Would you like to have healthier hair? These 5 natural hair care tips will make your hair stronger, shinier, and easier to work with.
If you have visited this blog before then you know that I like to focus on creating a natural lifestyle. A big part of that focus is natural self care. I love observing how God created us so wonderfully. And I am trying to find out how to cut through the noise and consumerism of this world.
We live in a society that tells us that we can’t have grey hair, pores, blemishes, and so much more. The consumerism around us tells us that we need an overwhelming amount of beauty products or we won’t be our ‘best selves’.
We live in a world that rather focuses on how to hide manifestations of our body’s needs. Instead of spending time to understand the manifestations and address those needs.
In my spare time you’ll often find me questioning and researching different aspects of self care. How does my body function? And what does it need?
Because guess what? You’ll start to see your body thrive when you start to work WITH your body rather than AGAINST it. Excessive time spent on self care habits that don’t really work for you will be eliminated and your body’s specific needs will be given more attention.
Not one body is the same. God created us all in a very unique way. Once you start to understand and listen to your body, you’ll look and feel so much healthier. You’ll start to see yourselves as the wonderful creation that you are.
One aspect of self care that I really struggle with is hair care. Most of the women in my family have fine hair and since my teens I have been fighting that in one way or another.
I used to perm my hair for a little while, I’ve dyed my hair, and other times I completely ‘gave up’ on trying. I sort of built up this conviction that my hair just wasn’t going to look any better.
Can you see the mistake that I made? I focused more on the way my hair looked, rather than on the actual health of my hair and body.
That changed a few years ago. Even though there’s still a lot to improve, my hair is healthier than it has been for a very long time (if not ever).
Adapting the following natural hair care tips made a huge difference for me. Some seem very simple and logical but funnily enough somewhere along the road I lost sight of them. And you may have too. So, without further ado, lets get to it!
1. SWITCH TO NATURAL SHAMPOO & CONDITIONER
This first tip should come as no surprise and I have mentioned it before. It is SO worth it to switch your mainstream shampoo and conditioner with natural alternatives.
If you decide to follow only one of the five tips that I mention in this blog post, please let it be this one.
For years I thought that it was fine to use any shampoo and conditioner that you can buy in a supermarket. Or in a Holland and Barrett. For a while I even skipped on using a conditioner just to save myself some money.
Little did I know that I was putting so many harmful chemicals in my hair and on my scalp. And that following up with a conditioner after shampooing your hair is so crucial. Shampoo strips some of the moisture of your hair and conditioner replenishes that.
I was trying out all these hair products and techniques to make my hair look better. While my hair problems were primarily caused by using the wrong products for basic hair care steps. Cleansing and conditioning. It was a fight that I was never going to win.
When you decide that enough is enough and that it’s time to invest in a natural shampoo and conditioner. Here are 3 main ingredients that you’ll want to avoid:
– SLS (Sodium Laurylsulphate) & SLES (Sodium Laureth Sulfate):
These are harsh foaming agents which can lead to scalp irritation and strips your hair from
its’ natural oils. The hair needs to retain its natural moisture and oils to stay healthy.
– Fragrances and Phthalates:
Phthalates are chemicals that help fragrance stick around longer. Research has shown that
phthalates interfere with reproductive function and hormonal systems as well as cause birth
defects. Fragrances themselves aren’t great either. Fragrance chemicals can pass through the
skin and into the blood and many of them are classified as allergens, hormone disruptors,
and asthma triggers.
– Parabens:
Parabens are widely used as preservatives in many cosmetic products. They are oestrogen-
mimickers and are associated with increased risk of breast cancer.
Once you read up on the subject, things can get a bit daunting and overwhelming. I have found the Clean Beauty app super helpful in identifying harmful ingredients. All you need to do is to take a picture of the ingredient list and the app will identify the ingredients for you.
If you want to make the switch even easier, why don’t you try my favourite brand for natural shampoo and conditioner bars?
I have used it for two years now and I (and my husband!) am a huge fan. The bars are affordable, smell great, and they truly work.
If you want to read up on the subject a bit more, I used the following sources for this article:
– Top 10 Controversial Chemicals to Avoid
– How to Choose A Natural Shampoo (& 3 Of Our Faves!)
– Do you Really Know What’s in Your Shampoo?
2. INVEST IN A WOODEN COMB AND BRUSH
Once you have switched your cleansing and conditioning products. You might want to take a critical look at the brushes and combs that you use to detangle your hair.
If you use a synthetic brush it is very likely that you are doing your hair more harm than good. Buying a wooden comb and brush is an investment that comes with a lot of benefits.
Not only does it stimulate faster hair growth. It’s also better in distributing your scalps natural oils and is less damaging to your hair.
To read more about the benefits and my favourite brand for wooden combs and brushes, make sure to read this blog post: Wooden hair brush review – the benefits and TEK.
3. GET YOUR HAIR TRIMMED REGULARLY
This is a tip that I’ve only recently really started to embrace. When you want to grow long or healthy hair you tend to see trimming your hair as your enemy, right?
Which is what I did for a long time. I tried to get my hair trimmed as little as possible and when I did get it done, it was often by my mother or sister in law.
The natural self care enthusiast in me wanted to do a bit of research on this. Because I couldn’t help but notice that even though my hair is the healthiest it has been for a long time. ends would look a bit thin and ‘lifeless’ when I hadn’t trimmed my hair for a while. O, and lets not forget the split ends. You can’t ignore the split ends.
After doing some research I couldn’t deny it any longer. Trimming your hair actually promotes healthy hair.
Not only will it encourage new hair growth by getting rid of damaged, broken, or split ends. It will also make your hair look healthier.
How often you should trim your hair depends on your hair type, hair health, and your hair length. Read this article to get a good idea of how often you should trim your hair.
4. AVOID HEAT AND HAIR DYE
For some of us, this tip will be hard to take. But it’s best to avoid using heat on and dyeing your hair if you want it to be healthy. If only I could tell my younger me what I know now…
Hair gets damaged when you use heat regularly and in the wrong way. The scary thing is that you could create such permanent damage that the structure of your hair changes!
There are ways to reduce the damage to your hair when using heat but I myself tend to completely stay away from it.
This doesn’t mean though that you can’t style your hair while air drying it. Some of us will already have gorgeous hair when letting it air dry. Other people will want to style it a bit.
I’m afraid I tend to be the latter. So I have been playing around with different ways to style your hair while air drying it.
I might do a blog post on that sometime. But for now I’ll share one video that I’ve used thus far and I recommend Googling air dry hairstyles. There are so many options out there!
It’s quite shocking when you read up on what colouring your hair does to your hair. You’re essentially tampering with the natural structure of your hair.
And while you do that, it gets weaker and is more susceptible to damage. If you want to read up on this, this article explains it in detail.
Seeing that hair colouring is so damaging to your hair. Why not embrace and rock the hair colour that God has given you?
5. DEVELOP GOOD HAIR CARE HABITS
This is really a tip I could write a whole separate blog post about but it’s so important to develop good hair care habits. You may think it doesn’t make any difference or that you are already doing it the right way. But if you do some research, you’ll discover that there’s always room for improvement.
There are specific ways to cleanse, dry, and brush your hair to make sure it doesn’t get damaged. On top of that, there are hair tools and hair styles that will be better for your hair.
In the end, it’s very important to pay attention to your hair type and to adjust your hair care accordingly. Listen to your hair and see what works and doesn’t work.
Also be aware that the needs of your hair change throughout the seasons and the different stages of your life.
And don’t forget, the outward appearance of your body is a reflection of your inward health.
You may be following all these tips and have all the hair tools. But if your body doesn’t get the nutrition and care it needs. Your body will show that.
There you have it! My 5 natural hair care tips. I hope they will help you in your journey to achieve healthier hair.
If you have any tips of useful resources to share do leave them in the comments below!
Much love,
Jenna