Best tips for growing and maintaining long healthy hair
1) Don't over wash or over style and use the right styling and grooming tools.
3) Use shampoo and conditioner with growth ingredients and avoid harmful ingredients.
4) Never brush hair from the top down or when wet.
5) Use a wide tooth comb on wet hair and comb gently from the bottom up.
6) Avoid an overly acidic diet or even fat free diet.
7) Keep hormones and the thyroid in check and DHT in check.
8) Consume unprocessed proteins, fruits, vegetables, and supplement the diet with a broad range of vitamins and minerals and nutrients key to hair growth.
9) Cut back on coffee and sugar they deplete needed B vitamins for healthy hair growth.
10) Include probiotics and digestive enzymes to your diet.
We all desire healthy hair and if we can effectively grow it longer we'll do just about anything. Hair also represents our health and it really seems to affect our mood and attitude. So can we really grow long healthy hair? Yes and No. Our hair color, thickness, and length is governed by our genetics, but we can enhance what we have.
Does over washing affect our hairs growth? Not really but it does affect its strength to last as it grows. Once the hair leaves the scalp it's dead and requires great care. The longer it gets the weaker it gets. Too much brushing and over styling will dry and split the hair shaft. Never use the stiff plastic vent brushes with the little balls on the ends, unless you have shorter hair. If you want to use that kind of brush at the scalp to grasp hair while you blow dry for lift and fluff that's fine, just don't over do it! Instead of blowing hair completely dry leave it damp and try clipping hair up to achieve volume and lift as it air drys. You can use your hair straightening tools at this point or leave it natural or even throw in a few curlers. All of this helps to achieve longer hair.
Never brush or comb long hair from the scalp down. Hold a lock of hair with one hand for support while gently combing or brushing from the bottom up. Use a wide tooth straight and strong comb on wet hair to remove snarls.
Shampoo no more than three times per week, two times preferably. I wear bangs and wash them daily without washing the rest of my hair. Harsh ingredients like sulfates will strip the natural oils and dry the hair making it weaker. Condition, condition, condition! Conditioner is especially helpful on the length of hair. I tend to leave a bit on my ends for added strength and protection.
Diet matters. Gut health matters. If your gut is in poor health then the nutrients from the diet can not be readily absorbed and used for hair growth and health. Good gut microbes or bacteria through supplementing with probiotics and digestive enzymes are added assurance for nutrient absorption as well as helping with our over all health. Most of our neurotransmitters that feed and monitor our hormones are made in the gut. Healthy gut microbes synthesize and produce most B vitamins, which are needed for all cellular metabolism and great hair too. Certain species of gut bacteria, like Bifidobacterium are effective in producing the B vitamin biotin as well as vitamin B12. Both biotin and B12 are essential to hair growth.
Thyroid function is also vital to healthy hair. If hair is falling at an increased rate then most likely thyroid function is at fault. Be sure to have your doctor check your thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) as well as T4 and T3 levels. The thyroid also regulates metabolism, so weight may also be affected. I suffer thyroid disease and so do most of my family and relatives. My daughter and brother are thyroid cancer survivors. I recall being in my twenties and my hair health was struggling. It wasn't until my early thirties that my thyroid disease was properly diagnosed and treated. Now in my early fifties my hair is healthier looking than when I was in my twenties. I keep my thyroid properly monitored by an Endocrinologist, hormones balanced naturally, and sure to include a healthy diet and proper supplements.
Coffee, coffee, coffee. The third most consumed beverage on the plant. Excessive caffeine burns through B vitamins and wears on the adrenals. B vitamins are needed for cellular metabolism and converting fuel for energy AND hair growth! I love coffee and I do drink one cup during the week and weekends a bit more.
DHT (Dihydrotestosteone) is an androgen sex steroid hormone that accumulates in the hair follicle slowing hair growth and culprit in male pattern baldness. Women too can be affected. One way to reduce the build-up in the follicle is through preventative applications on the scalp itself. There are many chemicals that work such as minoxidil and propecia, BUT there are dangerous with side effects, especially for men, such as impotence, breast tenderness, and increase in estrogen levels. A safer bet is using natural herbs that improve hormone balance and reduce DHT, such as the herb FO-TI and Saw Palmetto. These can be taken in tea form or extract and the liquid can also be put in a spray bottle to apply and rub into the scalp. Some natural hair care products use these ingredients.
Gota Kola, MSM, Biotin, trace minerals, pumpkin seed, silica, Saw Palmetto, and much more- with NO- Minoxidil or Rogaine dangers!
Rawrlife Superfoods contains key food based nutrients, prebiotics, probiotics, and digestive enzymes for a nutritional boost and helping with gut flora and digestion to aid in nutrient absorption for healthier hair. Rawrlife also offers a Vegan Protein and Omega 3 Algae Oil which is also important for hair health and growth.I really believe that my hair's long strong appearance and thyroid health has improved since using this particular superfood supplement.
