Although you might not be on par with Rapunzel quite yet, you might be incredibly protective over your luscious locks. You brush your hair every day, you wash your hair with the most expensive shampoos and conditions, you use regular hair masks, and you avoid blow-drying your hair excessively – just in case you damage your hair in any way, shape or form. Yep, you regularly have your hair trimmed to keep it nice and tidy, and in the perfect condition. However, many people don’t realize that some of the things they do every day might not be helping their hair at all. Here are the hair myths that you should just forget already…
Myth: Dandruff means that you have a dry scalp
Let’s be honest, nobody like flaky dandruff. You can see it on your head, it falls off onto your clothes, and it piles up onto your pillow. Many people believe that the white stuff is a result of a dry scalp – but in fact, it’s a result of the opposite. Dandruff actually thrives most in an oily environment, which could mean that you need to wash your hair more regularly.
Myth: Stress causes gray hairs
It’s fair to say that nobody ever wants to have premature gray hair – unless you can rock it like George Clooney. Yet, many people put this down to the idea that stress causes the gray hairs. In reality, this just isn’t true. As you get older, the reduction of melanin production in your body means that your hair will grow through either gray or white. Stress will cause your hair to fall out faster and may grow back through in these colors as you get older.
Myth: Getting a haircut every 6 weeks helps it grow faster
When you think about it, this myth doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. Most of us know that your hair grows from the top of your head – so why would cutting the ends make it grow faster? In fact, getting your haircut every 6 weeks only helps the split ends that you may have, and will not help it grow any faster. To maintain a healthy head, scientists recommend a haircut every 8 – 12 weeks.
Myth: Air-drying your hair is better than blow-drying
It makes sense, right? Surely applying large amounts of hot air onto your previous hair couldn’t be beneficial? Well, it’s certainly not beneficial, but neither is air-drying your hair. While blow-drying affects the surface of the hair, scientists have discovered that leaving your hair exposed to water for long periods of time can actually damage the individual hair strands.
Myth: Wearing your hair up can make it fall out
If you wear your hair up most days, you may have had someone tell you that your hair will fall out quicker because you wear it up so much – but that just isn’t true! While tight braids and headbands can be stressful for your hair follicles, wearing loose ponytails each day will rarely cause your hair to fall out. Don’t worry!
Myth: The more you brush your hair, the healthier it will be
Of course, it’s always good to brush your hair – but there is no science to say that your hair will be healthier if you brush it more. You should only brush your hair when needed, and start at the bottom of your hair, before working your way up to the root. This will enable the distribution of natural oils in your hair.
If you love looking after your hair, you may have been abiding by myths which have since been disproved. So, make sure you’re looking after your hair in the right way!
