Check their best sources and try to deliver them daily with food.

Remember that there is nothing worse for your skin, hair and nails than strong stress. Chronic sadness and apathy are the enemies of youthful looks - you must be aware that hair falls out more because of intense, constant stress. Therefore, try to find something that will let you relax for at least a moment and be joyful every day. Giving your body enough sleep and smiling a lot - it's surely the best elixir of youthfulness in the world. For free and available now!

7. Wrong products for your hair structure and condition

You must have noticed that hair behaves differently after every cosmetic. Also remember that your hair is in a way unique and it will never be the same as your friend's or sister's hair so if something is good for her, it isn't necessarily good for you. Choose products considering exclusively the well-being of your own hair. Consider its type of porosity, appearance, the way your hair looks at the roots and ends, and pick the right products for your hair type. If it's a problem, use an online hair porosity test or a pro tip from a hairdresser or trichologist.

Just remember to always keep the balance and never overprocess or weigh down the hair with too much product. Mousses, gels, sprays and other hairstyling products are based on alcohol and thus they contribute to poorer hair condition, dull shade, breakage, dehydration.

8. Going to sleep with wet hair

We sometimes have no time for letting hair air dry completely. It happens that we wash hair late and want to go to sleep the soonest possible after a long busy day. Sleeping with wet hair - as mentioned before - is one of the strongest hair-damaging factors. Many people don't even know how destructive it is for their hairdos. I don't mean hair creases, breakage and frizzy unruly strands only. Wet hair is more prone to damage and rubbing against a pillow causes micro-damage on the entire hair structure which leads to serious long-standing problems. That is why a cool airflow of a dryer and a messy bun, braid or ponytail will be less invasive.

Also, you should remember that wet strands don't like any harsh moves. Even while detangling, show your hair some care and instead of pulling and tugging it, gently detangle using a wooden wide-tooth comb.

9. Wrong brushing routine and hairstyles

Hair brushing is an immensely important activity which - if done properly - moisturises (by spreading protective sebum), massages the scalp and increases blood flow, delivering oxygen to the cells, stimulating the bulbs and triggering growth. Still, in order to make combing a conditioning treatment rather than a damaging one, you must learn how to properly brush the hair and choose the right accessories. Remember you mustn’t tug your hair - no matter if it's wet or dry.

Be gentle and start with the hair ends to avoid knots and tangles. Hairstylists usually recommend natural boar bristle brushes: while brushing, the bristle touches your scalp, massaging it, releasing and spreading sebum throughout hair. Hairdressers believe sebum to be the best hair conditioner you can imagine. What's more, the scalp massage increases blood flow to the scalp which intensifies the absorption of nutrients and consequently speeds up the growth of new hair and strengthens existing hair.

10. Neglecting the scalp

Few people know that the scalp is the most crucial element of hair. Healthy scalp is like fertile soil for plants. After all, it is the ‘home’ of hair bulbs - the hair part that is responsible for the proper, healthy growth. The bulb is the command center, also known as the ‘hair factory’. If your scalp is neglected, dry or poorly cleaned - bulbs are unable to function properly. To make things worse, there are products which build up on hair roots preventing proper growth. If you want gorgeous hair, think of the basic things first: purify the scalp either with a pro scrub or regular at-home hair oil treatment.

How to bring back hair condition and shine fast?

Not everyone decides on a trichologist appointment or pricey hair clinic procedures. Is there a way to professionally repair hair at home? Luckily, there is! It is home hair oil treatment - safe and addressing all hair problems, it revitalizes and restores the hair stem, as well as cleans and relieves the scalp, nourishes the bulbs, enhances the (re)growth of strong fabulous hair and blocks thinning. Hair oil treatment also makes an ideal therapy after summer or winter time when you are exposed to seasonal hair loss.

Professional hair masks (ideally rich in keratin and argan oil) or revitalizing ampoules make effective treatments, too. However, before purchasing, make sure you can apply them to the scalp and they are free from parabens and silicones.