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Improving Hair Care Through Styling and Various Treatments

Having good hair can build your self-esteem and significantly improve your overall appearance. Anyone can improve their hair by making a few changes and avoiding adding unneeded stress to their hair.

Whether you have a short or long hairstyle, basic hair care is the same. While there are some different recommendations for straight versus curly hair, these differences are slight and revolve around taming curls or eliminating frizz.

How to Get Better Hair
Improving your hair can be as simple as altering your washing schedule or changing you hair care products. Many people wash their hair every day. However, too much washing strips your hair of its natural oils and nutrients, leaving it dry and brittle. Professional stylists recommend that you shampoo your hair every other day or three to four times a week at most.

When choosing shampoo and conditioner, take your hair type into consideration. Look for ingredients like Vitamin B, essential oils, shea butter and seaweed, which add extra shine and body to hair by enhancing its natural proteins. If you color your hair, try to get phosphate-free shampoo that won't strip your hair of its color. Only use anti-dandruff shampoo if you need to, as it's harsher than normal shampoo and can irritate the scalp.

Conditioners coat the hair temporarily, increasing shine and decreasing tangles. For chemically treated hair, conditioner is even more important, as it can prevent or repair hair breakage.

Avoid two-in-one shampoo and conditioners. Although they may save time, they aren't gentle and can leave hair tangled and feeling dry.

Other Important Things to Consider
After shampooing and conditioning, finish your shower with a blast of cold water to close up hair glands and make hair appear shinier. Along with this, other helpful tips to improve your hair's condition include:

• Never brush wet hair. 
• Wear hats when you plan on being in the sun for extended periods of time, as the sun can lighten and dry out hair. 
• Trim hair ends frequently to remove split ends and give hair a fuller appearance.
• Use caution with chlorine. It can dry out hair and change its color, so washing immediately after contact with it is important.
  

Heat and Chemical Styling
Over styling can be detrimental to hair. While good tools are a must, you should also try to space out instances of heavy heat and chemical styling. Blow-dry only when necessary, and don't concentrate too long on one specific spot with blow dryers or heat styling devices, such as curling or straightening irons. To minimize blow-drying time, use a towel to dry hair first and, if possible, let it air dry for about 10 minutes before blow-drying.

Try not to use straightening irons or curling irons on a daily basis. If you can, just use them on specific problem areas when necessary. Try investing in ceramic hair tools, which don't damage your hair as much as the metal ones.

If you perm or color your hair, use a deep conditioner once a week. Do not use more than one type of chemical treatment on your hair. Try to wait at least a few weeks before doing any touch-ups or repeat chemical treatments. These processes are extremely damaging to the hair and can dry hair out easily, making it highly susceptible to breakage. Avoid using bleach treatments because they aren't necessary for highlights and lightening. You can color your hair with a number of bleach-free products that won't cause nearly as much damage as those containing bleach.

Straight vs. Curly Hair
When it comes to hair, people generally have the grass is greener complex: They tend to want the hair type they don't have. While those with straight hair want curls, curly-haired people long for straight hair.

Use a shampoo and conditioner specifically geared toward your hair type or that will promote the style you want.

Curly hair tends to be the most difficult hair type to manage, due to the excessive frizz that often accompanies it. Combing curly hair is always recommended over brushing, as brushing intensifies the potential for frizz.

Both hair types should avoid too much heat during the styling process. However, heat styling used every once in a while on lower heat settings won't be problematic. Using thin layers of products throughout the styling process will help your style cooperate and hold throughout the day. Find products that don't feel sticky or hard. Sprays that lock out moisture are especially helpful. Although most sprays and products won't do any damage to your hair, some will make it look or feel oily when too much is used, so beware.

Hair Treatment for Men
While most of the main hair care tips for women apply to men as well, men's hair care is more focused on preventing baldness. Men's hair loss is extremely common and can begin to occur even before a man turns 20 years old. Although there are some things you can do to prevent hair loss, it's generally the result of genetics.

You can determine if you have a tendency toward baldness by noting the degree to which your mother's father has baldness (the baldness trait lies on the X chromosome, which boys inherit from their mothers). When men go bald, it's the result of hair follicles slowly get smaller and smaller until they can no longer produce hair.

Seeing a physician is important for diagnosing and gaining knowledge about the severity of a specific baldness case. Doctors can also for help you assess treatment options. Avoid specialized clinics, as they tend to charge a lot of money for tests and processes that are unnecessary or unhelpful. Instead, stick with dermatologists and licensed professionals.

Today, there are drugs that can stop or slow down hair loss, as well as ways to replace lost hair through surgery. Although hair loss was simply dealt with in the past, today's advances have made hair loss manageable and even potentially reversible.