Hair Care For Different Hair Types

Processed Hair:
If you have permed, dyed, relaxed or bleached hair, then you come under this category and your hair is processed. Of course, colouring, perming and relaxing enhances the look of your hair, creating a new look and different shade and also thickening of hair. But it comes at a cost. The chemicals used for these purposes are very harsh. Over processed hair can suffer from oily roots but dry shafts and split ends and making it coarse. The disruption of the cuticle prevents light reflecting from the hair surface, making processed hair far less likely to shine than the natural hair. To know what the condition of your hair is, take few strands of your hair and put it in a glass of water. Then touch it with your finger. If they go down, then it means they are absorbing the water, and that is a sign of damage. If the hair floats on the water, then you know that your hair is healthy and you will do all you can to keep it that way. First the cleansing part has to be dealt with. If you have coloured your hair, use a shampoo which is specifically for coloured hair as this will be gentle on your hair and retain its colour. If your hair is permed or relaxed, then it is better to used a moisturizing shampoo as perming and relaxing makes the hair dry. Apply it on the roots and rub it in well gently. Apply that, use a lot of water down the hair shaft, and massage the hair shaft gently to remove any dirt or grime which could be there. Rinse well with water. After the shampooing, it is time to condition the hair. Using a rich conditioner, more of it on the ends of the hair, and rub the hair all over so that the conditioner is well applied. Keep for a while and rinse well with water. Processed hair is very porous and will absorb whatever you apply on it, making it thick and harder for rinsing out shampoos and conditioners. The more layers of chemicals you have on your hair, the less light gets to your hair which makes it shiny. Make sure you wash your hair with clean water which doesn’t have any sediments, and rinse well. Do avoid using appliances like a hairdryer to dry your hair, as it removes the oil from the hair, dry naturally instead. Avoid rubbing hard with a towel. Apply serum to whole hair and more on the ends to seal in the moisture and to prevent further dehydration..

How to care for processed hair:
When it comes to taking care of processed hair you have to keep in mind that the main purpose is to give it enough moisture. Processed hair looks good but it is often dry and with oily roots but the ends and shaft is dry. So washing processed hair is a problem and you have to be careful as to what product you use. A balance should be in the cleansing and moisturizing of the hair.

Top 5 tips for processed hair:

• Wash processed hair only every few days to prevent drying it out further. In between times use dry shampoo on the roots to absorb oil and grease.
• UV light adds to the problems of processed hair, stimulating oil production and drying out ends. come summer, use UV-protectant hairsprays to screen out the rays.
• Don’t assume a flaky scalp with processed hair means dandruff. It could be due to a shampoo that is too strong on the roots or, more likely, irritation due to the chemicals. If so, an anti-dandruff shampoo will only make things worse. Change to a gentle shampoo instead. If things don’t clear up within the coming two weeks, then try an anti-dandruff shampoo.
• Use an intensive conditioning treatment on the ends of processed hair once a week. Try one with hot oil.
• Truly damaged hair can’t be repaired and needs to be trimmed before the splits travel up the hair shaft, harming healthy hair. One sign of real damage is serious tangling when you comb the hair. This shows there are splits or tears in the hair shaft which is causing the hairs to web together. Book in for a trim – and ideally have everything cut from where those tangles start.

Your 5 key products:
Colour preserving or moisturizing shampoo; A rich conditioner; UV spray; Hot oil treatment; Serum;

Make your hair treatment:
For a rich mask that will restore essential nutrients to processed hair you should use a treatment that is based on dairy products. Mix the following ingredients together in a blender:

1 egg; 1 oz cream cheese; 1 oz butter; 1 oz water; 1/4 grapefruit;
Apply the mixture to your hair and leave for at least five minutes. Rinse off in tepid water and leave to dry naturally if possible.