Hair Styling products – a boon for gorgeous hair or a bane causing hair loss

In the present scenario, the world more or less revolves around looking good and feeling good about that.  The swish of the scarves, the twirl of the dress, the engaging smell of the cologne and the fall of that beautiful luscious hair, everything about styling invites you in.

With the advancement of the hair styling products, life has become easier, it’s super easy now to get defined luxuriant hair and easily escape that bad hair day. But every bit of furtherance comes at a cost and here it pays off as the toll it takes on those priceless mass of thin fibers that grow on your head.

Causes of damage to hair

Since time immemorial fashion, religions and customs have given rise to countless hairstyles suiting different occasions. These different hairstyles produce their different stress on the hair.

• A simple ponytail causes hair loss in the front and on the sides.
• Tight braiding can lead to central or marginal alopecia.
• The tight bun that you rock can produce horseshoe alopecia.
• Use of brush rollers or an overenthusiastic massage also causes diffuse hair loss.

Coloring your hair might be the trend for now but hair colors and using heat on hair have a huge impact on your hair quality even though it doesn’t cause hair loss.

Dyeing, perming, straightening or bleaching your hair neither affects your hair roots nor does it cause any permanent damage to your hair. However, with our body, our hair also undergoes the implied procedure of aging and then the damage would no longer be temporary.

When the doctor warns you about the side effects of these harmful procedures, you might scoff it off as a myth but once you have undergone it and the damage is already done, your attempts to gain them back might turn out futile. As said prevention is better than cure. Since we cannot limit the day to day styling and some hair damage is bound to occur, these desperate times call for desperate measures.

There are some activities that we have been doing wrong all our life that we were not aware of before. Even if you do the following small changes, it would make a huge difference in health and look of your hair:

• Always wrap your washed hair in a towel and dry it. Air drying would do equally good.
• The use of brush should be restricted as it may cause split ends. Usage of wide toothed combs and brush, while you entangle your hair gently, is more preferable.
• Do not handle your wet hair with a comb or a brush. Let it dry off at least partially before you tackle it as wet hair is more prone to damage.
• Curb the use of long-lasting products like gels and hairsprays as it increases the friction and can cause your strands to break after application.
• Always use the iron on medium heat settings and avoid excessive heating.
• Constantly wearing ponytails, braids and hair extensions also produce tension and causes hair loss. Why not try hairstyles that do not produce much stress, it might just give you a new one to show off.
• Get strictly lightweight weaves and hair extensions in specialized salons as they can permanently destroy your hair follicles. Avoid using rubber bands.
• Using hair color, perm, straightening or bleach can cause your hair to look dull as it erodes the integrity of the hair strands. Have only one hair treatment at a time and ensure a gap of 5-6 weeks between two procedures.
• Be aware of the signs of traction alopecia like itching of scalp, tenderness and a relief on untying your hair.
• Limit the use of blow dryers as they can burn your hair and weaken them.
• Using vitamin E products which acts as a moisturizer, consumption of green leafy vegetables, keeping your iron in check are all keys to better hair growth.

If you don’t wish to visit a dermatologist for traction alopecia or permanent hair damage and hair loss, the points mentioned above are a must to remember. As long as you keep your styling habits in check I don’t see any reason as to why you cannot put them to exhibit. So go ahead handle them delicately and parade those locks that add another beautiful dimension to your persona.

What hairstyles cause Traction Alopecia?