To get gorgeous, healthy and thicker hair, you need to start at the roots and scalp. Caring for your scalp will help not only to improve your hair growth, but will also give you attention-grabbing hair. Find out what nourishment and care your roots crave, and you will be able to unlock the secrets to beautiful, shinning and thicker hair. Here’s what works for me.
Avoiding irritating ingredients in hair products
We often tend to forget that the skin beneath our hair needs equal care and nourishment – just like the rest of it. Taking care of the scalp is very important for healthy hair growth. In fact, your hair follicles depend heavily on the surrounding tissue for their blood supply to remain healthy. And you can help keep your scalp happy and healthy by avoiding ingredients that irritate your scalp.
I have found a simple way of determining what products or ingredients suit my scalp. Since the scalp is nothing but skin, as a rule of thumb, I avoid using anything that dries my skin or makes it itchy on my scalp. This simple method, along with the sound advice of a dermatologist, has helped me stay away from hair products that make my scalp dry and itchy.
So, in general, I look out for moisturizing ingredients in hair-care products. These are called “fatty alcohols,” which can be easily identified by terms such as “cetyl,” “stearyl” and “myristyl,” to name a few. And I steer clear of hair products that contain isopropyl alcohol, propanol, or ethanol, as these tend to further dry out my already dry scalp. In addition, to these, I also refrain from using shampoos that contain salicylic acid or menthol in them, as these do not suit my scalp as well.
Making scalp massage a habit
My dermatologist recommends making scalp massage a habit as it helps to promote blood circulation. She asserts that this will help to stimulate my hair follicles, making them produce more lustrous and thicker hair. So, I massage my scalp gently before shampooing my hair each time. Since I have a dry scalp, I massage my scalp with lavender oil for its naturally soothing and antibacterial properties. It doesn’t take long, just two minutes of pre-wash massage, and I’m all set for the week.
Limiting shampooing to 2-3 times per week
As a rule of thumb, I do not shampoo my hair more than three times a week. This helps to keep my scalp clean, hydrated, and prevents unnecessary stripping of vital nutrients from my scalp. Since I workout three times a week, I shampoo my hair after my workouts, to rid it of sweat and grime.
Finding the right brush
As per the recommendations of my hairstylist, I use a hairbrush with plastic bristles because it is softer and kinder to hair than the natural bristles. I also ensure that the bristles are ball-tipped instead of barbed and not thickly packed to prevent any trauma to my hair. In addition, I brush my hair lightly, and try not to brush my hair too many times.
Using sunscreen
Just like it is important to use sunscreen for healthy skin, it is also important to protect your scalp from exposure to the harmful UV rays. This is especially important if you part your hair. I apply my SPF lip balm to my hair parting, to protect it from the sun. In addition, I also get my scalp checked during my annual skin examinations.
These are some of the things I do to take care of my scalp. I hope you can benefit from them as well.
