Most women seek lustrous locks of hair to grace their heads, but often find that it is difficult to obtain the shiny, sleek look that they are going for. It seems woman have been obsessing over their hair for ages, but only a select few can really get the hair that they love.
It isn’t easy. There are numerous ways to help your hair shine and glow and many products claim to help you achieve that look and feel, according to CareFair.com. However, many of these products don’t work as well as they claim. We’ve all seen the “shake my hair and moan” Pantene commercials, but what should we really be using on our hair?
Many people have identified Native Americans and Indigenous people to have great hair, according to Indian Country Today. What do they use? What makes great hair?
There are things women do daily that they should avoid and what they aren’t doing that they should be!
Here are the top ten products and gadgets you should and should not be using on your hair.
[new page]1. Aloe Vera
The plant, not the after-sun lotion. Aloe Vera was used by many indigenous people to protect their skin and hair from the sun. It is a natural moisturizer and will keep your hair silky when you apply it directly.
Aloe is also edible in certain forms, and eating them can boost your immune system.
[new page]2. Continue Caring
You may have reached a point where you absolutely love your hair, but it’s important that you keep up your hair routine and even try new things to better it.
If you’ve grown your hair long and beautiful, it could be ruined if you neglect it.
[new page]3. Put Down Your Flat Iron
Hot hair tools are extremely damaging to your hair, both its roots and to its appearance. If you use hair styling tools like flat irons or curling irons daily, you could be doing more harm than help to your hair.
Irons can leave split ends and make your hair dry and brittle.
[new page]4. Saw Palmetto
Yet another indigenous secret, according to Indian Country Today. Indigenous peoples used this red berry to grind into teas and ointments that they would apply to their scalps. This would strengthen their hair as well as get rid of dandruff.
[new page]5. Stinging Nettle
This plant would not help ladies as much as it does men. It helped many Native Americans by stopping male pattern baldness. By picking it and infusing it into oils, the plant would stop the transferring of testosterone to DHT (which causes the male pattern baldness). Stinging Nettle also has Vitamins K, B and C which are essential for hair health.
[new page] 6. Your daily products
Be sure that your daily-use products contain more natural products than chemicals. The more chemicals you put in your hair, the more damage you are doing. Make sure you are reading the ingredients label closely, as if you were ingesting the hair product.
[new page]7. Make sure your stylist knows you
If you are trying to obtain healthier looking hair, make sure your stylist knows you and the goals for your hair. This also means making sure that you go to the stylist for regular trims every six to eight weeks to avoid getting split ends. Razoring and slide cutting should also be avoided because this type of hair cutting damages the cuticle.
[new page]8. Don’t comb or brush your wet hair!
That’s right. As good as it might feel to shower and brush and blow dry immediately, you shouldn’t brush or comb your hair while it’s wet. Instead, while your hair is wet “comb” through it with your fingers and then use a wide-toothed comb to finish the rest. Combing and brushing wet hair can caused great damage to the roots.
[new page]9. Rosemary
Like many of the other plants listed before, rosemary has great benefits for hair health. This herb can be infused in oils and rubbed on the scalp. It promotes hair growth by stimulating the blood circulation in the scalp.
[new page]10. Eat well
Having a healthy diet and drinking a lot of water will also help your hair health. The more vegetables you eat, the better off your hair will be. And let’s not forget your multivitamin! They have always done wonders for maintaining strong, healthy hair.