How to Make Your Hair Healthy

Healthy, shiny hair starts with healthy habits.

A good hair day can do wonders for your self image and confidence. Healthy hair can also make you look younger, healthier and more attractive to others. Beautiful hair isn't simply a genetic advantage. You have a degree of control that allows you to strengthen the hair you have and promote the growth of full, healthy hair. Help prevent damage to your hair as well and get the gorgeous, flowing locks you have always wanted.

Instructions

1. Eat healthy foods. Health always begins on the inside. Eating foods that are nutritious will provide your hair with the vitamins and minerals it needs to grow and be thick and shiny. Foods rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, such as salmon, can improve scalp health, according to WebMD. The site also notes beans and legumes contain protein, iron and biotin, all essential for hair growth. Biotin, which is also found in eggs, can prevent brittle hair. Lean meats, green leafy vegetables and low-fat dairy products can all aid in making hair healthy.

2. Use the right products. Salon-quality shampoos and conditioners can make a difference in how your hair looks and feels. Regular deep conditioning treatments are also important for healthy hair. If you color your hair, use color-protective shampoos and conditioners. Keep in mind that soft water is best for hair because the minerals in tap water can dry it out. Using a clarifying shampoo once a week can help with mineral buildup in the hair from tap water.

3. Use the right tools. Choose a boar-bristle brush over a brittle plastic brush. This can help prevent damage to your hair. Try not to brush your hair while it is wet, but if you have to, do it slowly and gently. Blow dryers and flat irons also damage the hair, causing breakage and dryness. Ionic dryers can dry your hair in half the time as a regular dryer, leaving less time for the dryer to cause hair damage.

4. Get regular haircuts. Cutting off dead ends is key to ensuring hair growth. If you do not trim your hair regularly, it can break off into split ends, which do not grow. Having a large amount of split ends can give the appearance that your hair is not growing at all or even getting shorter. Regular trims of about 1/4 to 1/2 inch every four to eight weeks will help maintain healthy ends.

References

• WebMD; Top 10 Foods for Healthy Hair; Hilary Parker
• BNET.com; Shape; Twelve Tips for Healthy Hair ... ; Kathy Miller Kramer; Nov. 2005