Hey, everybody, it is the one and only, it is Melanie Day here with You've Got Curls and Hair Loss Center. As always and, it's like I'm always promising, bringing you the facts about hair care. About the right techniques, the right products, and just making sure that you're able to achieve healthy hair at home.
So, I’m always asked what my top three tips for dry hair are, and this winter, I’m going to share those with you. So I sat down and wrote them out, and recorded my techniques for keeping your hair hydrated in the winter, and all year long.
Increase Your Water Intake
Now this one’s probably a given. It’s also really simple, but it’s my top recommendation. For those of you who may not know our hair is ‘non-essential’, right? It’s not really vital for us to live, so the actually vital organs like our heart, liver, lungs, kidneys, brain; get all the water first and whatever is left over goes to our hair.
So pay special attention to your water intake, especially if you’re on a medication that depletes your water such as diuretics like high blood pressure medication. If you don’t like water, if you’re just not into the flavor, drink something like crystal light or put another flavoring in to change the taste.
Use Moisture Retention Products
Use products that actually help your hair to retain its moisture, not just water.
Some people think water’s a great hydrator, but that’s more of a yes and no answer. Yes, when you’re drinking it, but not so much if you’re applying it. If you live in a place Kentucky like I do, this part of the state and of the country really has lots of limestone deposits that make the water here very hard. Other places have things like heavy metals and minerals that just work to weigh down your hair and cause breakage.
Using water alone will make your hair puffier and prone to breakage, so try a product that hydrates, moisturizes, conditions, and even adds protein to your hair instead of just water, and only use water when you’re washing and conditioning your hair.
Limit Heat Styling
I know for some of us this is silk press season because the air is finally dry and our hair will stay straight. But don’t let that go to your head, and don’t use too much heat in your hair, especially when there’s no humidity.
Limit the heat styling, the blowdrying, the flat ironing, the diffusing, because when you’re doing that you’re damaging your hair’s cuticle. If you think of it like a pinecone that just gradually opens, you’re forcing it to explode. So when you’re bursting something open all the time, of course, it’s going to lose moisture, and not be able to retain the moisture you add.
I want to give you my secret winter hack for keeping your hair moisturized and enjoying the benefits of the lack of humidity. You’re going to thank me for this one later. For every silk press or blowout you do, replace that with three moisture sets. That’s like a roller set where you’re tucking the very ends of your hair, and letting your hair dry slowly underneath a hooded dryer. By the way, everyone should have a hooded dryer in my opinion. They dry your hair slowly starting on the inside which is the healthiest way to dry your hair. I know back in the day, you remember everyone you know had a roller set, so let's just spend some time getting back to those basics.
So those are my tips for combating dry hair in the season we’re in right now. If you have any questions, please reach out to me, and if you like my content please share it with your family and friends. Everyone you know needs to know about our hair care community, and we’re always looking for new members. We’re international, and we want to teach you how to have heather hair at home.
I’m Melanie Day with You’ve Got Curls and Hair Loss Center, and I’ll talk to you next time.
