8 tips for your best ever hair (that won’t cost you a thing)
Healthy hair is a beauty holy grail; something most of us strive for but rarely feel we've conquered. And it's not for want of trying on the part of professional services and products: a top hairdresser certainly helps, as does the very best shampoo for your hair type, a deep conditioning mask and problem-solving scalp tonics. But often it's the accumulative daily habits – that cost us nothing – which compound into consistent good hair days (or not).
"Small steps lead to big results," Anabel Kingsley, famed consultant trichologist and brand President at Philip Kingsley, tells Bazaar. "There are so many little things that can really improve the health of your hair."
Below, the expert shares eight tips for great hair that can be easily incorporated into day-to-day life.
1. Squeeze and pat your hair when towel drying. "Don’t rub and rough it up. This can not only cause tangling but it roughs up the hair cuticle, which impacts the smoothness of your strands."
2. Avoid piling your hair on top of your head when shampooing. "Again this can cause unnecessary tangling. Instead, pay attention to cleansing your scalp with a good scalp massage. The suds will then run through and cleanse your strands."
3. Detangle the lengths before you wash your hair. "It will mean less detangling is required when wet – which is when your hair is at its weakest."
4. Never pick split ends. "The further the split travels up the hair shaft, the finer and more fragile that hair will become."
5. There’s no need to use a scalp brush to massage your scalp. "Your fingertips are the best tools. Scalp brushes can be aggressive and might damage the skin on the scalp, plus create more tangles."
6. Keep heat styling to a minimum and air-dry your hair where possible. "Heat draws moisture from our strands, leading to dryness, which increases the hair’s porosity [its ability to retain and lose moisture]."
7. Don’t waste money on shampoos promising to halt hair loss. "Hair loss is the umbrella term for all types of hair loss. Hair-loss shampoos cannot – and will not – stop Female or Male Pattern Hair Loss or Teleogen Effluvium, since the actives in wash-off formulas are applied to a dilute environment and do not stay on the scalp for a long enough period of time to have effect."
8. Don’t skip breakfast. "It’s one of the most important meals of the day as our hair cells are most active in the morning. At all meals, ensure you are getting enough protein as protein is the building blocks of hair."
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